Exactly when and where the phenomenon of combining the breakfast staple, waffles, and the lunchtime favorite, chicken, together to create one of the most absurdly named meals in America, is beyond me, but the greater mystery is why something so perfectly simple took so long to come to Fresno. Yes, chicken and waffle fans, the wait is over; Fresno now has Chameleon’s Chicken and Waffles.
The menu is simple: chicken, waffles, and the choice of coleslaw on the side. I ordered a large, golden brown waffle and a juicy fried chicken breast coated in a crunchy, tasty breading. I washed it all down with the bursting sweet goodness of an ice cold Sprite, all for the very affordable price of $9.
Chameleon’s doesn’t go light on the butter, either. My waffle glistened in the salty wonder, and if that’s not enough, they gave me extra butter on the side. In less than ten minutes my steaming pile of awesome arrived and like any good addiction, I kept partaking past the point of health.
As good as the food was; the restaurant was not perfect. Chameleon’s Chicken and Waffles is hard to locate if one is not familiar with the Tower District, and even more so if one is not aware that the actual establishment is not named Chameleon’s, but Karsh’s Bar and Grill, located at 609 Olive Ave. This is due to the fact that Chicken and Waffles is only open on Sundays from 10am to 10pm,
Instead of having a waiter take one’s order, one submits an unnecessary paper with the necessary information concerning one’s order. They accepted cash only, which caused my fellow critics and me some difficulties because we didn’t have a dollar between us, only our credit cards. This forced us to search Olive for the Circle K to get a machine.
Thirty minutes after first arriving at Chameleon’s for some highly anticipated chicken and waffles, we finally made our order to a very soft-spoken, but affable waiter who we had a very nice lunch-long conversation with. Apart from my group and a very lonely looking woman who sat in the far corner, the darkly lit eatery was empty.
What the restaurant lacked in originality it made up for in cheap, tasty, and probably unhealthy food. The filling meal was well worth the price. It’s not fine dining, it’s fried dining; and it works.
Note – Fresno City College Students receive a $2.00 discount.
info: Charla Frankli 458-6062
