Chicken and Waffles

01 / ABOUT THE DISH

About the dish

Fried chicken and waffles is an unlikely, but much loved pairing of sweet and salty flavors and soft and crunchy textures. The dish is thought to have originated with the African Americans in the South who rarely had a chance to eat chicken and waffles, so it was a meal that was eaten at special occasions on African American dining tables. Some food historians claim that chicken and waffles evolved after the Civil War migration of Southern African Americans to the North. However, the modern version of the dish was first served in Harlem, New York as early as the 1930s, mostly in jazz nightclubs. Today, restaurants across the country serve the dish and have become famous for their versions, with chicken and waffles spreading as far as Los Angeles, where a restaurant called Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles holds a legendary status. When perfectly seasoned and fried, combined with the light and crispy waffle, satisfaction is almost certainly guaranteed.