Things you can't get in Singapore

Roscoe's from the inside out.

Chicken and Waffles - an unlikely combo

Ready to dig in!

Today I had a great meal. A meal I could never get in Singapore. I'm sure I could get the elements of the meal at various places on the tiny island by the equator, but not in a similar setting and by no means even one one hundredth as good.


The meal in question was eaten at a Los Angeles institution, one I'd heard about for years but never actually tried. The famed "Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles" http://www.roscoeschickenandwaffles.com/ . Roscoe's indeed serves up fried chicken and waffles - on the same plate. They've been preparing the tasty combo for about 30 years. We stopped in at the Pasadena location. It looks like your typical fast food place of which there seem to be millions in So Cal. There was a nice crowd when we arrived at 11PM. I eyed the menu and honed in on the SCOE Special - 1/4 Fried Chicken and 2 Waffles. Now I am not a savoury and sweets on the same plate guy but I made an exception. I hadn't had breakfast and was ready for lunch. This combo would kill two birds with one stone.


About 5 minutes after placing the order the plate arrived. Sure enough there was a wing and a breast of crispy fried chicken and two giant round waffles topped with about two ice cream scoops of butter. On the side were a couple of nice cups of syrup.



I dug into the chicken first - crispy on the outside seasoned perfectly with a blend of spices - not too salty, not spicy, just southern tasting. Inside the meat was moist and juicy. I realized that it was nice to be chomping on a forcibly fattened meaty chicken as opposed to the scrawny little chickens we eat in Singapore. I guess I would overlook the knowledge that the Singapore chicken may have had a better life roaming around then the sadly captive American factory chicken. It was gooooooood.


Not wanting to slip too far to the dark side of the savoury/ sweet mixing thing I ate the entire chicken first and carefully put the bones on a different plate. I then turned to the waffles. When the plate had arrived I flipped the top waffle over so the mound of butter would melt between the two toasty pillows of cooked waffle mix. The melt was perfect. I dribbled on some of the syrup and took a bite. I could hardly believe it but the waffles with the butter and syrup was as good as, if not better then the chicken. The waffle was light and fluffy with enough crispiness but not too much. The syrup was really good. Not sure if it was maple but it was sticky, sweet and complex tasting. I slowly ate the waffles until I could eat no more. There was a little left and I wanted to eat it all but thought better of it.



I was so happy and satisfied that I thought about the meal the rest of the day. Maybe it was the fact that I've been in Asia for a year and while I have had maybe the best and most tasty food I've ever eaten on a regular basis this meal was about as American as American can get. I miss this stuff. One look at the size of the people coming in and out of the restaurant and the people I have seen at LAX, Target, Starbucks and just about everywhere I go here remind me that I'm glad I don't have this food every day. But today I'm glad I did!