# So what are Waffles? (A Brit writes) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 5, 2003, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371 "2003-03-05T23:54:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![stofsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@stofsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stofsky)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2003, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/41 "2003-03-06T21:30:35Z")
> **[Waffle House - Good Food Fast](https://www.wafflehouse.com/)** > > Waffle House - Serving Good Food Fast since 1955 The further west you go, the thinner the distribution. ---
**Author:** ![mrsface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a9adbd/32.png) [@mrsface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrsface)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2003, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/42 "2003-03-06T23:03:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Legomancer \* > \*\*We also have French Toast. Or as I call it, FREEDOM Toast. \*\* Er…why? Is there some political significance here? ---
**Author:** ![Exgineer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Exgineer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exgineer)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/43 "2003-03-07T00:30:22Z")
That was a joke. There are actually some idiots in my (great) nation who are re-naming “french fies” and “french toast” as “feedom fries” and “feedom toast.” **Legomancer** was just pointing out this particular stupidity as a joke. You know how it goes, you laugh at your idiots, and we laugh at ours. It’s really not a big deal. In the end, we’ll all be stuck with our idiots. That doesn’t mean we have to defend their idiocy just because we happen to inhabit the same patch of ground. ---
**Author:** ![angelabaca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@angelabaca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/angelabaca)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/44 "2003-03-07T00:39:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lobsang \* > \*\*[This gives me an idea. an all-link thread](http://news.bbc.co.uk) > > [probably a silly stupid mental idea, which is why I haven’t started a thread about it](http://www.bbc.co.uk/food) \*\* [Not stupid, or mental.](http://www.geocities.com/angelabaca/Home.html) [Quite brilliant, actually.](http://angelabaca.diaryland.com/) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![angelabaca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@angelabaca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/angelabaca)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/45 "2003-03-07T00:42:59Z")
\*\*You should go to Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles. Good stuff! \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Exgineer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Exgineer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exgineer)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/46 "2003-03-07T00:44:36Z")
Well, no. Not really. It was a stupid idea. As were your links. ---
**Author:** ![Kallessa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7993a0/32.png) [@Kallessa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kallessa)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/47 "2003-03-07T00:54:58Z")
Forget the maple syrup and the maple sugar–too sweet for already sweet waffles. Use peanut butter for the perfect waffle. That’s a yummy! ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/48 "2003-03-07T01:22:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TeleTronOne \* > \*\*Yes, but have you ever driven I-95 through the SE U.S.? (or anywhere down there, really) - there is literally at **least** one waffle house at every exit (which in lots of parts is every 1-2 miles). You can tell how far north you are by counting the frequency of waffle houses off the highway. \*\* It takes me almost 40 minutes to get from my house in Rockville to the nearest Waffle House. This is a tragedy of epic proportion. I love the Waffle House – the food is great, but the best part is the consistency. From the inside, every one looks _exactly_ the same. There’s always a hideous but incredibly nice waitress, a white trash-looking looking chef with a thin moustache, and two flies buzzing around. Not one, not three, but two. And it doesn’t matter if you’re in South Carolina in August of Delaware in January – still two flies. Hmm – I think maybe this weekend I’m gonna have to make the trek down there. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![burundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@burundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burundi)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/49 "2003-03-07T02:14:51Z")
Mmmm…now I need pecan waffles. Although the _best_ hangover food is a breakfast of Waffle House hash browns, grits, and bacon. Damn, that’s good even when you’re not hungover. ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/50 "2003-03-07T04:06:15Z")
I don’t think Waffle House is in Delaware, are they? They’re pretty concentrated in the Southeast (though I’m surprised to hear they’ve extended into Colorado; couldn’t open that link). In college I was a graveyard-shift cook at Waffle House. What a job that was. I still love to eat there, but I don’t like waffles at all; the Waffle House patty melt double plate (scattered, smothered, and covered, please) is very, very high on my list of favorite things to eat. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/51 "2003-03-07T04:25:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lobsang \* > \*\*[pic](http://biology.clc.uc.edu/graphics/maple/waffle.jpg) \*\* What is a waffle picture doing in the biology department at UCCC? 😕😃 ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/52 "2003-03-07T04:29:22Z")
> [@](#): > > You’ll need a waffle iron (a bit like a toasted sandwich maker). Actually, I know that some (most?) waffle irons double as toasted sandwich makers; you can take the waffle-shaped plate out, flip it over and put it back in, and it has a flat surface on the other side for toasting sandwiches. > [@](#): > > Brown sugar has nothing to do with maple sugar at all. Brown sugar is just white sugar with molassas in it, I believe. Or to be precise (I hope), brown sugar is just white sugar from which not as much molasses has been removed. I don’t know if they have brown sugar in Britain as we know it in N.A. Here, it’s finer than white sugar and has a very strong tendency to cake up. I know in Britain they have Demerara sugar but it seems to me that that is coarse sugar that doesn’t cake (like the “raw sugar” you can get in cafés). This could all be completely wrong though. But mmmmmmm, waffles. ---
**Author:** ![techchick68](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea5d25/32.png) [@techchick68](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/techchick68)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/53 "2003-03-07T05:26:43Z")
**jackelope** The Waffle House has been here in my town for about 23-25 years now…this one specifically is on Fillmore off of I-25. Not quite “new on the block” although they did open a newer one up about 3 years ago I think. Total, we have three in Colorado Springs. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/54 "2003-03-07T07:53:31Z")
But the best pecan waffles with pecan syrup are at Cracker Barrel – also at every exit in the Southland. Waffles also mutated into cones used to hold ice cream a hundred or so years ago. I strongly recommend getting pure Vermont maple syrup. It’s the best. I drink maple-vanilla tea, have maple-scented candles and order maple nut fudge from the Smiling Cow in Camden, Maine. Hi, my name is Zoe and I’m a maple junky. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/55 "2003-03-07T14:39:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Or to be precise (I hope), brown sugar is just white sugar from which not as much molasses has been removed. \*\* I recall a thread on this subject but I can’t find it. Anyway, it’s possible to create low-carb brown sugar by mixing molasses with sugar substitute. Splenda mixed with molasses is good in BBQ sauce. ---
**Author:** ![OxyMoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9a140/32.png) [@OxyMoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OxyMoron)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/56 "2003-03-07T15:14:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cliffy \* > \*\*It takes me almost 40 minutes to get from my house in Rockville to the nearest Waffle House. > > This is a tragedy of epic proportion. > > –Cliffy \*\* It takes you 40 minutes to get to [Frederick](http://yp111.superpages.com/supermaps/mapinit.phtml?T=frederick&N=waffle+house&PG=L&STYPE=S&R=N&S=MD&AL=&MC=&map.x=212&map.y=125&level=8&lat=0394057&lng=-0773853&POI1lat=0394057&POI1lng=-0773853&POI1name=Waffle+House&streetaddress=&city=Frederick&state=MD&zip=21701&LID=0080116115&LS=&display=1&AD=&GV=0&GL=&FN=&PP=N&CID=)? It really shouldn’t, at least outside of rush hour (then, of course, it’ll take an hour and a half ;)). And, wonder of wonders, a Waffle House is shortly coming to Urbana, which is Exit 26 on 270 - my parents live there, which is why I heard about it. I am most partial to their bacon waffles. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Or to be precise (I hope), brown sugar is just white sugar from which not as much molasses has been removed. \*\* [pedantic hat] A common misconception. In most cases, brown sugar in North America is made by adding molasses back in to refined, superfine white sugar. From [epicurious.com](http://eat.epicurious.com/dictionary/food/index.ssf?DEF_ID=4095&ISWINE=): > [@](#): > > Today’sbrown sugar is white sugar combined with MOLASSES, which gives it a soft texture. [/pedantic hat] My American friend in London has found a shop carrying US foods, so she buys the original. If you can get Barbados or Turbinado sugar, those might work - I don’t recommend Demarara, which is too dry. ---
**Author:** ![Potter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Potter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Potter)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/57 "2003-03-07T17:33:47Z")
This is most odd. As far as I was aware, waffles, as most US citizens would know them, are a known phenomena in the UK. My mother has had this one old waffle iron for as long as I remember, and I myself have a new-fangled electric thingus. You can also buy ready-made waffles in the majority of UK grocery stores for the heating of in the toaster. We do not, however, have anything nearly as civilised as a national chain of waffle houses. Discussing this with the boi Matt, I also thought it might be interesting to note that what we would consider a pancake would be considered a crepe by citizens of the Americas. Perhaps I was wrong and it’s not interesting at all. Oh, and we have demerara sugar, dark brown sugar, light brown sugar, golden sugar, molasses sugar (the list goes on). Hope that was informative 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371/58 "2003-03-07T22:01:09Z")
> [@](#): > > We do not, however, have anything nearly as civilised as a national chain of waffle houses. laughing, laughing, laughing…typing. Either you have a remarkable talent for sarcasm, or you’ve never been in a Waffle House. Not that the waffles aren’t good, but civilised is a strange choice of words for a restaurant full of Waffle House patrons. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-are-waffles-a-brit-writes/159371.md?page=2)