Me trying to explain both of these to our agent in New York: Waffle House has truckers and Cracker Barrel has retirees.
She: Are those my only choices?
Yes. Yes, those are.
Damn, that chicken and waffles look good. I’ve gone back to working out after taking a holiday break and I am so hungry. I haven’t had fried chicken in ages. My fired chicken is fish. Steamed. With broccoli. Oy.
Mmm, yummy chicken.
PS. We know that this debate can get heated, so a reminder – personal attacks won’t be tolerated. Halloween is coming up and Mod R is very happy to decorate the Trash folder. 🙂
Mm spicy fried chicken sandwiches (with maple topped waffles as dessert) ????
First?!
Hahahahaha
I’ve been curious about Cracker Barrel ever since I saw this lovely lady (and one of my personal heroes based on this) try 50 of their menu items AT ONCE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFzSJBZQRzY
Looking forward to them coming to England 😀
I think I’m a bit too English – my eyes see dessert waffles and chicken strips together and my stomach says “errmm…”
+1 Donna and my Great Grandfather came to Texas to fight in the war with Mexico. He raised his family on his 40 acres near Waco. I like fried chicken with mashed potatoes and spicy gravy, and I like waffles smothered in butter with maple syrup; but not together.
Yes, not my thing either.
I’m an American, but I’m also too English.
Yup, with you there. Praps on separate plates as different courses, with waffles as dessert?
Maybe I’m a bit too Californian? Born and raised there; I’ve now lived in Virginia for 16 years and still have absolutely no interest in chicken and waffles. Just … no.
Cracker Barrel has added alcohol to the menu now so that video is out of date. Everything is good there. Even if you don’t try all the menu items you never leave hungry. My favorite thing is the apple dumpling but I am usually too for dessert. Thanks for the video.
Are we drunk or hungover? Waffle house.
Is Grandma or Parents coming? Cracker barrel.
Are all the clubs closed and we need food? Waffle House.
Relatives from out of state? Cracker barrel.
Best friend, sibling, or hookup? Waffle House.
Hurricane? Waffle house.
+1 Priscilla, I was just getting ready to reply with a similar answer.
Late night with friends =Waffle House
Meal with relatives = Cracker Barrel
This probably puts me in the minority, but I actually prefer Waffle House, simply because Cracker Barrel never gets the bacon crispy enough. I always order my bacon as “crispy, not burnt”, CB never quite manages crispy.
Yes! Raisin toast, grits and cheesy eggs! Coffee! More coffee! God, it’s been decades since I was in the South.
Edit to add, I’m 3rd generation Texan, and no one in my family has ever offered me waffles and chicken simultaneously. Tea with 1 cup of sugar per quart, yes. A loaf of rainbo bread with room temp butter, yes. Pepper and cream gravy, yes. Watermelon with or without salt (no that is a family fight.!) But never waffles and chicken simultaneously.
Amen!
???????????? Truest thing ever!!!
A sandwich made by putting fried chicken tendies between waffles?
There are no Waffle Houses in California, so it’s Cracker Barrel for us
“Neither” is an appropriate choice.
For example, “There are no Waffle Houses in California, so it’s neither for us.”
Or, “…so we get to brag about In & Out.”
Or “…so I’m a big fan of the Black Bear Diner.”
I too live in California, and you wouldn’t catch me dead in a Cracker Barrel.
Big Bear is where it’s at!
+1 for Black Bear diner, yummy!
We have Black Bear Diners in Arizona but for chicken and waffles you have to go to Lolo’s
+1!
Yasss!
+2 for Black Bear Diner!
I have been to In & Out. There’s nothing wrong with it, but have to admit I’m not sure why Californians are so gung-ho about it.
Yes. Sorry but there’s an In and Out in Austin and I still go to Phil’s. Best burgers in town in my book.
Because they have no Waffle House – poor things.
We love In & Out in CA. All the food is cooked fresh and the old fashioned way, including the fries.
I stopped at Waffle House when visiting relatives in the Midwest. I have to admit that I saw it on the Anthony Bourdain show and I was curious. I ordered pecan waffles and it was good.
But I have to say that the breaded chicken looks like a heart attack on a plate.
We need to be friends, lol. Lived most of my life in California and do not understand the In and Out cult at all. Even my husband thinks I’m crazy, but to me, they’re just okay fast food burgers.
The In & Out burgers are ok, fries meh. Burgers at Sylvester’s are the bomb, so is the tri-tip salad (with choice of feta or blue cheese).
There is a Cracker Barrel in Santa Maria, also meh. No Waffle House or local Black Bear’s Diner. We had a Bob’s Big Boy in Morro Bay a few years ago–good food, but terrible service so it folded. Best diners in SLO county are Margie’s in Paso Robles or Louise’s in Downtown SLO.
I love Cracker Barrel. Their biscuits taste like my Grandma’s.
++1 Amen. Just like my Granny’s biscuits. But her hoe cake was better.
In and out and Black Bear Diner in Texas, now! Love BBD’s corn muffins with honey ????
It’s Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles for me! Though I think that’s only a southern CA thing…which is sad for me as a recent northern CA transplant.
I’m from SoCal and have moved back to LA, but lived in the South too. I actually love Waffle House AND Cracker Barrel (there are some in CA, but not nearby 🙁 ) but can’t stand Black Bear Diner. The food is not good, and it took over my Bob’s Big Boy so boo to that. InNOut is an ongoing argument in my house. 1/2 the family prefer YNot Burgers or Fat Burger, the other 1/2 like InNOut. Mmm, burgers, must go throw down with the kids cuz I think I need a hamburger now. (My thighs are not thanking you people!)
I was a pilot for In-N-Out Burgers. Those are some seriously great people who really care about their product. I’m so glad they are doing well. It has been a lot of years, sigh. Why does it seem I keep saying that about so many things??
plenty of places inCA that serve waffles anf fried chicken. the best is Roscoe’s locations in L.A.
Cracker Barrel….I’ll take retirees at early bird dinner fighting over who gets to play the peg table games over the fistfights and gunfire at the local Waffle House any day….
Yep, I was going to mention the peg game.
I don’t know if I’ve ever been to a Waffle House so I can’t comment on it vs Cracker Barrel.
They fill different niches, but both are welcome sights on a road trip. The wait is always longer at Cracker Barrel, but you can browse in their store, so I don’t know if that’s a plus or a minus.
In our area, it’s Waffle House vs Cracker Barrel vs Bob Evans.
I miss having Bob Evans nearby. ????
me too but you can finally buy their sausage in Arizona
None of our local Waffle Houses have enough parking for trucks. Or even to get into the parking lot. And we don’t have Cracker Barrels in Tucson, so it’s Waffle House for us.
and Waffle House in Tucson is open on Christmas Day, which was wonderful the year my night owl brother decided he wasn’t getting to bed until 6am which meant that the rest of us would have to wait until after 2pm for our gift opening and breakfast. My husband took me to Waffle House over by the state park and it was great. Friendly. I don’t prefer the margarine and “table syrup” to butter and “real” syrup. but, otherwise have a warm spot for a restaurant that saved our Christmas morning.
There is a Cracker Barrel in Marana (a city on the northern border of Tucson). The shop carries a brand of licorice that my midwestern friends love so I’ve stopped there to buy it on my way back from Phoenix (if I haven’t stopped at one in Phoenix or Casa Grande). I like the shop a lot and the big bathroom. The restaurant is the only one I know of that has the egg “nest” on the menu.
My sister used to live in Marana back in the early 70’s, at that time there wasn’t anything around except for a bar and gunstore , she had to go food shopping in Tucson and bring coolers with her for the refrigerated items. It would have been great to have a Cracker Barrel.
Oh, my. On food alone Cracker Barrel would win, but I lived in Atlanta for years. Ive seen many Waffle Houses and unless you are coming home from a party wasted, I cant imagine intentionally choosing Waffle House. That being said, their waffles are the best of any I have ever had anywhere, bar none.
I miss Waffle House, there’s none in Utah. Getting eggs scrambled, smothered, covered, and chunked is yummy! I know it’s usually hash browns, but I like making things different.
My husband and I actually just ate Cracker Barrel last night, after craving their chicken and dumplings.
Chicken and waffles is ok, not my favorite dish.
In Alaska we don’t have either so I’ve never been to either . Does IHOP count?
Then it would be IHOP vs Village Inn?
No. I’m sorry but you can’t play on this one.
Next week BDH will discuss the different nuances of salmon species and you can RULE that discussion.
Cracker Barrel is good BUT Waffle House is always open!
Unless there’s a bad hurricane coming! LOL
The weather service actually uses the “Is the Waffle House open?” as an indicator of severity for hurricanes. No joke – look it up.
I guess if the Waffle House is open, the weather can’t be *that* bad…
I know, my Mom used to work w/ the head of FEMA who started that. ????
Oh yeah– the Waffle House effect.
I do love WH. They make the best scrambled eggs.
We’re a dozen comment in, and nobody has mentioned the Waffle House jukebox?
Waffle Do Wap!
In full disclosure, I’m a northern / coastal elite, so I’m not legally allowed to vote in this election.
Has to be Gluten free. No to both.
Big never to Cracker Barrel due to political reasons for me. Not going to get kicked off / banned so I am not going to explain here. Ever.
I like it here! Lol
Right. Agree.
Like. Chic-fil-a and Hobby Lobby.
If you know, then you know.
Yup, I don’t go to those places either. ????
Plenty of truly local diners in my corner of Ohio so I’m spoiled for choice, but now that it’s been mentioned I’m remembering having observed numerous retirees at most of them….
Bob Evans would be similar to cracker barrel. My family is from Ohio and that’s where my grandmother would take us to eat whenever we visited.
Totally agree with you. Big never to Cracker Barrel, Chick Fil A and Hobby Lobby. Also, I went to Cracker Barrel once years ago and I thought their food was awful.
Been tempted but for same reason,haven’t gone there,there is one near where we walk out dogs in NW NJ. Don’t miss it there is a hot dog place,Davy’s hot dogs, almost next door that is to die for.
I was at a waffle house years ago, at the time had really long hair and got me some dirty looks, but was with a couple of guys the size of a water buffalo so nothing happened. Food was ok,nothing special.
Cracker Barrel and OMG the chicken and waffles looks FAB!!!
In Florida, the Waffle House index is used to determine hurricane severity. If WH is still open, don’t panic. If WH closes, RUN!
That’s both tragic and hilarious!
True. FEMA uses Waffle House as an unofficial indicator of how severe a disaster is. If Waffle House is closed, it’s BAAAAADDDDDD.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waffle_House_Index
That’s because the old director of FEMA was from Gainesville FL and he had to come up w/ a simple way to tell people how to know when to evacuate.
Yep. I live in Texas, but my dad’s family farmed & settled Florida (before it was a state)!
I was born in Gainesville, had my kid in Key West. I literally have family in every county. So when I call to check on them during a storm / hurricane, the most common question asked is: are the lights still on at WH? Yeah? Ok, no need to evacuate yet. Lol!!!
Same in NC.
So true. When Michael hit WH hooked up a portable generator and kept on cooking. They earned my loyalty.
My son manages a Waffle House. I am biased here.
Moved to New Orleans and spent time with my Macon, Georgia family who told me they went to Waffle House for Easter breakfast every year. They swore by Waffle House. So when my Los Angeles sister visited and we took a road trip through the south, and she wanted to stop somewhere authentic for lunch {not TGIF, or McDonalds} and was imagining genuine bbq. I assured her the real southern experience was Waffle House, which, coincidentally, was off of just about every exit. So we went to Waffle House. Never forget the look of horror on her face. This was her southern experience! Crappy home fries and under cooked waffles in a charmless rectangle of a diner. With watered down imitation maple syrup. She never blamed me but she never trusted my fine dining instincts again. And we had to wait until another trip to Austin, TX to get the bbq.
I like both????
Hash browns at Waffle House and has brown casserole at Cracker Barrel. Also brown beans at Cracker Barrel with corn bread muffins and chicken and dumplings Okay I’m hungry now
In Los Angeles it’s Roscoes chicken and waffles, IHOP or Mel’s Diner Fried chicken and waffles are America’s contribution to world cuisine in my opinion Nobody does it better (or at all)
I would go so far as to say if you want chicken and waffles you should skip everywhere else and just go directly to Roscoes.
If that means you have to fly, so be it.
And for bonus points, you can go to Disney after!
Yes, Roscoes Chicken and Waffles! Forget the others, Roscoe’s is an LA soul food institution, lol!
Waffle house all the way, and I’m not a trucker…
Toss up. Grand slam good memories with the limited menu. Better menu mixed with horrific dining experiences. Hmmmm.
Waffle Houses are important in Florida. That’s how we know if we need to evacuate for hurricanes.
When I was pregnant all I wanted for breakfast all the freaking time was Cracker Barrel’s blueberry pancakes! I will only order pancakes from them. Love them! I also love their eggs in a basket meal.
I will admit though I do like waffle houses hash browns but that’s about it for them. If you ask me to choose one of the other then Cracker Barrel will win every time.
We have neither in the UK, so I have no opinion. 🙂 I will never understand the American custom of eating meat with waffles, though. Waffles should be eaten with Nutella, as befits their sweet deliciousness. Fried chicken should be eaten with coleslaw, and maybe some spicy potato wedges.
Damn. Now, I’m hungry.
Frankie & Benny’s in the UK had a Chicken and Waffles breakfast with bacon and maple syrup. With a Bloody Mary, it was the perfect hangover breakfast.
Yeah, your Mod knows how to party 😀
I am in the US and don’t understand meat with waffles. Just because it exists doesn’t mean I have to eat it.
I think you forgot Birds Eye. I still like them sometimes with veggie fingers but we used to have them as kids with fish or chicken fingers and beans for Friday dinner. They are waffly versatile after all ????
Yes, potato waffles are an exception to this rule. Not even I would eat those with Nutella! 😀 (And I ate them with almost every meal as a child…)
I’m trying to figure out when chicken and waffles became a thing in the U.S. Was that mostly a Southern thing? I don’t remember it up north when I was growing up.
I don’t remember it in Texas, growing up.
It was never a thing in our family in the south either.
Once you accept chicken and biscuits, it’s a slippery slope.
Buttery & sweet (waffles with maple syrup) and crunchy, spicy & savory (fried chicken-I prefer dark meat for even more depth of flavor). Berries on the waffles. Maybe some whipped cream.. With lots of good hot coffee. Nothing better on the weekend when you have the time to savor. Yum.
hah! here’s a limey telling what and how to eat!
I was born, raised, and have lived most of my life in Atlanta. Waffles and chicken are still beyond my comprehension. ????♀️ I’ll take Nutella or something equally sweet and decadent with my waffle every time. Just not chicken.
Skip the waffles. Eat the Nutella from the jar.
I live in Spring which is a burb of Houston so the Waffle House Disaster Index is a big thing here. When it’s flooding or a hurricane hits you know it’s bad if the Waffle Houses are closed. As far as food both fill a niche so I like both. I love browsing the store at Cracker Barrel while waiting to be seated and the food is good home cooking. Waffle House became a travel game for my family whenever we took a road trip. The first person to see the Waffle House sign would scream “Waffle House” at the top of their lungs and get a point. At the end of the day whoever had the most points won. Since Waffle House is everywhere just about there was tons of screaming going on. Also some time you just want good old greasy truck stop food and Waffle House hits the spot. They will always have a place in my heart because of their cheesy eggs. In the last several months before my dad passed away, most days the only thing we could get him to eat was my version of Waffle House cheesy eggs which had been his favorite thing to order there.
Not gonna lie. I’ve only eaten at cracker barrel once in my life. I was so dissapointed in their nasty syrup I’ve never gone back.
Local restaurant – When the chef was in the mood he would make gingerbread waffles with home fries and ham or sausage. Never on the menu. He would just write it on the “Chef’s Special” chalkboard when he decided to make it. Yummy.
Sadly I don’t live near there any more.
I live in a Marine Corps town the Waffle House is the place for younger Marines after long nights out, or when they roll out of bed at 2pm, not very family friendly. So we go to Cracker Barrel mostly.
I haven’t been to a Waffle House since very early childhood. Whenever Mother came down to Champaign, IL for doctor appointments (which at the time I worked at said clinic) she insisted in treating for lunch…at Cracker Barrel.
There are many, many nice restaurants in Champaign-Urbana at that time. She and Daddy came down around my birthday and wanted to treat for lunch; while Dad & I are waiting for her to finish her visit to the “ladies room” he asks where I want to go for lunch…
Me: O_O
Dad: What?
Me: You know as soon as Mother comes out she’s going to say, “let’s go to Cracker Barrel” you KNOW that
Mother comes out to the car.
Mother: So you want to go to Cracker Barrel for your birthday lunch?
For some reason she was highly miffed at Daddy & mine’s hysterical laughter.
Still – I’ll take the Old Timer’s Breakfast with bacon & hash brown casserole, thanks!
I ADORE the Waffle House. Their waffles are amazing, delicious, and CHEAP! I wish we had them in the PNW!!!
Haven’t been to a Waffle House in decades. No Cracker Barrel, for several years – we used to have (work) team lunches there, but the person who insisted in Cracker Barrel moved to Tennessee.
We tend to favor family-owned restaurants over chains. Currently that’s several Mediterranean (including Turkish) as well as sushi and Thai.
I never went to Waffle House, even though I go past one when I go out. It’s been a long time since I’ve gone to Cracker Barrel (pre-COVID). When I lived in Missouri, there was a Bob Evans, and it was good. 🙂
So as to the question, neither for me since I don’t go to either one.
STL girl here, I replied above about my preference in the WH vs CB debate, but given a choice Bob Evans is preferred over both of the others. My friend and I go to “breakfast” at Bob Evans every January 1st. It’s been our tradition since I moved into my new house, which I closed on just a couple of days before the end of the year. That first year we slept on a couch and watched dvds on a TV setup on cardboard boxes. Since I hadn’t really moved in yet there was no food or dishes, and pre-covid, nothing delivered here, so out we trundled in the frigid cold to Bob Evans, which was the closest restaurant open when we woke up.
I haven’t had fried chicken in so long, I think I forgot what it tastes like. We get baked chicken. Somehow, it just isn’t the same. I tried using Panko, but afterward, the chicken just stared back at me, crispless and unhappy, like me.
I tried a fried chicken recipe from Cook’s Country that is fried all at once. It turned out very good.
For this recipe, the chicken is brined in buttermilk with salt, pepper, and other spices. All purpose flour is mixed with a little bit more buttermilk (not the milk used for the brine) to make flour crags and the chicken is dredged through it. Then the chicken sits in the refrigerator on a wire rack set on the rimmed baking sheet. Then the chicken is fried in oil. Yummy!
True southern fried chicken needs to be fried in the family heirloom cast iron frying pan. And more importantly it was fried in lard ( or a combination of lard and oil). On our honeymoon my wife thought I was going to turn into a chicken I ate so much, we drove down south and did lot of driving on local roads,hitting these little restaurants and diners, and man was it good. I don’t eat chicken these days ( I suspect the places we ate the chicken was locally raised), but I remember it well.
That question must be a southern thing. When my cousin got married the morning we were all heading home from all the wedding festivities my cousin, the father of the bride told us to meet at Cracker Barrel. His sister was upset. She and her husband wanted to go to the Waffle House that was right next door. Being good northerners my sisters and I made a break for it. We had the longest distance to drive so no one questioned us as we said goodbye but the battle lines were draw. Half wanted to eat at Cracker Barrel the others Waffle House and they were letting it be known. There were like 20 of them.
LOL, priceless.
We have a local mom and pop place, Lettie’s great fried chicken, best I ever had. But I haven’t sampled much ????
In Vermont we don’t have either restaurant, though I’ve tried Cracker Barrel when traveling. We just have local restaurants, many of which cook with local, organic food. Yum. I do miss sweet tea, though.
I haven’t been to either one (we don’t have them in the San Francisco Bay Area) but from what friends tell me I’m more interested in Cracker Barrel.
Plus that guy who came in last in his fantasy football pool and had to spend 24 hours in a Waffle House (and eat waffles to reduce his time) made me ill… *turns green thinking about it *
The nearest Cracker Barrel to us would be Sacramento. I’m San Jose.
Waffle House if you are broke and in a hurry. Cracker Barrell if your in the mood for good food. But Bob Evans kicks both their butts… LOL
Yes!
Where I’m at, (Canada!) Cracker Barrel is a brand of cheese.
Yup!!!
Another +
Tho I’ve once been to a Cracker Barrel — I think — in Buffalo. Is that where they also have a little store with all kinds of tchotchkes and old time candies and stuff before you can escape?
No idea what a Waffle House is but I’ve got in mind some kind of Chalet with those guys in lederhosen dancing around. Probably not what it really looks like, considering the comments.
I am British and have lived in the UK all my life. However, I have three American 1/2 brothers (don’t ask, it’s a long story), 2 live in Georgia and 1 lives in Florida so I know both Waffle House and Cracker Barrel – Cracker Barrel wins. However, in Jacksonville close to where my brother used to live, there was a Mom & Pop style diner. Their breakfasts – eggs over easy (you mostly don’t get to choose in UK restaurants) chipolata chain link sausages, lovely crispy bacon and the most yummy hash browns – grated, not the thick brick-like offerings we get in the UK. I could have eaten there every day of all my holidays – sigh. However, grits. Nope. Not even with butter or flavourings. Not happening. Not. At. All. so I every time I pass on the grits I get told I don’t pass the “southern” test…. still, they love me 🙂
Grits are awesome when done right. But most restaurants make them too runny. Even Cracker Barrel, good grits should be stiff with lots of cheese and butter.
So many good ways to eat grits, but cheese & butter is the best (IMO).
I’m from the south. Unless I’m physically there (living in NM right now), Cracker Barrel is the only place where, if you find a lump in your grits, they will understand the kitchen must come to a standstill and investigate this catastrophe.
Growing up in CA, I only knew about instant grits sweetened and with milk. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I even knew people added other things to the grits, and I still wonder why. I guess you can tell I never lived in the South.
This “argument” totally ignores that Waffle House being open or closed is a check FEMA does in the severe storm times of the year. The “Waffle House Index” is a real thing.
Waffle House is over an hour’s freeway drive for me, Cracker Barrel is about 15 minutes away. Both places have plus and minus points in my book.
Sorry, I live in Ohio…. Bob Evans!!!
I wish I could eat at them. In high school I developed a severe allergy to eggs and I can’t even be in a room with eggs cooking or the smell of eggs without going anaphylactic. Basically imagine what a peanut allergy looks like only with eggs. . .
I had fallen down the YouTube wormhole the other night and came across Anthony Bourdain’s first time visit to the Waffle House and it was a hoot. Like him I had never heard of the Waffle House, he loved it, that might possibly be because I live in Canada … LOL … if the border ever re-opens I will make the Waffle House a stop on my world famous bucket list food tour.
There’s a bit of distinction between them in that Waffle House is primarily breakfast food served all day, and Cracker Barrel is country cooking, which includes breakfast but has lunch and dinner with a variety of meats and veggies. I LOVE their meatloaf!! We have both nearby, plus Waffle House’s correlate, the IHOP. Pre-Covid, we ate at Cracker Barrel at least once every couple of months, but haven’t been to Waffle House in ages. My husband is at CB every week for a men’s prayer breakfast.
Retired and we went to Florida last winter, stayed in some Cracker Barrel parking lots and tried the chicken – not overly impressed so we stopped eating there. All through the south it seemed we passed a Waffle House on every corner, but never went in one till we were on our way home – we loved their breakfast and chicken! It immediately became our gold standard, but sadly we were leaving the south and no more Waffle Houses. Guess we just have to go back for Waffle House food.
Waffle House is Southern hibachi.
Heh, well that’s good for some laughing, Thanks.
The two are only similar in that both serve food.
WH is for late night/early mornings after overindulging at the tavern and hash browns are needed to soak up alcohol. Also, coffee.
Cracker Barrel? Nope, I avoid it like the plague.
Why take my word on it?
I live within walking distance of where Rowena will have had been encased in molten glass.
Pro tip: The WH museum in Avondale Estates looks like a real WH, but you will not be served if you sit at the counter (yes, several have tried).