OK, I'm going to keep preaching the greatness of this place. I stopped by again tonight and it is still excellent (despite the inside not being open yet!).

Another thing that I noticed is this, which is a huge thing going for it: their coffee is by far the CHEAPEST in the neighborhood. A 12 or 16oz Illy's drip is only $1. A 20oz is $2. Amazingly cheap! That'd cost you $3 at starbucks, and trust me, Illy's is better.

While the waffles are pricey, the coffee will bring in the people. A shame, though, that they're opening in the winter. If they can survive the low foot traffic of the winter, they'll be good for another year or two at least.

jonjonjon wrote:Another thing that I noticed is this, which is a huge thing going for it: their coffee is by far the CHEAPEST in the neighborhood. A 12 or 16oz Illy's drip is only $1. A 20oz is $2. Amazingly cheap! That'd cost you $3 at starbucks, and trust me, Illy's is better.

They must be using Chicago water.

Wow, had one of these this afternoon and thought they were absolutely mediocre. Somewhat tasty I suppose, but in an uninspired sugary dough sort of way more than anything unique or exciting. Plus it felt like a complete waste at that $5 price. I actually threw out half of it.

Is it normal for them to have a rack of 4 or 5 pre-made waffles and then to pop them into the iron to reheat them once ordered (i.e. not very fresh or made to order)?

I give the place less than a year, given that location, that price point, and that quality.

Ralph Wiggum wrote:Is it normal for them to have a rack of 4 or 5 pre-made waffles and then to pop them into the iron to reheat them once ordered (i.e. not very fresh or made to order)?

Both times I've been there they had waffles sitting there, but they asked me if I wanted to wait for a fresh one (which I did).

I went this weekend and had the opposite experience--there were about a half-dozen parties in line for waffles and we had to stand there while the lone waffle-meister cranked them out in small batches every 7 minutes.

He handed out free cups of coffee while we waited, but I think they need to have a more efficient system in place. The good news is that they were apparently slammed all weekend. So for at least a little while, a Daily Candy effect is in place.

I did my grad school residency in Brussels and loved the waffles from the street carts. These are about 90% there, but I think most people in line showed up expecting American waffles--huge and covered in whipped cream and syrup. I don't think shelling out $5 for a smaller version really made anyone's day, either.

I'll be back when they calm down.

I suppose the name of this place is part of the "concept" and perhaps then reflects marketing strategy rather than sheer ignorance but it should be noted that a) "Zücker" is a possible family name but has nothing to do with 'sugar' -- German for sugar is «Zucker», no umlaut; b) calling these waffels "Zückerwaffeln" or "Zücker waffles" makes about as much sense as opening an Italian restaurant in Chicago that features Roman style semolina gnocchi but refers to them only as Grießknödel. The term 'Zuckerwaffel' (ohne Umlaut) exists but to my knowledge only as a German rendering by translation of the Dutch suikerwafel. And yet, this particular style of waffle is associated with Liège, itself a city where French is the primary language (the native Walloon as well as the Italian, Arabic, etc. of immigrant groups are also well represented). In French, these are gauf' au suc' (gaufres au sucre). Given that the place says it makes Belgian waffles and that the two official languages of Belgium are Dutch and French* and further that the style of waffles made here is the one associated with Liège, where French is the official language, one must assume that part of the marketing concept involved just getting umlaut dots in the name somehow, anyhow...

I thought that purely decorative diëresis -- favoured among heavy metal bands and ice cream companies -- had finally gone away...

Äntöniüs

* Of course, there is a very small part of Belgium where German is the official language, namely, the canton of Eupen (greetings to my old friend Werner from Eupen, if he's out there reading this), awarded to Belgium after World War I as partial compensation for the German invasion. But even so, these waffles are not Eupen-style waffles but Liège-style waffles.

So vele Spraken as ick kann, so vele Malen bün ick Mensch.
- Karel de Grote

Antonius wrote:But even so, these waffles are not Eupen-style waffles but Liège-style waffles.

I would be curious to know if you think they are good examples of Liège-style waffles.

stevez wrote:

Antonius wrote:But even so, these waffles are not Eupen-style waffles but Liège-style waffles.

I would be curious to know if you think they are good examples of Liège-style waffles.

Though I don't have much of a sweet tooth, I'm curious too and would like to give one from this place a try, for comparative purposes. Done well, they're a pretty tasty item, though I would much rather have a cone of fresh, hot fritten met mayonaise (or should I write mayonäse?)...

Ä

Antonius wrote:I thought that purely decorative diëresis -- favoured among heavy metal bands and ice cream companies -- had finally gone away...

Äntöniüs

Nö, Äntöniüs, nöt ät äll...

Antonius wrote:Though I don't have much of a sweet tooth, I'm curious too and would like to give one from this place a try, for comparative purposes. Done well, they're a pretty tasty item, though I would much rather have a cone of fresh, hot fritten met mayonaise (or should I write mayonäse?)...

Ä

I thought you had already gone, based on your post. I didn't realize that it was merely a critique of their ümläüts and not their fööd. The next time you have a spare $5 in your pocket that you don't mind blowing, give Baladoché a try and let me know what you think. Having never had a Liège waffle in Liège, my guess would be that true Liègionares would not be particularly happy.

stevez wrote:I thought you had already gone, based on your post. I didn't realize that it was merely a critique of their ümläüts and not their fööd...

Steve,

I don't think there is any indication in my post that I've been there; as you know, I'm a little hesitant to go to those dangerous neighbourhoods on the Northside.


***

Amata,

And all this time I thought scünci was the Genoese dialect form for a kind of seafood!

( )
It is an interesting form; clearly not invoking in straightforward fashion the Teutonic but rather aiming for an indefinable Euroidity, halb Italiano, mezzo Deutsch... eller hur?

Thank Bog I won't have to suffer with that dented head thing anymore!

Ä

Antonius wrote:Steve,

I don't think there is any indication in my post that I've been there; as you know, I'm a little hesitant to go to those dangerous neighbourhoods on the Northside.

Looking back at it, I can see you are correct. I just assumed that since you posted you must have tried the goods. My mistake.

I stopped by again last night before a movie at the Century -- by the way, you can now eat inside -- and spoke to one of the partners about the "water" issue. He informed me that, yes, they do use water imported from Belgium and he told me that the problem with the Chicago tap water was that they detected that it contained chlorine, and it is true that chlorine does kill yeast -- doesn't mean it won't rise, it just won't rise as much as desired. And these waffles are supposed to be on the fluffy side and so it makes sense to me that bottled water would improve the waffles in this respect. Now, do they need to be using this particular water as opposed to a less expensive bottled water? I did not go down that road with him.

On another note, he said that prior to the last couple of days, the yeast was still not proofing properly. I could definitely notice the difference. The waffle I had yesterday was much fluffier and I liked the texture even more. Taste-wise, still fantastic and in my opinion as good as the ones you'll find in Belgium.

Finally, although they offered to make me a fresh one, I asked him if I'd notice a difference with the re-heated ones and he said no. So not really wanting to wait, and wanting to find out if the re-heated ones (which he said were made just several minutes ago anyway) could taste as good, I allowed him to re-heat one. It was perfect. Of course, if the waffles have been sitting around a long time, I would not allow them to re-heat them.

But I will say this: I have found my new favorite dessert-type snack in Chicago.

What's the name for the cubic units that make up a waffle? A waff? Well, I have now had exactly that much of a Baladoche waffle, as a free sample, as well as being treated to the spiel about what makes a Baladoche waffle different by an energetic young lady dressed for a considerably warmer day than the one that she was leaning out the window to experience.

My feeling was, a little on the sugary side, but fresh, fluffier than most, and a very pleasant diversion on a wintry day. I liked the waffle, too.

Seriously, it is pretty tasty, in a somewhat-too-sweet way, with more complexity of flavor due to the use of a yeast dough rather than a batter with baking powder. Price still seems the crazy barrier, I'd go here with my kids for breakfast and find myself spending $60 on waffles, but at least the premium price goes with a premium product.

BR wrote:I stopped by again last night before a movie at the Century -- by the way, you can now eat inside -- and spoke to one of the partners about the "water" issue. He informed me that, yes, they do use water imported from Belgium and he told me that the problem with the Chicago tap water was that they detected that it contained chlorine, and it is true that chlorine does kill yeast -- doesn't mean it won't rise, it just won't rise as much as desired. And these waffles are supposed to be on the fluffy side and so it makes sense to me that bottled water would improve the waffles in this respect. Now, do they need to be using this particular water as opposed to a less expensive bottled water? I did not go down that road with him.

You can buy a reverse osmosis or triple filtration system to remove the chlorine (and anything else that may be in Chicago's water) for much less than it would cost to import Belgian water or use any brand of bottled water, so that's probably more of a marketing tactic.

Did anyone see the Hungry Hound segment on this place. Me thinks they might have wanted to use a better spokesperson than the someone who seemed like they were hired that afternoon to explain why people might want to shell out $5 for a waffle when you can get 2-3 boxes of Eggos for that price. Seriously, someone just reading this thread may have been a better ambassador.

Mike G wrote:an energetic young lady dressed for a considerably warmer day than the one that she was leaning out the window to experience

What sums up LTH's single-minded pursuit of food better than the fact that you can see picture after picture of canned insects but a statement like this has no accompanying photo?

Ralph Wiggum wrote:Wow, had one of these this afternoon and thought they were absolutely mediocre. Somewhat tasty I suppose, but in an uninspired sugary dough sort of way more than anything unique or exciting. Plus it felt like a complete waste at that $5 price. I actually threw out half of it.

Is it normal for them to have a rack of 4 or 5 pre-made waffles and then to pop them into the iron to reheat them once ordered (i.e. not very fresh or made to order)?

I give the place less than a year, given that location, that price point, and that quality.

My thoughts are pretty much the same as those above.

Walked by the window on Sunday, and an employee was sticking out the window and offered a bite size sample. I was very excited for this random sample, since I've wondered about this place for a while and gone by it several times.

The piece wasn't warmed, but I also found it to just be some sugary bread item. Nothing special, especially for the price. Husband had a similar opinion.

Also, with the times that I have walked by, I don't think I've ever seen many people there. Not sure how long it'll survive, but they do sell other things, too.

Some thoughts/comments:

*Baladoche is definitely not the first to offer Liege waffles in the US. Waffle Haus in Killington, VT has been serving them for years. As someone said above, Bonte in Philly also has been serving these waffles since opening in 2003. I'll give Baladoche that they may be the first in the Chicago area though.

*The waffles from Baladoche are mediocre at best. They do have that nice sweet glaze from the caramelized sugar pearls. However, they were too crisp, over cooked, and almost burnt. I'm used to the more doughy, chewy waffle. It's not uncommon to half cook the waffles prior to reheating and serving. Baladoche seems to go a bit overboard here.

*Waffle Haus in Killington does it the best in my opinion, perhaps better than the ones I had in Brussels. However, this may be due to my intense appetite after a day of skiing. The sugar pearls in the gaufres from Bonte in Philly never seem to melt appropriately to give the waffle that sweet glaze.

*$5 is way too expensive for a gaufre, especially for a mediocre one at that. I doubt bottled Belgian water used to make their waffles is really necessary. Also, $3 is way too much for dixie cup sized portions of gelato. I understand that rent/location has much to do with this. Once the initial novelty wears off, I don't see people paying that much for a gaufre.

*Waffle Haus in Killington is able to keep their price down since their locations are simply small, walk-up shacks right off the ski slopes- low overhead and perfect spot to attract hungry skiers and snowboarders. Bonte in Philly offers wireless internet and cafe seating, more qualities to attract potential customers. Perhaps Baladoche should take some cues from these business models.

I reviewed Baladoche over on the Yelp website:

Warning: I am in no way, shape or form, politically correct if you choose to peruse my other reviews there.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/J-QYNRR76Fg0Qjx ... 8ol2mc0nBA

Will,

In your Yelp review you mention that NY Deli has good italian ice in the summer. I'll be curious to try it. I've recently discovered the place and really enjoy a sandwich of theirs called the Apprentice. (Ham and turkey with a really good jalapeno spread on a crusty baguette)

The menu is incredibly limited but the place has a nice hole-in-the-wall vibe to it with the owner (or manager) obviously passionate about what he's doing. (Of note, the Cuban sandwich is mediocre and would more appropriately be called a grilled ham and cheese)

Ralph, NY Deli actually serves Anthony's Italian Ice (on Southport) which is one of the better products in the city, IMO. I like NY Deli as a quick go to as its just a few hundred yards from my house.

anyone been here recently?

Curious as to how it's doing.

gp60004 wrote:anyone been here recently?

Curious as to how it's doing.

I walked by it yesterday, and it's still there, open for business. (And still with the cute signs on the sidewalk pointing you to it.)

Admittedly, that isn't a very thorough report on "how it's doing," but it's doing at least well enough to remain in existence.

It seems to be doing quite well these days focusing on the strong Trixie and Chad factor in the neighborhood (mostly on the Trixie factor as Chad appears distant and unenthusiastic as if he's just been dragged along by the new ball-leash Trixie bought for him) . You know the type: those who will declare something that they've had for the first time in their 22 year lives "the best ever" and then use various vocally bastardized versions of the word "yummy" to describe it, including, but not limited to "yummz", "yumalicious", "yumma-yumma-yummy", "yumma-lumma-ding-dong", "yumma-yumma-yumma-yumma-yummaleon, you yum and go, you yum and goo-oo-oo" and "yumtacular".

I really need to move to a grown up neighborhood.

I don't live in the neighborhood, but I thought they were tasty when I stopped by and tried them.

As for the price, I was happy to pay it for something I liked.

<shrug>

When I worked in the hood. I found the place perfect for grabbing a free sample on my way to NY Deli to grab the only decent sandwich I ever found near Clark & Diversy. In the year that it was open I never actually paid for a thing at that place, nor would I but I did always make sure to tip whoever was making my lunch at NY.

"yummz", "yumalicious", "yumma-yumma-yummy", "yumma-lumma-ding-dong", "yumma-yumma-yumma-yumma-yummaleon, you yum and go, you yum and goo-oo-oo" and "yumtacular".

For a second there, I thought I had accidentally gone on Yelp.

whiskeybent wrote:

"yummz", "yumalicious", "yumma-yumma-yummy", "yumma-lumma-ding-dong", "yumma-yumma-yumma-yumma-yummaleon, you yum and go, you yum and goo-oo-oo" and "yumtacular".

For a second there, I thought I had accidentally gone on Yelp.

Yelp was my inspiration for that post.

You have all covered this place well here...

Only thing I wanted to add was that their hanging menu signage is way too small and staring at the near-microscopic font nearly gave me a headache...

I admit, I didn't have the nerve to tell them...

Oh, and the place does reek of a bit of pretention.

Other than that, the waffles are tasty.