Omnivore - Waffold: endorsed by Elvis?

• Cliff Bostock’s iPhone
• Cajun chicken at Waffold

I finally got by the new Waffold last week. It opened more than a month ago and, for me, serves up as much nostalgia as clownishly fun flavor.

The nostalgia comes in the form of a food fad from long ago. I remember that when my parents returned from the 1964 New York World’s Fair, my mother raved a good bit about the so-called Belgian waffles served there, piled with whipped cream and strawberries.

I say “so-called” because the large waffles never existed in Belgium, even though they were a riff on a traditional recipe there. And, despite popular belief, the neo-Belgian waffles were actually around before the ‘64 event. For proof, consult the ‘63 film “It Happened at the World’s Fair,” set in that year’s fair in Seattle. It includes a scene in which Elvis feeds a Belgian waffle to a kid.

Still, it’s certainly true that it was the ‘64 World’s Fair that turned them into a fad. You couldn’t go anywhere culinary without seeing an image of them.

• http://clatl.com/atlanta/ImageArchives?by=1223504
• Elvis in “It Happened at the World’s Fair.”

Waffold, opened by Justin Lim, who founded Yoforia about five years ago, exploits another dawning waffle fad: waffle sandwiches. They’re a growing food-truck favorite around the country and even Jack in the Box recently began serving a waffle sandwich for breakfast.

Lim’s menu says he’s making Belgian waffles. I don’t know his recipe, but they are slightly crispy, big circles that he folds over a variety of contents, sweet or savory for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Think waffles impersonating pita pocket sandwiches. Wayne and I each tried two. I got the cajun fried chicken — a breast moistened with some kind of chili spiked with maple syrup and covered with cole slaw. I paid $1 extra for a jar of maple syrup to sweeten the dish even more. It sounds weird, but the sweet and spicy flavors work together, as do the crispy textures of the waffle and the chicken.