Too Close To Call: Waffle Warriors

Starving Artist vs. Waffle Bar

From porchetta sandwiches to the Banh Mi Boys, Toronto is seeing a surge in shops dedicated to doing one thing well. It was only a matter of time before the brunch scene followed suit. In the west end, Starving Artist does quirky waffle creations. In the east end, Waffle Bar does the traditional Belgian waffle. How do their waffles stack up? You decide.

Starving Artist, Bryan Jackson, 2009.	Name of shop, owner(s) & year opened:	Waffle Bar, Valerie Bain & Jan Vandenbroeck, 2012.
Minis — light and fluffy like what your grandma would make.	Style:	Liège [crunchy, named after a region in Belgium].
Breakfast Benny is a traditional eggs Benedict on a potato waffle with caramelized bacon ($11.50).	Most popular waffle dish:	Fruit Fusion Waffle: a waffle with whipped cream, caramel, chocolate sauce and fruit ($5).
A standard, plain mini-waffle is $1.50.	How much does a waffle cost?	The standard naked waffle runs $3.50.
I’m an event producer and a visual artist.… I did a stint in special events at Holt Renfrew.	What did you do before?	Jan was (and is) a hairstylist at Exit Salon; I was director of catering at the Granite Club.
Waffle bacon: bacon inside; waffle outside.	Coolest creation:	Sliders: three mini-waffles filled with different types of ice cream.
A lot of music performers, producers, a lot of bands, big DJs…	Any celeb customers?	Gordon Ramsay, Lynn Crawford, Massimo Capra…
We have waffle costumes that I made that are life-size waffles with butter caps for your head.	Best non-food use for a waffle?	After four months of drying out on the shelf, [you could use it as] a hockey puck.

This article appears in the September 2012 issue of Post City Magazines