The International House of Pancakes (IHOP) does not exclusively sell pancakes. When you first look through an IHOP menu, waffles appear almost as often as pancakes. However, a first glance at Waffle House’s menu, pancakes are not even listed. Waffle House is a successful restaurant chain that can make a booming business off of waffles alone. I believe when comparing pancakes to waffles, waffles crush pancakes. They are everything pancakes are, but better.

The outlined squares that the waffle iron presses into the batter gives the waffles a special design that sets them apart from pancakes. These squares allow the syrup and toppings to sit and when cut, they make a perfect combination of waffle, syrup and topping.

The waffle iron not only makes the design, but it also allows for any batter balls to smooth out. Cooking pancakes makes this harder to avoid. With the batter balls gone, waffles have a crisp coat of batter that keeps the breakfast from being soggy or floppy. There is a better guarantee that waffles would not turn out bad.

Pancakes can be made into blueberry pancakes, chocolate pancakes and more. Waffle batter can come in an endless assortment of options as well. Also, the variety of waffles goes further than the batter. Waffle cones, waffle fries and any other food item can be put into a waffle iron to make them 10 times better.

A waffle iron can press grilled cheeses, cinnamon rolls, quesadillas and more. This makes waffles, in general, have more variety and makes them a more complex food item than pancakes because of the new texture and shape. It makes life a little better.

One of the most important distinctions between the two breakfast items is the fact that waffles have a portable option. Kellogg’s Eggo waffles are a trademark morning before school. They are an easy-to-make, toasted breakfast. The catchphrase used on the commercials is “L’Eggo my Eggo.” The catchiness of this phrase has definitely had its effects. While popping a waffle in the toaster, the phrase comes automatically. Pancakes have nothing in comparison.

Lastly, Waffle House is the most underrated breakfast restaurant out there. Although someone might judge the outside of Waffle House and pick IHOP, they are missing out on a whole lot. The waffles taste like they are gourmet and made with love. I believe if someone were to eat an IHOP pancake and then eat a Waffle House waffle, they would wish they never even went to IHOP in the first place.

To make it clear, waffles will always be the superior choice in the morning. The two quick-break choices are very similar and some might think this debate it pointless. However, when setting the breakfasts next to each other, pancakes have nothing on the warm, perfectly crisp, never soggy waffles.