Wafeler's Travels
Wafels & Dinges | Various locations | 646.257.2592 | www.wafelsanddinges.com
MY OLD LIFESTYLE HAD KEPT me away from the oft-written about and praised Wafels & Dinges (pronounced "ding-us") truck that has been serving hot, made-to-order, authentic Belgian waffles all over the city from a bright yellow-orange truck for the better part of a year, and topping those waffles with everything from chocolate to fresh fruit to Nutella to something called spekuloos spread.
In my old lifestyle, I'd be bartending on Sundays, and hungover all day on Wednesdays (from overdoing it the night before at Karaoke Night!), which meant I couldn't get to the truck when it was in my neighborhood—a few blocks away on 86th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues—to enjoy these wafles for myself.
And after, having just missed the truck last night be mere minutes on my return from PHUDE-ing down in Union Square, I decided to take advantage of my new sobriety-created energy and trek down by Times Square to reward myself for my discipline.
I jumped on the downtown 5 train and took a quick trip to the Times Square station, walking out of the subway and up 5th Aven...
...to 46th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues, where the Wafles & Dinges Facebook Page alerted its followers it would be.
I took a quick look at the menu to refamiliarize myself with all of the yummy options, rendered immediately moot once I saw the BACON SYRUP WAFEL special scribbled on the chalkboard on the side of the truck! I ordered one while perusing the truck for the rest of its wares and watching the wafel-makers create other customer's dishes.
Mine finally, quickly, came out, and it was a thing of visual and aromatic beauty. There was a little courtyard seating area just a few steps away; I made myself comfortable and dug in.
As I told the gentlemen who prepared this for me, this was f__king outstanding! The waffle was warm, toasty, light, airy, with a respectable crisp on the outside. The bacon—that gets crumbled and thrown into the batter right before the batter gets poured into the "iron"—was most lean, chewy without be gummy with fat, smoky, and flavorful. And the fine drizzle of maple syrup worked just enough to cut the bacon's salt but sweeten the wafles cakiness.
They had used "Brussels" wafel for this dish, but I was curious to try their "Liége" wafel as well, touted as "Soft 'n Chewy...the ones the Belgians kept secret from the world." After seeing the one the pretty lady next to me had just received, I ordered a liége mini-wafelini for myself. The bonus being that it came skewered with fruit. Yes, fruit! You see, I am eating healthy...!
The fruit was fresh and sweet, and the liége wafelinin, unadorned, had a greatcrepe-like taste to it, with a slightly more dense interior, which I could see holding up very well under some ice cream, which, of course, is one of their many toppings—dinges!—options.
The truck will be at 86th Street again this weekend, and after showing the pictures off my camera to my friends in the neighborhood, I believe we now have a large group of people who look forward to descending upon the Wafels & Dinges truck on Sunday.
You coming with...?
Bun Apple Tea!
.kac.
Wafels & Dinges | Various locations | 646.257.2592 | www.wafelsanddinges.com
