By Caroline Yablon | Reporter
Waco has an assortment of aesthetically-pleasing brunch spots like Café Cappuccino, Magnolia Table and Olive Branch as well as so many fast food options. But, Waco lacks a casual place that is open 24/7 and is affordable for students to eat breakfast food. Opening a Waffle House would solve this problem.
Breakfast food might be my favorite kind of food. I crave it all day and especially at midnight when I’m pulling an all-nighter. With that being said, where can you go to get breakfast food past 2 p.m. that isn’t IHOP, where it’s a hit-or-miss if your pancakes are going to be fluffy or stale? Nowhere that I can think of. Having access to a Waffle House in Waco would provide a cheap, consistent 24-hour menu to students as well as Wacoans.
According to the Waffle House menu, one can get a waffle, bacon, hash browns and a glass of orange juice for $7.50. However, according to the Magnolia Table menu, you get a stack of pancakes, bacon, eggs, tots and a glass of orange juice for around $16, plus an hour wait. The Cafe Cappuccino menu tells us a customer can get a waffle, bacon, hash browns and a glass of orange juice for $11.50. Waffle House is about half the price of Magnolia Table and Cafe Cappuccino for basically the same food. Some might say you are paying for a better experience at Magnolia Table –– quality food and a cool aesthetic. But if I am being honest, breakfast food is breakfast food to me. Yes, Magnolia Table’s OJ might be freshly-squeezed and Waffle House’s comes from concentrate, but who really cares at the end of the day. If I am saving $8 on breakfast, I am one happy camper.
Brunch is a great excuse for many college students to go out on Saturday and Sunday mornings, dress cute and enjoy over-priced pancakes and eggs. Every time I have gone to Café Cappuccino, Magnolia Table or the Olive Branch, it’s as if girls are dressed to go on a date –– and if I am being honest, I occasionally dress up to get breakfast with my friends. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. However, I don’t know about you, but I don’t always want to feel that pressure to look nice just to get breakfast with a friend. Of course, there is no dress code for either of these places, and not everyone puts in that much effort. With that being said, at Waffle House, there is no pressure to look or dress in any way. You can go eat with people and wear pajamas if you desire and not be looked at strangely.
I am not the only one who thinks a Waffle House would be a great idea for Waco.
According to Chattanooga junior Caroline Mitchell, “A Waffle House would provide a place where my friends and I can grab a casual meal any time of the day. Almost everything in Waco closes early and sometimes you want late night fun for some waffles.”
Mitchell also said that Waffle House holds a special place to her heart because it was a place for her and her friends to go after football games in high school.
“We had a lot of fun memories at Waffle House,” Mitchell said.
Not only would a Waffle House solve the solutions that I explained above, but it would also be another option for students to eat after football games. Instead of everyone packing in the Whataburger, Fuego, students could migrate to the Waffle House and enjoy some breakfast food.
Waco lacks a breakfast spot that provides quality food, offers a casual setting for customers and is open all hours of the day. I think opening a Waffle House in Waco is a solution to this problem.
