The combination of savory fried chicken and a light, fluffy waffle topped with sweet maple syrup is an unlikely match made in culinary heaven. In fact, this dish’s popularity has propelled it to icon status. It is now as American as apple pie. But where did it start? Whom shall we credit with first pairing dinner with breakfast? Because fried chicken has widely been considered a southern delicacy, it would be easy to assume that chicken and waffles originated there. However, both fried chicken and waffles are older than our American South.
In the Middle Ages, European cooks had a fondness for fricassee, a dish containing meat that is either stewed or fried and served in a thick white sauce. Preparation was easy, only requiring an iron pot, the meat and fat. The popularity of fricassee continued, and the meat of choice became chicken. Even first lady, Martha Washington had two recipes for the dish. After many years of home cooks perfecting the dish, the recipe that we now recognize as fried chicken was published in a cookbook in 1881.
Waffles have also been around since the Middle Ages in Europe. They were very thin cakes made from a mixture of flour and water, baked between two metal plates and used as communion wafers. The wealthy would add honey or eggs and bake in plates engraved with their coat of arms. Due to their simplicity, they later became a popular street food. Dutch immigrants brought them to New Amsterdam, modern day New York. Thomas Jefferson is credited with popularizing waffles in America when he returned from France with a goose-handled waffle iron. Once the electric waffle iron was introduced at the 1964 World’s Fair, waffles became a staple in American kitchens.
After World War I, an artistic awakening was taking place in Harlem, New York and was part of a larger cultural movement called the Harlem Renaissance. During this era, artists of all kinds made their way to the city. Painters, writers, dancers and musicians were all looking for opportunities for expression and recognition. Among those artists were jazz musicians. The music genre’s fan base exploded as major venues like The Cotton Club and The Savoy Ballroom routinely hosted jazz orchestras and swing bands. Music legends Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong all made Harlem their home at some point during those Renaissance years. The bands would play until the early morning hours then go out to eat and unwind. Area restaurants began to stay open later to accommodate them.
Wells Supper Club was one of those restaurants that stayed open. The Club offered breakfast, lunch and dinner and was known for its southern inspired menu. Hungry musicians would go to the restaurant after their late night gigs. However, it was too late for supper and too early for breakfast so Joseph Wells, the founder, came up with the idea to use the leftover fried chicken from the dinner crowd and serve it with a breakfast waffle. From a business standpoint, it was a cost effective way to increase sales and reduce food waste. Of course, it was also a big hit. For decades, Wells Supper Club served its famous chicken and waffles to celebrities, including members of the Rat Pack. It has even been reported that Nat King Cole had his wedding reception there.
Today many restaurants have their version of chicken and waffles on the menu. The combination has evolved through many incarnations over a long period of time, from the European Middle Ages to the southern tradition of pairing meat with a quick bread to an improvisation in Harlem, making it clear that savory fried chicken and a buttery, sweet waffle are a match destined to be together.