Trudy
I love desserts! No, actually I am a sucker for desserts. Unfortunately, desserts aren’t calorie free and some desserts are worth the pain of a middle age spread ( I’m working on my Winter weight gain with no shame). And one of those that I think is worth it is a liege waffle from Wafels and Dinges. I balance all this logic after or sometimes before having a nice spicy meal like, Misoya Ramen.
Wafels and Dinges is a business that started as a waffle truck traveling all over Manhattan serving freshly made waffles. And they have gotten so successful over the last ten years or so that they’ve added a fleet of trucks, a handful of mini-shops in and around the city parks, and opened their first full-fledged restaurant in the East Village. And keep up with the trucks daily by following their Twitter account.
What is So Great About Wafels and Dinges?
Well, what isn’t great about it? First of all, you get a choice from three freshly made waffle and a long list of sweet or savory toppings to make the experience special and unique for your tastes.
The Liège waffle, which is my favorite, is light and fluffy with sweet crispy edges because of the pearl sugar. Traditionally, it served naked but that’s not how I order mine. I get the ” black and tan”, which is Nutella and Speculoos (think of a paste made of Biscoff cookies) , a beautiful mess over a hot waffle. On this day, I was good and I shared and didn’t go completely animal on the order.
The other waffle pictured wasn’t mine but was an “Elvis special” which is bacon, bananas, and peanut butter. When I said they have a hundred variations, I am not kidding.
The other types of waffle are the Brussels Wafel, which is the closest to the American waffle and is made from a yeast-leavened batter, only available at the Flagship restaurant. Then there is the Hashbrown Wafel made from a potato batter and is perfect for savory toppings that are available for the most part at the Wafels & Dinges restaurant and the Big Trucks.
If by chance you aren’t a fan of waffles, and I am not sure that I want to be your friend then. You can also get a more traditional pastry at the trucks and mini shops like a Speculoos and Chocolate roll, or a Speculoos croissant to go with your coffee, and in the Summer there’s shakes and ice cream on a waffle.
What Is A Dinges?
A Dinges is one of the many toppings that you can choose from to add to your waffle. The choices start from the tame like real maple syrup, ripe fruit, and whipped cream to the bolder choices of meat chili, ice cream, and fudge. Even though at the mini shops the choices are limited due to the size of the shop, it does take a while to choose from the options.
How Do I Get My Own Waffle?
That solution has continually gotten easier over the years. Gone are the days when I used to rush to the Trader Joe’s off Union Square for that solitary truck that serviced downtown. Now I can trip over locations!
The East Village Café is on 15 Avenue B on East 2nd street in Manhattan; there are three carts outside of Central Park; one shop in Bryant Park featured in this post; one shop in Times Square; one shop at Hudson River Park; one shop in Herald Square and one shop at Borough Hall in Brooklyn. And that is outside the traveling trucks that pop up all over.
*UPDATE: I just found out that you cant text your order to Wafels and Dinges (text Wafels to 33733) have your waffle delivered and they do Postmates… Are you trying to have me become a hermit? I will never have to leave.
So you can take your pick. No one needs to deprived of an authentic Belgian waffle anymore, especially not in New York City.
Have you ever tried Wafels and Dinges? Are you a fan of waffles in general? Tell me about all of your waffle leanings and what your favorite desserts are in the comments below, I truly want to read all about them. In the meantime, follow me on Instagram, Pinterest and save this pin.
Until our next rendezvous…
XOXO
Trudy
What on earth is a dinge? I love waffles. I’ve been to a Waffle House restaurant twice, but other than that, I’ve always made our waffles myself. I find it easy but time-consuming.
Hahaha, Anne I hadn’t realized that I didn’t clarify that in my post. I will correct that right away! A dinges is one of the toppings that you choose to put on the waffle.
Is dinges singular or plural????
Dinges is always spelled with an s and it is plural. It is a noun used as a word replacer when you can’t remember the name of something but in this case the toppings of the waffle.
We used to hunt down the trucks before they had the permanent locations! My weakness is always a waffle with Nutella and strawberries 😉
Haha, me too! When I worked in the Murray Hill area, the spot in front of Trader Joe’s was the usual in the evening and on weekends at Astor Place!
I haven’t tried that combination yet!
You are killing me, Trudy! Those look AMAZING, especially the Elvis Special. I usually have to make my waffles at home (the whole gluten free thing). Maybe I can just have the dinges? 🙂
The “waffleurs” are so sweet they would probably do that for you!
I love waffles, especially chicken and waffles. I’ve not heard of Wafels and Dinges before but now I’ll need to look for them the next time I’m in NYC.
Do try next time, you won’t regret it! The mini-shops are so tiny that they’re easy to miss unless you’ve seen them before.
Chicken and waffles are pretty common for brunch and the most popular places in the city right now are Sweet Chick, Clinton Street Baking Company, and Sylvia’s Restaurant. You’ve inspired me to plan a roundup. It would take a while!
Yum. I’ll have to keep those on the list as well.
Yum! These look so good! I need to try one of these. I’m bookmarking this page so I don’t forget about them!
They are scrumptious! I hope that you get to enjoy them.
I just found out that they ship across the US. Yay!
That is good news! Thanks for letting me know!
Oh hubba! Waffles, cinnamon donuts and pancakes- my favourite sort of desert xxx
Oooh these look amaaaazing.
I love desserts too – some of these waffle flavours and dinges sound a bit different but I’ll take your word that they’re tasty Trudy 😊. A great write up and now I’m hungry!!
Thank you, Debbie! Which ones are odd-sounding? I didn’t eat the bacon and banana one, that was my friend’s choice. If I am not feeling so sinful, I will just get maple syrup and walnuts.
I think the bacon and banana sounds an odd combination but each to their own!! I’d stick to honey and lemon.
OMG TRUDY I AM FINDING THEM THE NEXT TIME I GO TO NYC!!! Can you tell I’m excited?
Haha! Yes, I can!!!
Holy smokes, those things look delicious! Want! (Need?) 🙂
I don’t fancy the savoury waffles but I’m a sucker for nutella covered ones! 😊
Waffles. I mean. Is there anything better? I doubt it!
“If by chance you aren’t a fan of waffles, and I am not sure that I want to be your friend then.” This, 100%.
YOUR BLOG MAKES ME SO HUNGRY. Seriously, that Elvis waffle would look great in my office right now (for about 10 seconds until I obliterated it)
I think that I’ve cut back to once every three months, I’m really proud of myself, its so hard.
I too am working on the winter weight gain, but it will not stop me from enjoying delicious desserts. Every extra pound I am carrying was put on eating something I enjoyed very much! This place looks fun!!