I Just Want a Waffle!

By Whitney Robosson

I just want to apologize to my German friends in advance. This is a beautiful country, the people are so friendly, and you guys just know how to get things done. But if I have to eat one more piece of pork I’m going to stage a food coup and completely take over the restaurant industry in Munich. (Except the pretzel places – you can keep doing your thing because I would have starved by now if it wasn’t for you).

Maybe it’s because I grew up in America where "variety is the spice of life," but it just seems like everything tastes the same. It’s all very heavy, usually pretty greasy, and I don’t even know what food group half the stuff falls in. And I can’t read the menus, so it’s like every night I’m ordering the mystery dish. Actually, that’s a lie. I at least know it’s going to be pork. Pork with potatoes. Pork with dumplings. Pork on bread. Fried pork on a stick. Pork pizza. Pork mixed with pork, sprinkled with a pork garnish. Pork, pork, pork, pork, pork.

I just want a waffle! I’ve wanted a waffle ever since I smelled my first German meal. It really doesn’t make sense because I rarely eat waffles at home. A waffle is pretty much the opposite of the average “main course” served in the restaurants I’ve been to in Germany – light, fluffy, sweet. I’m so afraid I sound ignorant and offensive right now. I know I’ve only been here for two weeks and I haven’t tried a lot of food outside of Munich. Also, I do have to give props to the German way of cooking, because everything is FRESH. Germans go grocery shopping multiple times a week so food doesn’t need all the preservatives and additives (unlike American food).

Imagine a waffle cooked in Germany! It would be so much better than the frozen stuff I get back home. Mountains of fresh strawberries, drizzled with a little bit of fresh squeezed strawberry juice, topped with a dab of whipped cream, all on top of a freshly baked waffle. Well today I saw that waffle. Kelly and I were roaming around random parts of Munich when we decided to get a bite to eat at a chicken place (which is rare because Germans don’t eat a lot of chicken like we do). It was way after lunchtime, so the restaurant was practically deserted. Since this was one of the few times I’ve seen chicken on a menu, I decided to order it.

Not even two seconds later, Kelly reached over to another table where they had a tiny menu called “strawberry time” (at least that’s what Kelly said, I can’t read German). The very first item listed was a fresh strawberry waffle. Kelly and I jumped up and raced back to the kitchen so I could get our server to change my order. Although he had just written it down on a scrap of paper and handed it to the cook, he refused. He said it was “already being cooked.” I think he meant already spinning in the microwave, because the chicken I ordered was lukewarm and covered in grease. I was so upset! I had finally found my waffle (after Mario and Melina had told me they had no clue where I could find a waffle) and the guy wouldn’t even let me order it.

Everyone on this trip with me is probably sick and tired of me talking about waffles, so I just want you to know that it ends here. I won’t mention a waffle again. But if anyone knows where I can get a waffle in Munich, don’t hesitate to comment on my blog.