Taking Sides: Waffle House vs. IHOP

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I go with IHOP, because those Waffle Houses are disgusting. Pancakes are better than waffles too.

Hee hee, hoo hoo.

AIRMAC, Wednesday, 14 January 2004 06:11 (twenty years ago) link

IHOP is right, but IHOP isn't funny.

ModJ (ModJ), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 06:13 (twenty years ago) link

"i once got busy with a waffle house waitress"
-hstencil 2003

gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 06:14 (twenty years ago) link

Waffle House, because it's slightly cheaper. And when you're eating terrible terrible food, the least it can be is cheap.

Kenan Hebert (kenan), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 06:20 (twenty years ago) link

If I had to say either Waffle House or IHOP, no substitutions allowed... IHOP, because of those Harvest Grain & Nut pancakes. That is the only thing I like from IHOP. Everything else on the menu can be had for a whole lot less at Denny's, and chances are good it'll also taste a little better. The local sit-down chain Jim's is a lot like Denny's, except the food tastes so much better, and they do a fairly decent approximation of the Harvest Grain & Nut pancakes there too so hurrah for that.

But anyway, IHOP. If I had to choose between those two and only those two. Otherwise -- Jim's!

Tenacious Dee (Dee the Lurker), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 07:26 (twenty years ago) link

Yeah Waffle House for being cheaper. IHOP used to be cheap but upped their prices ridiculously.

Can you still order a Rooty Tooty Fresh 'n' Fruity breakfast?

Aaron A., Wednesday, 14 January 2004 07:28 (twenty years ago) link

Am I the only one who refuses to use cutesy, gimmicky names at restaurants? If it's dumb, I just point to it.

Clearly, I hate fun.

luna (luna.c), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 07:38 (twenty years ago) link

god, it was so tragic, a couple of years ago we drove down into the states, and I was so excited to go to an IHOP because of my glowing childhood memories (I lived in the US when I was young). anyway, we went to one somewhere off the highway and it was kinda crushing. (which solidifies my resolve to never go into another friendly's for fear of complete illusion-shattering. it's hard but it's like cutting off your hadn so you can escape the exploding spaceship.)

s1ocki (slutsky), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 08:16 (twenty years ago) link

Waffle house. There's nothing better than stopping during a long trip in the middle of the morning to eat cheap, greasy steaks and hashbrowns (which are better than IHOP's, IMO).

latebloomer (latebloomer), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 09:39 (twenty years ago) link

waffle house. no contest.

and maybe i was a little delirious because that night was in the middle of our driving-1800-miles-in-one-go day, but i think the jukebox was half full of songs about waffle house. like they'd come out with an album of country singers doing numbers about the joys of the smothered,covered, diced and capped hash browns and stuff.

colette (a2lette), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 14:18 (twenty years ago) link

Waffle House. fo sure
IHOP leaves you with a horrible burnt perm smell and are stupidly expensive.

LiquidTide (LiquidTide), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 14:27 (twenty years ago) link

i've never been to a Waffle House. OTOH, IHOP (a/k/a ISLOP) is a New Jersey institution.

Eisbär (llamasfur), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 15:32 (twenty years ago) link

You mean waffle house isn't a type of music?

Matt DC (Matt DC), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 15:33 (twenty years ago) link

fwiw, ISLOP was the greatest thing undergrad. at the one closest to campus, you could get a full dinner for, like, $6 complete with bottomless cups of coffee. this was back in the early nineties.

Eisbär (llamasfur), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 15:33 (twenty years ago) link

wow! if you go to wafflehouse.com you have the opportunity to order both the 'jukebox favorites' AND 'it's a waffle house christmas'

too bad my birthday isn't for months. i so know what i want.

colette (a2lette), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 15:49 (twenty years ago) link

Am I the only one who refuses to use cutesy, gimmicky names at restaurants?

You sure aren't! I'm mostly just like "gimme that one thing with the two eggs and the two baconses and the big ass stack of pancakes" and they usually bring me something kinda like what I ask for.

nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 15:58 (twenty years ago) link

Because saying "baconses" is so much more dignified than saying "Rooty Tooty".

Casuistry (Chris P), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 16:21 (twenty years ago) link

I would bring him FOUR baconses for having the dignity to order that way.

america's first municipal lunatic asylum (Jody Beth Rosen), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 16:51 (twenty years ago) link

It should be noted that if I'm ordering food at Waffle House or IHOP there is a 99.99999% chance that I am wasted.

nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 16:56 (twenty years ago) link

CLEARLY WAFFLE HOUSE.

Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 16:57 (twenty years ago) link

Waffle House. No doubt.

El Spinktor (El Spinktor), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 16:58 (twenty years ago) link

Bert's chilli says so, if you need some justification.

El Spinktor (El Spinktor), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 16:58 (twenty years ago) link

I once ordered waffles and steak and eggs at Waffle House and took the steak and eggs and stuck it between the waffles and ate it like a sandwich.

nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 17:02 (twenty years ago) link

was there syrup involved?

america's first municipal lunatic asylum (Jody Beth Rosen), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 17:03 (twenty years ago) link

Syrup, mad lotsa butter, and some cheese I stole offa my friend's hash browns. With my hands. That was a good sammich.

nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 17:06 (twenty years ago) link

Syrup, mad lotsa butter, and some cheese I stole offa my friend's hash browns. With my hands. That was a good sammich.

Next time I get hammered, I know what I'm eating.

Well, I would if I wasn't going to be too blitzed to remember this at all, but goddamn, it sounds good.

luna (luna.c), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 18:03 (twenty years ago) link

Donut Bitch must post to this thread!

El Diablo Robotico (Nicole), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 18:05 (twenty years ago) link

i live in ann arbor. we have no Waffle Houses or IHOPs around here to speak of.

i think.

Kingfishee (Kingfish), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:37 (twenty years ago) link

IHOP is good for froofie ice scream milkshakes but that's it.

Myself, Nicole, Ned, and our friend Dan were at an IHOP once in San Jose on our way back from Terrastock II. It was the closest option and we were hungry. There was much laughter and merriment over the waitresses pronouncement of providing "fresh frozen strawberries" with our pancakes. We just kept repeating that statement over and over again the entire trip back down Calfornia. Then the conversation segued into "theoretical worst jobs in the world" to which Dan suggested "Having to be a teacher who helps retarded children masturbate" to "Having to staple the asses of chickens together in sweatshop chicken farms to prevent their shit from tainting their eggs". At least that topic helped get my mind of the TERRIBLE TERRIBLE ass meal we all had at that IHOP.

Waffle House has a crazy jukebox.

Nuff said: Waffle House.

donut bitch (donut), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:42 (twenty years ago) link

DB, the Myself Police will be swinging by momentarily to cane your kneecaps.

Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:53 (twenty years ago) link

"Myself Police"

donut bitch (donut), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:57 (twenty years ago) link

Goddamn, how the hell did I forget that IHOP story? One of the best random catchphrases EVER.

When visiting a friend in upstate Louisiana once, I expressed a desire to eat at a Waffle House. My friend and compatriots humored me but made it clear that IHOP was superior. Strange times.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 15 January 2004 02:17 (twenty years ago) link

*rereads rest of DB's story* And how did I forget the worst-jobs-in-the-world followup! My memory is going, bah.

It was all worth it for the way Dan first said "Fresh...FROZEN...strawberries."

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 15 January 2004 02:19 (twenty years ago) link

IHOPs are superior. I could share the touching moment on our Nevada/California tour last year where we went to an IHOP after a show (the only reasonable time to go: 2am) and sat around and discussed how Joanie and I have connived to turn Jake into the sap he has always wanted to be. It was a great moment on the tour. And we have it caught on video, even! I could share that, but who wants sentiment when you can have stapled chicken butts? Not I.

Casuistry (Chris P), Thursday, 15 January 2004 07:49 (twenty years ago) link

DENNYS

stevie (stevie), Thursday, 15 January 2004 11:38 (twenty years ago) link

You freak, Stevie.

Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 15 January 2004 13:59 (twenty years ago) link

Should i share my story about why Denny's Is Horrifying And Must Be Shunned?

Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Thursday, 15 January 2004 15:01 (twenty years ago) link

Go ahead! Goths need discouragement.

El Diablo Robotico (Nicole), Thursday, 15 January 2004 15:04 (twenty years ago) link

The year was 1982. My family was in Colorado Springs visiting my oldest brother at the Air Force Academy. Before heading over to the campus, we stopped at the Denny's next door to our hotel where we underwent a series of horrifying restaurant experiences:

- The silverware at our table was CAKED with food; it looked like the previous diners had eaten their meals and then reset the table with their used cutlery. We asked for more silverware but it took them three attempts to find some that was actually clean.

- Shaken, I went to take a drink of water. My mother abruptly shouted, "DON'T DRINK OUT OF THAT!" and grabbed my hand. Puzzled and slightly shocked, I took a closer look at the glass and finally saw the ring of orange juice pulp around the inside of my glass.

- At this point, most of the family had lost their appetites, but my dad is stubborn and wanted to eat right then. He ordered a salad with oil and vinegar salad dressing. He had poured on the oil and was going for the vinegar when my middle brother said, "Dad, before you do that, what's on the top of that vinegar?" Dad glanced at it and said, "Oh, that's just pepper." My brother said, "Since when does pepper have WINGS?" Dad put his gnat-topped vinegar carafe back on the table and ordered the check.

We walked out of the restaurant and went straight to McDonald's. I think I've set foot in Denny's maybe once since then (the whole "we don't like black people" thing from the early 90s was an unnecessary nail in an already-sealed coffin as far as I was concerned).

Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Thursday, 15 January 2004 15:14 (twenty years ago) link

b-b-b-b-but... the Oreo Cookie milkshake????

stevie (stevie), Thursday, 15 January 2004 16:15 (twenty years ago) link

Are you sure those were Oreos? They might have been old 'Nilla Wafers that they found behind the fridge.

Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Thursday, 15 January 2004 16:17 (twenty years ago) link

The latter half of my senior year in high school, me & my crew had a weed connection that worked third shift at Denny's. We'd go in there and he would oh-so-sneakily place the dopesack in one of the folded (and now BULGING) menus. We'd leave a $30+ tip. This worked out for at least a couple weeks, until one day he got pulled over with five POUNDS of herb disguised as a BABY resting in a car-seat. What a mulleted douchebag.

nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 15 January 2004 16:39 (twenty years ago) link

Dan, that's a great yet awful story.

Denny's quality is seriously a coin flip. There were two Denny's just a mile away from each in Orange County. One was in the more upscale city of Irvine. The other was in a slightly more grimy but not so necessarily gang-ridden part of Santa Ana. The Santa Ana Denny's EXCELLED! I actually fondly remember great meals there a couple of times. Service was excellent. It even beat the Norm's right across the street. The Irvine Denny's on the other hand was a complete inately run shitbasket.

It really just depends on who is managing the place. The range is quality is huge and astounding.

donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 15 January 2004 18:52 (twenty years ago) link

Actually, Dan's Denny's story makes a great ghost story.

donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 15 January 2004 18:53 (twenty years ago) link

"And they he looked at the top of the vinegar dressing, and he SAW....."

*cue EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUGHH!*

donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 15 January 2004 18:54 (twenty years ago) link

(x-post) range "of" quality
(x-post again) And "then" he

donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 15 January 2004 18:55 (twenty years ago) link

"Moons Over My Hammie"

Kingfishee (Kingfish), Thursday, 15 January 2004 18:56 (twenty years ago) link

The same group of friends in my story above used to use "moons over my hammie" as a euphamism for when you accidentally had to see a naked man bending over from behind.

nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 15 January 2004 18:58 (twenty years ago) link

The goggles, they do nothing!!

luna (luna.c), Thursday, 15 January 2004 19:05 (twenty years ago) link

"Having to staple the asses of chickens together in sweatshop chicken farms to prevent their shit from tainting their eggs".

"So I urge you to telephone your congressperson immediately and state your position on this issue clearly and forcefully, as follows: 'I favor gluing turkey rectums!'" -- Dave Barry

Although this means some number of people would be employed as turkey rectum gluers. TS: gluing turkey butts vs. eating at the Denny's Dan described.

j.lu (j.lu), Thursday, 15 January 2004 20:58 (twenty years ago) link

Bring on the turkeys.

Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Thursday, 15 January 2004 20:58 (twenty years ago) link

If only I had the relief of this joyous thread update earlier today, but as a comedown relaxant for tonight it is wonder. :-)

Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 16 January 2004 02:37 (twenty years ago) link

Waffle House all the way. Not just for the Waffle House corporate songs, but they also serve grits there.

Elvis Telecom (Chris Barrus), Friday, 16 January 2004 02:45 (twenty years ago) link

Waffle House by far. If I'm gonna eat craptastic breakfast food, it's good not to feel totally ripped off as well as sick.

Village Inn "Santa Fe Chicken Skillet" is pretty great if sufficiently drunk and hungry.

Hunter (Hunter), Friday, 16 January 2004 03:21 (twenty years ago) link

one year passes...
they have pumpkin pancakes at IHOP now.

teeny (teeny), Friday, 16 September 2005 00:55 (eighteen years ago) link

people who prefer IHOP to waffle house, like ned's louisiana friends upthread, probably do so because they consider it just a little fancier, a little classier. these people are insane, obviously.

waffle house all the way. that said, in the 3 million times i've drunkenly eaten there, they have a 0% success rate at getting even the simplest order 100% correct, bless em.

um, i ordered grits as well.

oh. ok. i'll get them in a minute, honey.

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:11 (eighteen years ago) link

Scattered, smothered, covered and chunked, bitches!

rogermexico (rogermexico), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:15 (eighteen years ago) link

can i refresh your coffee for ya????!!!!!
http://www.wafflehouse.com/images/sidephoto41.jpg

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:19 (eighteen years ago) link

Perkin's, there was a 24-hour one near where I went to undergrad. I'd never gone to a Waffle House until a few weeks ago. Pecan waffle for less than $3 = classic.

dar1a g (daria g), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:22 (eighteen years ago) link

Indeed, Perkins > Friendly's

rogermexico (rogermexico), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:27 (eighteen years ago) link

in the 3 million times i've been to waffle houses around this land, i've never had a waffle.

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:37 (eighteen years ago) link

Perkin's potato pancakes with applesauce and sour cream. mmm.

dar1a g (daria g), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:44 (eighteen years ago) link

I'm still pissed off that we have Perkins around here and a few random IHOPs, but no Denny's or Waffle House. We had Denny's but the franchise guy closed them, and some of the IHOPs have the audacity to close at 10PM or some nonsense. I guess we have Bakers Square too, but wtf. I would kill for a few Waffle Houses, those places have amazing hash browns.

mike h. (mike h.), Friday, 16 September 2005 01:49 (eighteen years ago) link

Waffle House:

Country fried steak & eggs w/sausage gravy. Awesome.

shookout (shookout), Friday, 16 September 2005 02:00 (eighteen years ago) link

Waffle House - Because it's cheap; they serve waffles; you can still smoke in there (if one is so inclined); they don't take credit, but they do have an ATM; the one by the airport still has the plastic gold see-thru partitions between booths.

IHOP gets points for just putting the damn pitcher of coffee on your table, allowing you to serve yourself. However, last time I was there, the A/C wasn't working. The hostess just gave me a menu to fan myself.

Also, at IHOP and Denny's, there's the odd chance that you might get seated at an actual table. Fuck that, bring on the booths. Denny's does have those U-shaped booths than can fool a drunk into thinking that he's been seated at the Peppermint Lounge or somewhere.

I've told this story before, but I'll tell it again. A friend and I were at the Perkins off Riverside in Minneapolis. We both had the raspberry pie, and it was sooo good. The waiter came by and asked how it was, and my friend replied, "My God, it's orgasmic!"

Without missing a beat, the waiter responded with "That's great! I'll bring over some more napkins."

And THAT, my friends, is what you call a snappy comeback.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 03:36 (eighteen years ago) link

hahahaha. i wonder how many customers use that "orgasmic" line on him.

waffle house CRUSHES all opponents, but the last time i was at a denny's (in the middle of the night while drunk SHOCKAH), my glob of greasy melted crap was darned tasty.

s/c (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 16 September 2005 04:26 (eighteen years ago) link

mmmm greasy melted crap

tokyo nursery school: afternoon session (rosemary), Friday, 16 September 2005 04:37 (eighteen years ago) link

waffle house, no question

hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 16 September 2005 04:43 (eighteen years ago) link

A few hot Saturday afternoons ago, a guy came into Waffle House with six kids and played "Purple Rain" on the jukebox. You don't get that at IHOP.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 16:48 (eighteen years ago) link

It's hard to believe anyone would pick IHOP over Waffle House. It makes no sense!

O'so Krispie (Ex Leon), Friday, 16 September 2005 16:52 (eighteen years ago) link

i wonder how the Best IHOP compares with the Best Waffle House, and how the worst of each compare.

i imagine that the Best IHOP Ever might be pretty great, but by and large they seem medicore at best. Waffle House has more personality, as a chain, but i have had far fewer WH experiences.

carly (carly), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:09 (eighteen years ago) link

For the record, the points for the "Purple Rain" song were awarded to Waffle House - not against.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:19 (eighteen years ago) link


We don't have waffle house here in Chicago.

The IHOP has good coffee, good OJ, and I like their variety of pancakes. I'm biased though...IHOP is one of my favorite chains, everything smells so good and looks so good. I suppose they'll get bombed out of business now that I said that.

But I've never been to Waffle House so I don't know.

simian (dymaxia), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:25 (eighteen years ago) link

waffle houses have that romance of 'being tired and miserable on the road' vibe going for them.

latebloomer (latebloomer), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:27 (eighteen years ago) link

for the record, IHOP never paid me to endorse them. ;)

simian (dymaxia), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:28 (eighteen years ago) link

I grew up with Perkin's so that's a sentimental favorite. Waffle House PWNS, though.

The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:30 (eighteen years ago) link

What is good about IHOP: that butter pecan syrup they have. Yum.

I would probably like Waffle House more though, if I had been there more than once. They seem to be KEEPIN IT REAL.

n/a (Nick A.), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:31 (eighteen years ago) link

I grew up with Perkin's so that's a sentimental favorite.

WHAt ABOUT EMBER'S? ALWAYS FORGOTTEN...

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:34 (eighteen years ago) link

several x-posts to andrew

but you totally order so much stuff, if memory serves correctly!


my vote goes to waffle house.

ai lien (kold_krush), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:38 (eighteen years ago) link

Apparently I can't spell "Perkins" anymore!

I like Embers fine but it's no Perkins.

The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:39 (eighteen years ago) link

ATTN: MIDWESTERNERS

Are there still Happy Chefs out there? I miss seeing those square boxy buildings with the marquee bulbs lining the edges.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:42 (eighteen years ago) link

IHOP gets points for just putting the damn pitcher of coffee on your table, allowing you to serve yourself.

one tired morning at IHOP a few months ago i reached for the maple syrup to pour on my pancakes, only to realize too late i had mistakenly grabbed the coffee. i had actually taken a bite before realizing what happened.

latebloomer (latebloomer), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:45 (eighteen years ago) link

not the best taste frankly, coffee pancakes.

latebloomer (latebloomer), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:46 (eighteen years ago) link

I did the same thing, but substitute "evening" for "morning," "generic Italian restaurant" for "IHOP," "years" for "months," "sugar" for "maple syrup," "in" for "on," "iced tea" for "pancakes," "parmesan cheese" for "coffee," and accept that I realized what I had done before I took a sip.

n/a (Nick A.), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:48 (eighteen years ago) link

In many many ways, Waffle House is superior, but the thing that IHOP has that totally rocks my world is BLINTZES.

teeny (teeny), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:50 (eighteen years ago) link

xpost
it's the food version of beer goggles i think, ai lien. i always worry it's not going to be enough so i order too much. but weren't you impressed how a skinny dude could put away so much greasy brown food?!

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:51 (eighteen years ago) link

also, have you ever known a waffle house to go out of business (unless it was destroyed by a tornado, as was the case with one here a few years back)? on the other hand, you can drive by a pawn shop or stereo/furniture rental business and go "hey, old IHOP."

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:53 (eighteen years ago) link

That would've been a huge container of syrup, bloomer.

I've got a "not-sweet-yams-but-MASHED-CARROTS!" story I could share, but I'll wait for the Luby's/Picadilly's thread.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:54 (eighteen years ago) link

How many stand-up routines do you think have been developed around the use of the word "International" in IHOP's name?

n/a (Nick A.), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:55 (eighteen years ago) link

what's the deal, people? i mean, the only thing "international" about this place is the DISHWASHER!!! COME ON!!!

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 17:59 (eighteen years ago) link

and pleasant, we could definitely speak about cafeteria culture sometime. of course in mississippi it was Morrison's. OLD PEOPLE (and me and a few others i know) LOVE CAFETERIAS.

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 18:02 (eighteen years ago) link

*whispered* luby's

ai lien (kold_krush), Friday, 16 September 2005 18:02 (eighteen years ago) link

MACARONI AND CHEESE AND PILE IT ON PLEASE

andrew m. (andrewmorgan), Friday, 16 September 2005 18:07 (eighteen years ago) link

mashed potatoes...WHITE GRAVY

ai lien (kold_krush), Friday, 16 September 2005 18:11 (eighteen years ago) link

I have fond memories of the starry, starry ceiling at Wyatt's on Rodney Parham. The fish was good, too.

Yeah, old IHOPs are about as easy to spot as former Pizza Hut's. Once, I was driving at dusk down Markham without my glasses, and was just amazed by how blue the sky looked. It took me a second to really focus before I realized that I was looking at the high roof of an IHOP.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 16 September 2005 18:14 (eighteen years ago) link

I have fond memories of my brother upsetting all the syrup pitchers in multiple flavors at IHOP. He was very small, only 3 or 4 probably, but he used the table for leverage to get into the booth, and they all tipped over!

I've never heard of Waffle House.

youn, Friday, 16 September 2005 18:19 (eighteen years ago) link

I looked in to franchising a Waffle House and you actually have to work there to be allowed to do it.

mcd (mcd), Friday, 16 September 2005 18:35 (eighteen years ago) link

why?

ai lien (kold_krush), Friday, 16 September 2005 19:35 (eighteen years ago) link

probably so you don't fuck it up.

hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 16 September 2005 19:37 (eighteen years ago) link

Hahaha I was going to say "Presumably so you don't try to turn it into an IHOP" but I like stence's version of the answer more.

The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Friday, 16 September 2005 19:38 (eighteen years ago) link

In many many ways, Waffle House is superior, but the thing that IHOP has that totally rocks my world is BLINTZES.

why i love where i live: i can get blintzes around the corner!

s/c (Jody Beth Rosen), Saturday, 17 September 2005 04:01 (eighteen years ago) link

http://www.sixstringdreams.com/images/roffle_house%5B1%5D.jpg

s/c (Jody Beth Rosen), Saturday, 17 September 2005 04:05 (eighteen years ago) link

There's no Waffle House in Harlem.

scrimhaw1837 (son_of_scrimshaw), Saturday, 17 September 2005 04:18 (eighteen years ago) link

i wish there were! i was in harlem today.

s/c (Jody Beth Rosen), Saturday, 17 September 2005 04:28 (eighteen years ago) link

the Waffle House in my town got turned into a mortuary shipping service. It still looks like a Waffle House, it's just painted grey and has hearses parked out front.

jxnx (jxnx), Saturday, 17 September 2005 05:33 (eighteen years ago) link

Several Waffle Houses in my hometown got turned in to "Sunshine Cafe"s. Same exact menu tho.

shookout (shookout), Saturday, 17 September 2005 05:38 (eighteen years ago) link

There's a hearse that is frequently parked outside of my closest Waffle House. You'd think that they'd make that guy park around back or something.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Saturday, 17 September 2005 05:48 (eighteen years ago) link

I owe Hstencil bigtime for taking me to my first Waffle House.

Nickalicious's weed-dealer story is still the hidden gem of this thread.

Matos-Webster Dictionary (M Matos), Saturday, 17 September 2005 07:21 (eighteen years ago) link

are there ANY waffle houses in areas northeast of, say, the philadelphia metro area? i don't think that i've ever even SEEN on of these franchises.

Eisbär (llamasfur), Saturday, 17 September 2005 07:39 (eighteen years ago) link

Waffle House because IHOP no longer has buckwheat pancakes, but I don't get to either very often, just on road trips.

last time I went to WH was on 1-81 in VA where the guy sitting next to me was vehemently refused his special request on the souped-up home fries. those potatoes are over-the-top already.

the original Perkins Pancake House was in my Cincinnati neighborhood. a real hole-in-the-wall on Hamilton Ave.

m coleman (lovebug starski), Saturday, 17 September 2005 11:10 (eighteen years ago) link

Waffle House, definitely.

Last time I went to IHOP I ordered the ice cream sundae, and there was a long hair in it. I sent it back and told them I didn't want another one, but they brought me another anyway. I let my friends eat it. When I went to the counter to pay for my drink, they charged me for the sundae too. When I tried to explain the situation, the hostess woman threatened to call the cops if I didn't pay up. I gave them my $3, and will never go back.

pinkerton, Saturday, 17 September 2005 18:17 (eighteen years ago) link

There's a hearse that is frequently parked outside of my closest Waffle House. You'd think that they'd make that guy park around back or something.

I'd lose my shit if I ever saw a hearse at the back of a Waffle House.

Rock Hardy (Rock Hardy), Saturday, 17 September 2005 18:30 (eighteen years ago) link

When they refer to as "Burt's Chili", the apostrophe is being used as a contraction and not a possessive, see...

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Saturday, 17 September 2005 23:40 (eighteen years ago) link

three months pass...
i still heart I-SLOP!

Eisbär (llamasfur), Monday, 16 January 2006 05:54 (eighteen years ago) link

WAFFLE HOUSE PWNS YOU!!!!!

tehresa (tehresa), Monday, 16 January 2006 05:58 (eighteen years ago) link

but i've NEVER been to a waffle house! are there any in the northeast?!?

Eisbär (llamasfur), Monday, 16 January 2006 05:59 (eighteen years ago) link

ohio

tehresa (tehresa), Monday, 16 January 2006 06:00 (eighteen years ago) link

but that's more central... sadly... outside cleveland is the north-est i've found one :-(

tehresa (tehresa), Monday, 16 January 2006 06:01 (eighteen years ago) link

according to the store locator on their website, there are waffle houses in delaware and pennsylvania.

danielle the animal steel (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 16 January 2006 06:23 (eighteen years ago) link

The last few times we've been to Denny's, my wife has requested a booth and we've been seated at the really long U-shaped booth. We sit on either side of the table and pretend like we're one of those really rich couples who have to shout at each other because they're so far away.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Monday, 16 January 2006 18:00 (eighteen years ago) link

IHOP. i had a good garden omelette w/ cheese there the other day.

latebloomer (latebloomer), Monday, 16 January 2006 18:16 (eighteen years ago) link

IHOPs are a little too sterile in decor and always freezing-ass cold. Waffle Houses have a lived-in but not dirty feel, and it's fun to watch the griddle person cook. I covet a professional griddle/stovetop setup like they have.

truck-patch pixel farmer (my crop froze in the field) (Rock Hardy), Monday, 16 January 2006 18:24 (eighteen years ago) link

three months pass...
Those stuffed French toast things are pretty sweet.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Thursday, 11 May 2006 21:14 (seventeen years ago) link

five months pass...
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120AP_Naked_at_Waffle_House.html

Nude couple's feud ends at Waffle House

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- No shirt, no service? What about no clothes at all? A couple that began squabbling in a motel room Friday morning carried their dispute over to an adjacent Waffle House restaurant in the nude, police said.

The woman, who was not identified, told officers she was staying in a room with Larry Boyd when he took a hit of cocaine, started trashing their room and choked her.

She ran in the buff to the nearby restaurant and locked herself in the bathroom. Boyd, also naked, followed her into the restaurant and then fled in a car.

He was arrested - still naked - after a short chase by police and was charged with driving under the influence and felony evading arrest, among other charges. It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney.

Elvis Telecom (Chris Barrus), Sunday, 5 November 2006 21:19 (seventeen years ago) link

Yes! I knew I moved to Nashville for something..

Sir Echo (Sir Echo), Monday, 6 November 2006 15:50 (seventeen years ago) link

Borat is a prophet!

polar bear flashback episode (nickalicious), Monday, 6 November 2006 16:29 (seventeen years ago) link

Yay Nashville! I wish they mentioned which one it was. My guess it's the one on Sidco Drive.

Why is this not mentioned in The Tennessean?

molly d (mollyd), Monday, 6 November 2006 16:34 (seventeen years ago) link

waffle house kicks ihops ass by a mile. would it kill them to use real strawberries on the rooty tooty fresh 'n' fruity in the summer. WOULD IT?? plus the air conditioning hasnt worked for a good year at our local one.

that said, denny's trumps both

sunny successor (katharine), Monday, 6 November 2006 16:35 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh, nevermind. 2nd story down:

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061104/NEWS01/611040318/1006

And, I wholeheartedly vote for Waffle House. The JUKEBOX with WAFFLE HOUSE SONGS is reason enough for it to win.

Although, I've never been to Huddle House.

molly d (mollyd), Monday, 6 November 2006 16:36 (seventeen years ago) link

Did anyone try those funnel cakes when IHOP was serving them?

IHOP's got the lingonberry factor.

Abbott (Abbott), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:18 (seventeen years ago) link

Waffle House -- scattered, smothered and covered hashbrowns, my friends. Delicious.

molly d (mollyd), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:22 (seventeen years ago) link

Waffle House > IHOP >>>>>>>>> Denny's

Curt1s St3ph3ns, Monday, 6 November 2006 23:27 (seventeen years ago) link

Ok, as a transplanted-Northerner, I have to say Waffle House is WAY better due to the fact that they don't really exist above PA. Am I right? I'm right. You don't get that classy decorum and yellow and black color scheme above the Mason Dixon, that's for sure.

Denny's. Blah. Even "Buffalo '66" couldn't make them cool.

molly d (mollyd), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:34 (seventeen years ago) link

the decor is shifting - i saw a de-groovified waffle house recently, in virginia, and a little part of me died

Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:36 (seventeen years ago) link

And, I wholeheartedly vote for Waffle House. The JUKEBOX with WAFFLE HOUSE SONGS is reason enough for it to win.

agreed!

the starbucks in the forbidden city (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:37 (seventeen years ago) link

There's a "nice" Waffle House in a strip mall near a Target in a fancypants suburb of Nashville. I can never bring myself to go in. I'm afraid it will be clean.

molly d (mollyd), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:38 (seventeen years ago) link

the one i saw was clean, and you couldn't smoke. it was shocking.

Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:39 (seventeen years ago) link

i swear i posted something about "going diced and chunked" but i must have put it in the wrong thread

Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:39 (seventeen years ago) link

the one i saw was clean, and you couldn't smoke

This makes me infinitely sad.

molly d (mollyd), Monday, 6 November 2006 23:44 (seventeen years ago) link

I watched a Waffle House cook chase two kids out the door (they were trying to get away without paying) and smash a plate over the hood of their car. It was great. A total Waffle House moment. This too was in Tennessee.

Sir Echo (Sir Echo), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 00:33 (seventeen years ago) link

It's not exactly my style, but I am proud of the fact that I could walk into any Waffle House within a radius of 300 miles and call the Hogs. It's not quite the same inside an IHOP or Denny's, and it certainly wouldn't work inside a Perkin's.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 01:01 (seventeen years ago) link

they do "dine and dash" at non-waffle house joints, too!

Eisbär (llamasfur), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 01:01 (seventeen years ago) link

Yes! Calling the hogs! Last year, a fellow librarian demonstrated that for me at work one day (yep, inside the library). It was fantastic. But answer me this: you can do this inside a Waffle House and other folks would join in? This is mind-blowingly wonderful.

molly d (mollyd), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 01:51 (seventeen years ago) link

God I want an ihop omelette right now.

milo z (mlp), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 01:52 (seventeen years ago) link

you can do this inside a Waffle House and other folks would join in? This is mind-blowingly wonderful.

Remember that payphone scene in Pee Wee's Big Adventure where Pee Wee proves to Dottie that he's in Texas by singing the first part of "Deep In the Heart of Texas" and all of the strangers and bystanders around him join him for the second part? It's a lot like that, though admittedly, it's much more effective at 2 AM than it is at 2 PM.

Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 02:32 (seventeen years ago) link

Hunker down!

shookout (shookout), Tuesday, 7 November 2006 20:41 (seventeen years ago) link

one year passes...

there's an IHOP by me now, but I loves me some Waffle Haus

Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Thursday, 13 March 2008 22:48 (sixteen years ago) link

Waffle House hashbrowns = nom nom nom

milo z, Friday, 14 March 2008 00:59 (sixteen years ago) link

W A F F L E H O U S E

Savannah Smiles, Friday, 14 March 2008 01:08 (sixteen years ago) link

It blows my mind that the thread is this long and no one's called it WaHo yet.

kingkongvsgodzilla, Friday, 14 March 2008 01:47 (sixteen years ago) link

five months pass...

the local IHOP has a BANQUET ROOM

i know this because i just attended a surprise midnight ihop birthday

elmo argonaut, Thursday, 14 August 2008 07:27 (fifteen years ago) link

it was a novel experience and an decent excuse to see friends but i have chocolate-chip pancake indigestion now

elmo argonaut, Thursday, 14 August 2008 07:29 (fifteen years ago) link

I have kinduva sentimental attachment to Waffle House

Curt1s Stephens, Thursday, 14 August 2008 07:35 (fifteen years ago) link

we don't have waffle houses here but there's a hipster independent version of WH called the waffle and the food's pretty excellent, especially the hash browns.

the story is that the owners originally wanted to open a waffle house franchise but WH's powers-that-be weren't interested in expanding that far west.

we have ihops aplenty but i never go there. the last time i tried was late at night and it was closed; we ended up at the denny's across the street.

get bent, Thursday, 14 August 2008 07:38 (fifteen years ago) link

also I really want to go to WAFFLE STEAK:

http://www.meaningofplus.com/exploits/Sanibel/102-0282_IMG.jpg

Curt1s Stephens, Thursday, 14 August 2008 07:41 (fifteen years ago) link

eight months pass...

http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=73684&catid=2

larendon County (WLTX) - A Clarendon County waitress is accused of shooting a customer at the restaurant after the two had a dispute.

Yakeisha Ward, 29, is charged with assault and battery with intent to kill.

An early morning run for breakfast at the Waffle House on Paxville Highway in Manning turned terribly wrong for Crystal Samuel.

"I thought I was gonna get me an All-Star," says Samuel. A popular meal on the menu. "Grits, sausage, toast, eggs and a waffle," says Samuel.

She didn't get what she came for. Instead, she says while she waited for her order, her friends started eating. That's when Samuel says she was told they couldn't eat from carryout trays inside the restaurant.

"I said what is your fuss about. I said we haven't paid for our food. She (Ward) said well you all got to leave. How you want us to leave and we ain't paid for the food yet," says Samuel.

That's when it got ugly. Samuel says she threw a waffle at the waitress. "I did actually throw some food but it didn't hit her," says Samuel. "That's when she (Ward) jumped across the counter and we got into it," says Samuel.

Clarendon County Sheriff Randy Garrett says the altercation continued outside where he says Ward got a gun from her car and a gun magazine from her trunk.

"It's poor judgment on her part trying to settle this matter with a weapon. either way she had time to think about what she was doing when she was walking to her car," says Garrett.

Investigators say Ward's gun discharged during the altercation. They say a bullet fragment struck Samuel in the arm.

"Deputies were close by when they rolled up in the parking lot the victim and the suspect were still engaged in a fight," says Garrett.

Before it ended, authorities say Ward struck the victim in the head with the gun.

"She got the last lick,"says Samuel. Meanwhile Ward has bonded out of jail. On Tuesday afternoon, News 19 found her inside the Waffle House where the incident happened.

She declined to talk to us on camera but says she got out of jail after paying $500. As for Samuel, she has only one thing to say about Waffle House. "bad customer service," says Samuel.

Investigators say it appears that Ward's gun was legally purchased.

Carroll Shelby Downard (Elvis Telecom), Wednesday, 13 May 2009 14:54 (fourteen years ago) link

http://www.wltx.com/assetpool/images/090512051225_ward%20web.jpg

I would never throw a waffle at this woman.

•--• --- --- •--• (Pleasant Plains), Wednesday, 13 May 2009 15:21 (fourteen years ago) link

"I thought I was gonna get me an All-Star," says Samuel.

^^^ Major lolz here

naturally unfunny, though mechanically sound (Pancakes Hackman), Wednesday, 13 May 2009 15:26 (fourteen years ago) link

there's no excuse for going to ihop when there's a waffle house anywhere within a mile. i mean, waffle house actually has good cheap greasy food (hash browns!) that they fry up right in front of you, not generic-tasting warmed-over dreck like ihop or denny's. plus, as someone said upthread, it's fun to watch them cook your food.

(The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Thursday, 14 May 2009 02:42 (fourteen years ago) link

plus, waffles are better than pancakes. even the word waffle is better.

(The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Thursday, 14 May 2009 02:44 (fourteen years ago) link

I have never been to a waffle house. I hope to change that soon.

a sweet ballet dancer (ENBB), Thursday, 14 May 2009 02:51 (fourteen years ago) link

Original Pancake House is superior to IHOP, people. Potato pancakes are pancakes too.

Guayaquil (eephus!), Thursday, 14 May 2009 03:13 (fourteen years ago) link

One reason my family frequents IHOP more these days is because we've had too many afternoons hitting four or five Waffle Houses that had lines running out the door. Even the "secret" Waffle House stuck behind the pet store/pawn shop/tattoo parlor.

•--• --- --- •--• (Pleasant Plains), Thursday, 14 May 2009 03:16 (fourteen years ago) link

Waffle House by fucking miles. IHOP tries to trick you into thinking the food isn't nasty, WH is upfront about their total skeeviness. Pecan waffles, hash browns with chili and onions, sausage patty with maple syrup. Mmm. I can feel my arteries hardening with anticipation already.

Telephone thing, Thursday, 14 May 2009 04:06 (fourteen years ago) link

Potato pancakes are pancakes too.

Oh hell yeah. There's a non-chain pankcake house place only two blocks from my house that convinced me of just how amazing those things can be.

Sadly I've never lived anywhere there were Waffle Houses, but I saw plenty of them while driving across country and I think I ate in one, but don't remember much about it. IHOP, on the other hand, is just alright, I guess.

More Goth Than Your Grandmother (Bimble), Thursday, 14 May 2009 20:39 (fourteen years ago) link

My Dad is a retired chef originally from Germany and he makes the most incredible potato pancakes. To be perfectly honest though the best I've ever had weren't his but my 87 year old German grandmothers. They were fucking amazing. Would never tell him that though.

Noooo! Cats are not for eating!!! (ENBB), Thursday, 14 May 2009 20:44 (fourteen years ago) link

ihop, beyond the serviceable pancake menu, serves some of the worst food known to man

u have a new mistress my friend and her name is little debbie (omar little), Thursday, 14 May 2009 20:47 (fourteen years ago) link

i made the horrific mistake of ordering biscuits and gravy there once : (

u have a new mistress my friend and her name is little debbie (omar little), Thursday, 14 May 2009 20:48 (fourteen years ago) link

It's fitting that the "Cats are not for eating!!!" screen name turns up on the Waffle House v. IHOP thread.

(xp)

Daniel, Esq., Thursday, 14 May 2009 20:48 (fourteen years ago) link

ha

Even though I've never been to Waffle House I have to say I'm surprised this is even a question. IHOP is pretty gross.

Noooo! Cats are not for eating!!! (ENBB), Thursday, 14 May 2009 20:49 (fourteen years ago) link

Waffle House is probably objectively better, but I'd go with IHOP because it is what I grew up with, I've been there a million times, and there's one right near my house that my son likes me to take him to when we are having special father/son time. I can't say that I've ever been to Waffle House either.

Original Pancake House is indeed a great place, really a step beyond some of these more generic ones. We haven't gone there for a while, even though it's come up in conversation - maybe this weekend...

Also, I love me some Cracker Barrel, though once or twice a year is plenty, thank you very much.

Moodles, Thursday, 14 May 2009 21:19 (fourteen years ago) link

three years pass...

Waffle House CEO accused of sexual improprieties

Elvis Telecom, Saturday, 10 November 2012 03:43 (eleven years ago) link

davycoolguy
Innocent until proven guilty. I am not automatically going to believe this womans story. I have a brain and use it for critical thinking.

http://i.imgur.com/zi7hd.gif

crüt, Saturday, 10 November 2012 05:19 (eleven years ago) link

Since the opening of its first restaurant in the Atlanta suburb of Avondale in 1955, Waffle House has become a culinary staple of the South with more than 1,500 restaurants that are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It is known for its signature shitty yellow signage, jukebox music and breakfast offerings.

how's life, Saturday, 10 November 2012 12:16 (eleven years ago) link

Whatever, that signage is cool! I like the little plastic signs they stick in the oreo pie.

emilys., Monday, 12 November 2012 04:41 (eleven years ago) link

one year passes...

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/ten-miles-square/2014/02/waffle_house_and_the_american049162.php

There are just 10 in all of Yankeedom, which has 55 million people. Those three nations - the “blue” coalition of contemporary politics - comprise 29 percent of the national population, but just 0.6 percent of all Waffle Houses.

curmudgeon, Friday, 21 February 2014 17:16 (ten years ago) link

waffle house owns

death and darkness and other night kinda shit (crüt), Friday, 21 February 2014 18:02 (ten years ago) link

four years pass...

You go back in time, kill Hitler, come back, and see this. Now what do you do?

https://i.imgur.com/G3bix4g.jpg

pplains, Thursday, 22 February 2018 14:19 (six years ago) link

I would kill for some double hashbrowns covered right now.

Yerac, Thursday, 22 February 2018 15:13 (six years ago) link

^ correct answer.

pplains, Thursday, 22 February 2018 15:36 (six years ago) link

Waffle House forever and ever. probably my favorite restaurant of all time at this point. give me cheese eggs, cheese grits, and a biscuit, a cup of coffee, and im in heaven.

lot of good memories of my early 20s hanging/pre-gaming w friends at the Waffle House back when you could still smoke cigarettes.

Hazy Maze Cave (Adam Bruneau), Thursday, 22 February 2018 22:34 (six years ago) link


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