![]() Waffle House remains a privately held company today - Rogers’s son, Joe Rogers Jr., is now the chairman - and does not disclose annual sales figures, but in 2005 the company claimed that it uses two percent of all eggs produced in the U.S. Its empire now spans across a full half of the 50 continental states, and though it’s concentrated in the South, Waffle Houses can be found as far north as Ohio and as far west as Arizona. The company began franchising in 1960 and in the beginning grew slowly, but expansion picked up in the ’70s and ’80s. The original Waffle House is now a museum. Co-founder Forkner once explained how he and Rogers, who were neighbors, started the chain: “He said, ‘You build a restaurant and I’ll show you how to run it.’” They named it Waffle House because waffles were the most profitable menu item (and therefore, what they most wanted customers to order). The vision: combine fast food, available 24 hours a day, with table service. The first Waffle House made its debut in 1955 in the Atlanta suburb of Avondale Estates. Here now, a look back at the legend, and for fans near and far, everything you need to know about Waffle House. The chain, which claims to have sold its billionth waffle sometime in 2015, recently saw both of its founders, Tom Forkner and Joe Rogers Sr., die within just two months of one another. ![]() The chain has inspired numerous books, including a first-person narrative from a former line cook titled As the Waffle Burns as well as one by a pastor called - naturally - The Gospel According to Waffle House. Is it the cheap prices? The no-frills atmosphere? Those illustrious hash browns that somehow taste better when you’re intoxicated? The waitresses that inevitably call you “honey”? Likely some combination of all of the above, plus a little bit of that inexplicable Southern diner magic - call it the Waffle House je ne sais quoi. ![]() Slinging humble breakfast fare around the clock, Waffle House inspires deep and unyielding loyalty in diners like few restaurant chains ( except maybe Whataburger) can. Since its founding in Atlanta some 60 years ago, the restaurant has been elevated to cultural touchstone, now sprawling across 25 U.S. You’ll get it.No 24-hour diner chain inspires quite the same cult following as Waffle House. I did okay, but the cooks were generous in their support: “Not bad. If you don’t know what you’re doing, you’re going to have hash, not hash brown, and the brown is the important part of the equation. All the Waffle House cooks were standing over me, saying “alright mister bigtime chef, let’s see your hash brown flip.” It looks so easy, but it’s terrifying. I’ve never been so scared of anything in my life. I was working the griddle and all of a sudden all these hash brown orders start coming in. I finally got to cook at the Waffle House a few years ago. That’s what I chase at all of my restaurants, and I learned it at the Waffle House. You feel like you been taken care of, nourished, connected with old-time friends. My biggest takeaway from the Waffle House is how you feel when you leave-this whole-hearted fullness, this recharging of your soul. ![]() Chefs are all so hardwired for change, but there’s comfort in not changing. I’ve been going to the Waffle House for over 20 years and the menu hasn’t changed. You know the food is going to be exactly the same, no matter which branch you go to. It’s the way you feel when you go to a spa-pampered by someone giving you their full attention. You know everything is going to be alright. When you pull into that parking lot, the stress of the world leaves you. ![]()
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