I had never been to a Waffle House before, and when I saw that the Smyrna location garnered two five-star reviews, I knew I had to try it. Five stars, after all, would put this restaurant into the upper echelons along with stalwarts such as the Hotel DuPont, the Mendenhall Inn, and other fancy fare. Could this tiny building sitting on the side of Route 13 in the diminutive burg of Smyrna be a culinary gem masked as an unassuming diner? The large glass windows allow one to see inside from the road; it certainly doesn't look like a five-star restaurant from the outside...could some magical transformation occur somewhere during one's passage through the building's foyer - the formica countertops wondrously changed to wood paneling, the hard plastic stools transmogrified into plush leather seats?
Sadly, no - what you see is what you get with the Waffle House; no fairy dust turns this into a Neverland of dining delight once you walk through the door. A five-star review is certainly out-of-place, if not outright disingenuous. This is a simple, Southern diner with food that is cheap both in terms of its prices and its quality. It's a restaurant that certainly belongs at its location: a highway exit in a rural town like Smyrna. If you're going to be rating a restaurant five-stars, you certainly should explain yourself - I'm going to do so even with this one-star review.
The waffle batter, ladled up from a plastic bucket onto the waffle press, is clearly heavy on the sugar and butter and light on the flour. Admittedly, it's impressive that they're making these waffles fresh, given the price you're paying for the meal. After tasting a friend's waffle, I turned to my hamburger. The white, Wonder-bread bun was not stale, and the congealed grease sitting on top of the burger concealed what was decidedly a decent beef patty that was a step up from McDonalds' frozen, Grade-Z meat. The tomato was fresh, although the iceburg lettuce was slightly wilted. The table was outfitted with an impressive array of condiments: Heinz-57, Tabasco, and A-1 supplemented the typical ketchup and mustard.
It's nice that you can see the kitchen from your seat, ensuring that the staff follows good hygiene practices (or, at least, that it's noticeable when they don't). Our waiter was very friendly and accomodating - we certainly had no complaints about the service. Notably, most of the booths would only seat two people - this isn't a restaurant where you can bring your whole family.
All in all, Waffle House is giving you exactly what you pay for: low-quality food at extremely reasonable prices. The fact that the food is served with a smile is just icing on the cake...or, perhaps, imitation syrup on the waffle. read more