By DAVID HAMMOND
Oak Park Eats Blogger
Years ago, working on a feature for the Chicago Sun-Times about then newly opened Chicago’s Home of Chicken & Waffles, we concocted our own savory waffle-protein combinations. We created a Mexican corn meal waffle with chicken mole, a Japanese rice flour waffle with teriyaki chicken, stuff like that. It was fun, and I was intrigued by the idea of taking a traditional breakfast food like the waffle, changing up the flour, and combining it with savory meat.
Breakfast can be one of the most routine, uninspired meals of the day. So when Chicago Waffles opened at 726 Lake St., its fourth location in Chicagoland, I was intrigued by their range of savory waffles.
I had my eye on the Cheddar & Short Rib Waffle, which owner Gary Kreymer explained has “cheddar cheese inside the waffle.” I liked the idea of playing with the batter recipe for waffles so that each one works with a different protein. Cheese and beef are buddies, and the added cheddar gave more flavor dimension to the waffle. The short rib meat was super-tender and delicious; Kreymer told us it takes a low, slow cook of three hours.
The most popular food on the menu, the one Kreymer said most people order, is the eggs, and the array of Eggs Benedict (or “Beny”) options is intriguing. We opted for the Duck Benedict on Liege Waffles. The slight sweetness of this waffle preparation complements the duck (which traditionally pairs well with sweetness, as in Duck L’Orange or Duck with Cherry Sauce). “The Liege Waffle is my favorite and my wife’s favorite,” says Kreymer. “People don’t always know it, but it’s a type of Belgian waffle that originated in France. You proof the dough for 24 hours and put Belgian sugar inside, for a caramelized waffle.”
And for beverages, well, my afternoon was open, so we opted to share sips of a Bloody Mary, the traditional pairing with brunch and long airplane rides. This was a very good version of the cocktail, with house-made, pleasantly spicy tomato juice (no Mr. & Mrs. T’s here!). Most cocktails at Chicago Waffles are made-to-order, not batched ahead of time; holding ready-to-go cocktails seems to render flavors murky and indistinct. Many of the cocktails at Chicago Waffles contain fresh fruit, which brightens and enlivens the drink.
DOOPers will remember The Original Pancake House located just east of the Lake Theatre. Like that long-gone breakfast spot, Chicago Waffles offers a multitude of menu items, perking up the options for what can be the least interesting meal of the day.
People probably don’t associate waffles with any meal other than breakfast, but Chicago Waffles has a lot for lunch as well. During the holiday season, if you have a house full of guests, this is the place for a different kind of breakfast/lunch, with enough menu options to please the many.