Pune’s 7 Best Places to Savour a Well-Made Waffle
Rich and Decadent
10 May, 2016 by Late. Mrunmayi Ainapure
“We need to remember what is important in life: friends, waffles, and work. Or waffles, friends, work. It does not matter. But work is third.” Leslie Knope, the protagonist of Parks & Recreation, pretty much spoke for all of us waffles fans when she professed her unabiding love for waffles in the aforementioned line. Incidentally, Pune plays home to a variety of innovative spins on this luscious, golden-brown breakfast delight – here is a roundup of the finest ones.
Krustys’ new weekend hangover breakfast menu includes a beautiful waffle that has salty cheddar blending into the batter, resulting in a delectably rich, cheesy waffle further topped with a layer of achingly creamy scrambled eggs. Breakfast like a king, anybody?
Peter’s Pan, a popular breakfast haunt, also offers a plethora of waffles – my picks from their menu would be the seasonal fruit varieties. So you have one laden with fresh strawberries crushed and whipped cream, and another summer special with chunks of sweet mangoes – mouth-watering! There is also one with thin slices of baked apple and a dusting of cinnamon with some caramel strands. I also dig their ‘by and for sinner’s’, which comes loaded with a decadent combination of hazelnut crème, coffee mascarpone, dollops of whipped cream, a scoop of vanilla ice cream and, finally, some rum-infused chocolate sauce drizzled generously all over the fluffy waffle – in a nutshell, sin on a plate.
They also do savoury waffles with spinach, corn, and cream cheese or chicken, but the establishment that truly capitalises on this concept is Terttulia. Imagine that buttery, freshly baked goodness filled with an irresistible combo of some thick, juicy slivers of ham with sharp, velvety emmenthal, as some zesty-aromatic peppercorn maple syrup melts into every crevice of the waffle pockets. There is also a vegetarian option with spinach and cheddar.
Meanwhile, Dario’s, possibly as a doff to its twee, fine-dining ethos, offers two classy renditions of waffles oozing with French vanilla syrup and English toffee syrup respectively. Similarly, Café Colombia rustles up an exotic dulce de leche version that has a warm, crisp waffle drenched with dense, molten, caramelised milk candy, prepared by slow-heating sweetened, condensed milk. Or you can opt for the simple lemon-blueberry topping, which is wonderfully tangy and fruity.
Food truck Henny’s Gourmet, dedicated to waffles, offers a gorgeous little list of gourmet waffles – try the one topped with silken dark Belgian chocolate mousse or the citrusy orange version coated with cream cheese frosting. They also dish out popular mainstream choices with crushed Oreo cookies or oodles of Nutella. And if you do not feel like indulging in this clearly hedonistic meal politely laid on a platter, go for the no-nonsense ‘stick waffles’ at Murphies that are crunchy and all manner of scrumptious.
Written By
We at Eazydiner feel privileged to have worked with someone like Mrunmayi who was an independent writer with over five years of experience in arts and lifestyle journalism. She had worked with several print and online publications based out of Pune and Goa. In the realm of food, she had contributed reviews, topical stories and long features primarily to Pune Mirror, The Goan, Planet-Goa, and the website goa.me. A foodie with an eclectic taste, she enjoyed a well-prepared spread of English Breakfast as much as some fiery Kolhapuri mutton curry.
