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The Waffle Factory
Rating Details »
Category: American (Traditional) [Edit]
Neighborhood: South Los Angeles9131 S Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90044
(323) 777-1117
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good for:
- Breakfast
8 reviews for The Waffle Factory
The Good:
- waffles have different flavors! such as um, PEANUT BUTTER! :D
- waffles light and not dense -- does not make you feel ginormous afterwards
- good service - got coffee refilled probably one too many times, but who can say no to more caffeine on a groggy morning? oh yes, they also have splenda and not the cancer-inducing sweet n low.
- bacon nicely fried and crispy....not super blackened crispy like usual breakfast joints
The Bad:
- neighborhood - too far from where I live and with 3 funeral homes next door, can put a damper on your day
Overall, it's the waffles that make up for anything this place might lack. Not a bourgie breakfast joint. Very homey. Excellent waffles. Lives up to their name. Get the peanut butter waffles if you have PB LOVE!
I had always passed by this popular place when driving down the street, but, one hungry morning, I decided to try it out....It really is a lovely. But, enough about the architecture, lets talk about the food.
You place your order at the front desk when you first enter. Oh! If you don't come ea0rly, prepare to wait in a huge line. Off the large, rather tempting menu, I chose the "Maxine Waters", titled after our famous congressional representative of the same name. This hearty meal consists of two salmon croquettes, hash browns, eggs, and white or wheat toast, all for around 12 bucks. Pretty good deal. I took my seat and, when the food finally arrived, I was in awe of the huge portion size. I couldn't wait to dig into the giant salmon croquettes. They were great, not the best I've had, but great nonetheless. They were crispy on the outside and quite moist on the inside. As for the rest of the meal, my eggs were a little overcooked and my hash browns were undercooked. Toast is toast.
There is only one other negative thing I have to say about this otherwise nice place: The Slow Service. They seem to have only two waiters on duty at a time. This doesn't make much sense due to the large crowd this place draws. Overall, I enjoyed my dining experience. I may be back to sample the waffles next time...
This place will make you forget Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles ever existed. The portions are HUGE, the food is amazing, and the atmosphere is relaxed and friendly. It's a sit down restaurant with table service, but you order at the counter. The menu is expansive and includes croquettes (the "Maxine Waters Special"), fried chicken, fried fish, breakfast, and full dinners. The best thing I had there was 2 pieces of fried chicken with cornbread and 2 sides. Each side was served in one of those soup bowls, which is a LOT of mac n cheese, salad, mashed potatoes, or veggies.
Still, this place has not disappointed me with any of the other offerings, and I am slowly trying to taste everything on the menu. The prices are affordable and you don't feel rushed to hurry up and eat.
The Waffle Factory is the latest reinvention of the old Stan Kite Restaurant which used to sit on this spot in the 1960s. The owners essentially renovated the place on their own, with many trips to Home Depot. It's nice to see historic LA buildings being put to good use. This area is in need of revitalization, and the Waffle Factory was an excellent step for the community--so stop by and support them! You'll be glad you did--and FULL.
The waffles were pretty good & they offer a variety of flavors. But, the eggs were okay, the hashbrowns were not cooked well, mushy on the inside. The waitress was really nice, even though she didn't give me a receipt. Even with the 2/$1(2) waffle special my egg, ham(dry) & or biscuit/hashbrown meals were $14! None of them came with waffles! The decor was nice, big screen televisions, booths, etc.
Matt M. got it right. Food was ok but overall the service wasn't that great.
It seems that they are still understaffed and there is still confusion at the register. The guy taking the order took like 5 minutes taking our order. The food took like 30 minutes to come out. when it finally came out it wasn't warm and they messed the order up. After waiting another 10 minutes we got the correct order. The food wasn't hot, warm at best. The food tastes good but the service was horrible. If you don't mind waiting almost an hour for your food then give it a try. I'm sure with the correct management and sense of urgency this place would be full just like a Roscoe's on a Saturday night.
Worth a try... just a try...
The Waffle Factory sits on a rundown strip of Vermont in South LA. It's sort of part of the Vermont/Manchester project, yet without the city subsidies granted to the area that's been a ghostland of sorts since the riots of 1991. Tim Cavanaugh has been following the development, along with city's Community Redevelopment Agency in charge of the project, over the past few months. You can read his op-ed pieces on the LA Times website.
The Waffle Factory has not been without it's own development problems. Short of financing, the restaurant had its own road bumps on its way to becoming one of the area's only sit down establishments. Well it's finally open, and I decided to check it out.
Located in the old Stan Kite coffee shop location, the revamped restaurant features a large granite counter top, with a remodeled dining room and bathrooms. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and are open 25 hours. Not sure where they find that extra hour!
Their specialty is, of course, chicken and waffles. The chicken comes chargrilled or fried. The waffles come in many flavors; plain buttermilk, or filled with apple cinnamon, bacon and cheese, banana, strawberry, chocolate chip, cinnamon, blueberry, ham and cheese and whole wheat.
The menu seemed to be a bit new, even though they've been open for a couple of months. And overall things seem to be a little hectic. They couldn't figure out how to punch in my order, the daily special, which was two pieces of fried chicken and a waffle filled with my choice of strawberries.
The food arrived at my table, unfortunately I cut into the large chicken breast and it was slightly under cooked and I had to send it back. After a long wait, my new order of chicken arrived. Except this time they brought me a thigh and a wing and a plain waffle, but I wasn't about to send it back and wait again.
The food was good, the chicken was moist and not too greasy. The waffle was crispy and I am very interested in coming back to try other items on the menu. It's filled with all kinds of southern comfort food favorites like meatloaf, pork chops, catfish, popcorn shrimp, rib-eye steak and salmon.
Overtime I hope they work out the kinks. They are currently trying to staff up according to a craigslist post. Several people were filling out applications when I was there. Some of the reviews I read complained of lack of organization, long lines, and confusion at the register. But if the long lines and crowds are any indication, it shows these types of places are needed in a community that has seen very slow re-development, even 16 years later.
I like this place and all my family loves it too. Although I will admit that they seem to only have one waitress and ordering can sometimes take a minute but overall I love the food. I love the atmosphere, the set up of the place is awesome and the hospitality goes along way. I also like the fact that they have a karaoke section there for the weekend. I feel that the food is priced just right and you get more than what you pay for. I wish we could pay for the food after we eat instead of before but I guess they have to trust us first..
my friends raved about the waffles. the chicken? not so much. i came here on a wednesday night with my school posse, so we were served a prix fixe menu of rice & beans, chicken wings and mac and cheese. the mac and cheese was nothing special, cheesy and creamy, the way i like it. the rice and beans were okay..nothing too special about that either. the hot wings were super spicy... like frank's redhot xtra hot drenched spicy. the chicken was anorexic, hardly any meat on that thing. maybe i'll come back for the waffles if im in the area.
