# When is the last time you ate at Waffle House? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 16, 2018, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601 "2018-11-16T04:00:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/81 "2018-11-30T11:41:01Z")
Good road food. I seem to recall I liked their chili over … something. I have not been to one in over a decade. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/82 "2018-12-01T02:21:27Z")
Been there once and once ever since they refuse to have butter for the waffles. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/83 "2018-12-01T03:39:18Z")
The first, last, and only time I ate at an Awful House was on Sunday, October 21, 2018, in Collinsville, IL. We were driving back from St. Louie and were pretty hung over from the night before having gone to the Alice Cooper concert. It was either that or the Dennys across the road. Alright, so the food wasn’t so bad but watching it get made was. The griddle, waffle makers, and pans looked filthy. ETA: If I ever eat there again I won’t sit at the counter so I don’t have to see my grub get made. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/84 "2018-12-01T04:56:44Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Been there once and once ever since they refuse to have butter for the waffles. What? Really? If I can’t have butter with my waffles, I ain’t goin’. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/85 "2018-12-01T05:10:56Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > What? Really? If I can’t have butter with my waffles, I ain’t goin’. But you can have oleo. As much as you can gag down. Promise. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/86 "2018-12-01T05:59:57Z")
The quality of Waffle House can vary. Check Yelp before going. We have six in my city and only one had consistently good Yelp reviews. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/87 "2018-12-01T08:03:13Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > But you can have oleo. As much as you can gag down. Promise. Must be why there aren’t any Waffle Houses in Wisconsin. It’s [illegal](https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/97/II/18) for a restaurant to serve margarine and not butter: \*\*(4) The serving of colored oleomargarine or margarine at a public eating place as a substitute for table butter is prohibited unless it is ordered by the customer \*\* Though I think there was one in West Milwaukee at one time on 43rd street. > [@aceplace57](#): > > The quality of Waffle House can vary. Check Yelp before going. Yeah, um, I don’t think people leave their house with the implicit intent of going to Waffle House. it’s the kind of place one just ends up at. For me, I had a 4 hour drive back to Milwaukee, desperately needed coffee and saw the road sign. Otherwise no way! ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/88 "2018-12-01T15:08:53Z")
I prefer butter, but grew up eating margarine. I fully expect to get margarine at restaurants. AFAIK that’s true at Denny’s, IHOP, Waffle House and McDonald’s. That’s just what gets used in that industry. I cook with margarine at home and save my butter to serve at the table. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2018, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/89 "2018-12-03T16:12:11Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I prefer butter, but grew up eating margarine. > > I fully expect to get margarine at restaurants. AFAIK that’s true at Denny’s, IHOP, Waffle House and McDonald’s. I ended up eating at a Kentucky Fried Chicken for a late lunch while out and about yesterday, which is something I rarely do (it’s where to buy buckets of chicken, not lunch). My wife’s meal came with a biscuit, and the clerk asked if I wanted honey or butter for the biscuit. I asked for one of each, since my wife had already taken our little one and sat down. The “butter” was “buttery spread,” and the “honey” was “honey sauce.” The “butter” wasn’t even margarine, but there were some milk solids way, way, down the list after several different types of oil. The honey sauce did contain actual honey; it was (IIRC) the third ingredient after a couple of different corn syrups. At least at McDonald’s, you can still request real butter. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2018, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/90 "2018-12-03T19:21:49Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > They are all over in Dallas. What I’ve found is there is no consistency. Some are decent while others are gross. > > The last time I went, I ordered a pecan waffle. While eating my waffle, I see the cook reach into the waffle batter (the same waffle batter he made mine from) with a spoon, and pull out a baseball size chunk that was hard as a rock and throw it in the trash. BUT you know. That happens in other restaurants, even very pricey ones, ALL the time. You just dont know it because you dont see it. And that brings me back as to why I LOVE Waffle House. Not just because they have country tunes on the jukebox (yes, they have those), not just because I really love their food, but because they make your food right out in front of you. No faking. No putting someones old food on your plate. No putting food thats fallen on the floor on your plate. You know what is going on. I mean if you really knew what happens to your food in the back of most restaurants you would never want to eat out. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/91 "2018-12-03T19:24:39Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > The first, last, and only time I ate at an Awful House was on Sunday, October 21, 2018, in Collinsville, IL. We were driving back from St. Louie and were pretty hung over from the night before having gone to the Alice Cooper concert. It was either that or the Dennys across the road. > > Alright, so the food wasn’t so bad but watching it get made was. The griddle, waffle makers, and pans looked filthy. > > ETA: If I ever eat there again I won’t sit at the counter so I don’t have to see my grub get made. Ok, fair enough. But honestly do you think that at another restaurant say a Denny’s do you think their hygiene is any better just because you cant see it? ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/92 "2018-12-04T00:56:48Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > I live right next to Avondale Estates, GA, which is the birthplace of Waffle House, so I’ve been quite a bit. However, not so much lately. I’m not generally a morning person, so my Waffle House jaunts have generally been late at night after drinking. Though recently, I’ve been having some issues with acid reflux so that late night eating is a no-go. The wife will go to WH for breakfast on the weekends every now and then (she wakes up waaay earlier than I do on those days). As do I. The very first Waffle House is a mile and a half from my house; it’s now a museum that’s only open one weekend a month. Mildly interesting. (And yes, I’ve met **ISiddiqui** in meatspace.) Back when I was in high school, and Atlanta was still the Sahara of the Bozarts, Waffle House was the only place to go at 2 a.m., when you needed to consume greasy hashbrowns and pretend you were one of the Night People, but your Mom wouldn’t lend you the minivan to go down to the Metroplex or the Masquerade. So WH still has a nostalgia value for those of us who were teenagers in the suburbs in the Eighties. Mrs. SMV and self will go every now and again, if we’re feeling lazy or it’s too late for any real restaurants. She likes the peanut butter waffle, while I’ll usually get a bowl of Bert’s chili. Still, we live in a town that has dozens of good dining choices within five miles, so WH doesn’t get the traffic it used to. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/93 "2018-12-04T10:08:55Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > Ok, fair enough. But honestly do you think that at another restaurant say a Denny’s do you think their hygiene is any better just because you cant see it? Maybe, maybe not. But I tend to sit at the counter in diners and I’ve never seen equipment look so filthy. But in all honesty usually places have a partisan so it’s harder to see the cooking utensils. WH’s were right out there to be seen. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/94 "2018-12-04T15:45:24Z")
We go there for their magical hash browns when we’re passing through the states that have them. **allthegood** likes them smothered scattered and covered, I believe, whereas I’m addicted to peppered capped and countried. (OK for some weird-ass reason they say “country” but all the others are past-tense verbs so obviously it _ought_ to be “countried”) ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/95 "2018-12-04T16:01:21Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Mrs. SMV and self will go every now and again, if we’re feeling lazy or it’s too late for any real restaurants. She likes the peanut butter waffle, while I’ll usually get a bowl of Bert’s chili. Still, we live in a town that has dozens of good dining choices within five miles, so WH doesn’t get the traffic it used to. It’s the 2AM place of choice :D. Though my wife will sometimes go and get breakfast there on weekends when I’m still in bed. (It’s cheaper and you won’t wait forever like the other brunch places around) ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2018, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/96 "2018-12-05T01:58:52Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Roughly 20 years ago we stopped for breakfast after driving 12 hours. I was pretty shaky after the long drive. Every time someone walked into the restaurant, _every_ waitress yelled, “good morning!”. It took all the control I had left to not melt down into a rage. This reminds me of my one experience in a Waffle House back in 1997. My wife and I drove cross-country from Houston back to our home to New England. (We were driving instead of flying because we bought a new vehicle from a family friend…which is another story I’ve mentioned here before.) Anyway, we stopped to eat in a Waffle House in Texarkana. As we entered, the hostess loudly greeted us with, “HI!!! HOW Y’ALL DOING?” As we then walked to our table, every single server in the restaurant would stop what they were doing and say the same thing: “HI!!! HOW Y’ALL DOING?” Finally we passed the line cook, and he did the same thing – stopped what he was doing to say, “HI!!! HOW Y’ALL DOING?” By the time we sat down, my wife was ready to bolt. She’s from Boston, and isn’t used to enthusiastic greetings from strangers. I’m from Texas originally, and even I was a little surprised. I was starting to wonder if we’d wandered into some cult group. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2018, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/97 "2018-12-05T02:14:26Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > It’s the 2AM place of choice :D. > > Though my wife will sometimes go and get breakfast there on weekends when I’m still in bed. (It’s cheaper and you won’t wait forever like the other brunch places around) Ha! Try the Waffle House in Dunwoody on a Sunday morning. You’ll wait a half-hour. WH is one of my dad’s guilty pleasures. He knows all the line cooks and waitresses by name. I’d laugh, but I don’t have to order any longer when I go into Raging Burrito - the servers just bring me my regular order without asking. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2018, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/98 "2018-12-05T03:44:16Z")
I would love love love to eat at a Waffle House – but they don’t have them in California. Alas! Waffleness is next to godliness. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2018, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/99 "2018-12-05T03:50:38Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Been there once and once ever since they refuse to have butter for the waffles. No shit? Really? That is so sad! Waffles with butter are so, so awesome. When my son was little, I used to make waffles a lot. I liked to make my own syrup since it was both cheaper and better; and my favorite thing to use for flavoring was one of those little airline-sized bottles of Cask & Cream. (milk-whiskey combo much like Bailey’s.) It got to the point where once, when I sent a morning visitor to the corner store for the Cask & Cream, they asked if he was having breakfast at my house, haha. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601/100 "2018-12-06T18:58:53Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > But you can have oleo. As much as you can gag down. Promise. Not even that. It was roughly-butter-flavored spreadable plastic. The worst was that the idea of butter on waffles was so alien to the servers that I had to wonder who eats there that they have no concept that butter belongs on waffles? (No offense SD) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-last-time-you-ate-at-waffle-house/824601.md?page=6)