Go Home Already: Shouts and Murmurs
Man Stops Traffic at 17th and K to Demand $200 Million
Compromise Uncertain on Same-Sex Marriage Law
Morning Roundup: Goodbye, Abe Edition
Judge Throws Out WTU Suit Over Teacher Layoffs
Dish of the Week: Fried Chicken and Waffles
Fried chicken and waffles is a uniquely American food innovation. Like many comfort foods, the exact origin of this fantastic pairing is murky. One account suggests that the dish emerged when Thomas Jefferson brought a waffle iron back from France in the 1790s, where it became popular as a Sunday morning meal in the South. Elsewhere, the dish is said to have first been served at Wells Supper Club in Harlem in the 1930s. Owner Joe Wells supposedly came up with the concept while serving late night diners, including jazz greats Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday, because it was too late for dinner and too early for breakfast.
Whatever the true history may be, anyone who has taken a bite of crispy chicken and syrup-smothered waffle can attest to the beautiful marriage of flavors and textures. It is the perfect food for the indecisive. Can't decide between breakfast or dinner? Sweet or salty? With fried chicken and waffles, you get it all. This Southern staple can be had at a number of restaurants around town, including Marvin, Creme, and on the late night menu at Oohhs and Aahhs. Did we miss your favorite spot to get this delicious breakfast/dinner hybrid? Let us know in the comments.
Small Bites
Le Beaujolais nouveau est arrivé!
If it's the third Thursday in November, it means it's time for Beaujolais Noveau. Celebrate the uncorking of the 2009 edition by getting drunk on a Wednesday. While Bistro du Coin's annual party is already completely booked, you can try Brightest Young Thing's Breathless Beaujolais Party at 1905 ($10). For something swankier, head to the French Embassy on Thursday for their “fête populaire”. The $60 ticket gets you wine, a buffet, pastries, live music, and a silent auction.
Easy as pie
Learn how to make all the Thanksgiving classics at Art and Soul's pie-making class on Saturday afternoon. Pastry chef Lauren Whitledge will show you how to make apple, pumpkin, and pecan pie, along with a pear tart. The class is $40 and includes your own baby pie. Register here.
Openings and closings
The Washington Business Journal reports that Penn Quarter restaurant D'Acqua has officially closed its doors and UK chain Ping Pong Dim Sum is scheduled for a December opening.
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Founding Farmers does a fantastic Fried Chicken and Waffles!
nice
Seconded. My girlfriend raves about the Founding Farmers' version.
I tried it at Marvin. There was more bone than chicken. Another $18 shot to hell.
Now I'm homesick...I must go to Roscoe's over the holidays :(
The class is $40 and includes your own baby pie.
Forty bucks to eat a baby pie? Marion Barry doesn't even charge that much.
I saw that on the menu last weekend at the Columbia Firehouse restaurant in Old Town and nearly fell off my chair. Had no idea that waffles and fried chicken went together. Maybe I'll try it next time.
You would be surprised what "goes together".
Get a room, you two.
Hey Wizzyliz! Monkey just told me he wanted to take me to Columbia Firehouse. Maybe we can help you with the falling out of the chair thing, for next time. Do or do not; there is no try.
There used to be a Gladys Knight's Chicken and Waffles in Largo, but I heard it closed. Something about taking a midnight train to Georgia. She kept dreamin' that someday she'd be a star. A superstar but she didn't get far. But she sure found out the hard way that dreams don't always come true. Nuh, uh. No. Nuh, uh. So she pawned all her hopes and she even sold her own car. Woo, woo, woo, woo. Bought a one-way ticket back to the life she once knew. Oh, yes she did. She said she would. Uh, huh.
Am I the only one who thinks this is a severly over-rated dish? I've tried it twice and the one at Founding Farmers was suck ass. The other one was nothing to write home about either. I don't get it.
Are you sure you ordered the chicken and waffles and not the Vide d'âne de Porc by accident? It's a common mistake since they both suck ass. The sauce, however, was not uninspired, unlike the Sudetenland Anschluss Pudding which was worse than Hitler.
I don't get the chicken-and-waffles pairing, either, but I'm from the north and I'd never heard of them going together until I moved here. Well, no, that's not quite true. I remember a reference to a chicken-and-waffles restaurant on the Jon Lovitz vehicle "The Critic", but at the time I thought they'd successfully managed a joke.
Maybe chicken-and-waffles is one of the many "uniquely American" things which excludes large swathes of the Northeast, Midwest, Rockies, and Pacific Coast, like collard greens or the Confederate flag.
Ben's Next Door has good chicken and waffles. Yum.
Tabaq, Tabaq!! The crispy, crunchy, savory crust on the chicken pairs delightfully with the smooth sweetness of the waffle.
Not to mention Tabaq also boasts amazing lamb sausage to boot.
Let's not forget the Pennsylvania Dutch-inspired stewed chicken + gravy + waffles.
had Art and Soul's chicken and waffles. pretty good, i'd say. not awesome. enjoyed them though.
ok, it's not quite chicken and waffles, but this charley steiner clip selling "marji's all-you-can-eat house of chicken and donuts" came to mind when i saw this.
can I share a bit?