Kaylie Donahue via Canva

The question is, what do you pick? Pancakes or waffles? Something bland and basic like pancakes or something amazing, awe-inspiring and perfect as waffles.

During hard times like these, it’s good to know that you can always have a great breakfast to get you ready for the day. The question is, what do you pick? Pancakes or waffles? Something bland and basic like pancakes or something amazing, awe-inspiring and perfect as waffles.

There are many reasons why waffles are superior to their mushy, unoriginal and boring breakfast counterparts. With waffles, there are infinite possibilities for how to flavor them while being structurally sound; unlike pancakes, where they can fall apart under the weight of toppings. 

Want to mix it up and add a bunch of toppings? No problem. The waffles firm stature will not back down from the challenge. Meanwhile, pancakes’ wimpy build will fold before the challenge really even begins.

Waffles also have more freedom for toppings than pancakes. They can be sweet, savory or both if you want. If you are in a restaurant and someone orders pancakes with fruit, whipped cream, powdered sugar, nuts, and syrup, you would probably wouldn’t expect that to be on the menu. But if they were ordering waffles the same way, you wouldn’t think twice about it.

Waffles also are extremely easy to make: you plug in the waffle maker, wait for it to heat up, pour in the batter and wait for the light to turn green. Simple. Easy. You’d basically have to try to mess it up. And, to make things even better, you can watch Netflix while it cooks instead of having to stand by the stove and wait. No guessing when to flip it, worrying about it breaking, burning or being totally raw on the inside. 

You can do all of the same things you would with pancakes and plus some. There are many different fun shapes waffle makers come in, squares, characters, and animals. You tell me the last time you had a square pancake. I’ll wait. Not only do pancakes come in limited shapes, they also are a hassle to make fun shapes either with stencils or cookie cutters. 

Waffles also have different textures to them, not just the same mushiness. They are crunchy on the outside and fluffy on the inside like a cloud. When you put syrup on your waffles, they don’t get all soggy like pancakes do, their crunchy exterior balances it out. Biting into a soggy pancake is like biting into a slimy, wet sponge. And I know what you’re thinking, ‘why don’t you just put less syrup on your pancakes?’, because that’s not as fun and I like to live my life on the wild side. 

While yes, I do get excited when I see my dad pull out the griddle for pancakes on a lazy Sunday morning, nothing compares to the feeling I get when I see my mom bring out the waffle maker. Then I really know I’m about to have a great day. 

And I do understand that you can make chocolate chip or blueberry pancakes in a way that you can’t with waffles, but waffles have indentations so you can put even more chocolate chips or blueberries in; and they melt the same way.

The next day you’re home from school on a remote day, and you see the wasted potential of a waffle iron, plug it in and get ready for the best, and easiest, breakfast.