The Waffle

6255 W Sunset Blvd, Hollywood, CA 90028
(between Vine & Argyle)
(323) 465-6901

Serving: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Late Night
Hours: 6am-2am Sun-Th / 6am-4am Fri-Sat

As my fiance and I eagerly approached this shiny new/faux old 'breakfast to booze-fest' diner, we were startled by the angry shout of another passer-by.

"Go to Roscoe's!"

We didn't even flinch.

OK, I'm a former NY'er, I flinched a little.

But the lure of Chocolate Waffles and Sticky Bun Waffles proved too strong, and I kept walking, just another 'Eggs Benedict Arnold' in the battle for the soul (and stomach) of Hollywood.

And just as Roscoe's House of Chicken & Waffles represents the best of Grungy Old Hollywood's heart-attack inducing, 'worth a mugging' culinary past, The Waffle is a tasty addition to New Hollywood's Shiny Happy Foodie Now.


Let me say right off that everything on the menu is at least $3 dollars too expensive. (A $5 dollar breakfast side? C'mon). And the restaurant is still smoothing out some operational wrinkles, so I would avoid the Sunday brunch stampede for a little while yet.

But oh, the waffles.

They're small-ish, slightly crispy, and airer than you would expect. They certainly couldn't survive under the weight of a Roscoe's fried chicken breast. But they're damn tasty.

The pancakes were great as well. Thin, pliable griddle cakes without that flour-y rigidity that ruins most pancakes these days.

On the whole, the menu seems to strike the right balance between simplicity and hedonism.(Ever tried to order 'plain french toast at Doughboys?')

As for those over-priced sides? The New Jersey IHOP gal in me won't quite admit that they're worth five dollars, but the sausage patties were flavorful, the eggs were fresh, and the hashbrowns had just the right ratio of crispy cover to soft underbelly.

I don't know what The Waffle looks like at 2am on a Saturday night, and barring a radical reversal of my 90 year old woman sleeping patterns, I may never. But as a neighborhood breakfast joint, it shows real promise. I hope it sticks around long enough to be as old school as it so strenuously wants to appear.

And for the Great Waffle War between Old Hollywood & New? I honestly believe the neighborhood has room in their hearts and bellies for two waffle-centric restaurants. It's not a zero-sum game.

And since neither joint is exactly a zero-sum 'gain', one last tip:

Wear comfy pants.