Hello!
We are Mary, Max and Brendan
and we are
The Waffle Window
The Story of the Waffle Window began back in 2006 when I (Mary) decided that my two sons, Max and Brendan, should have the opportunity to travel the world. Soon my boys headed off to start a month long journey around Europe. While staying with their Aunt and Uncle in Amsterdam my sons were captivated by the people, the history and of course the food. Among the many new and exciting things that they tried, one item stood out above the rest; the Waffles. On one of the first phone calls I received from the boys my son Brendan (a lifelong aficionado of breakfast foods) said to me “Mom, the waffles over here are incredible! We are definitely bringing some back for you, because you have to figure out how to make these!” After a few more conversations (and some persistence) the boys convinced me to work on a recipe for the unique waffles they had enjoyed. After over 30 years as a professional pastry chef, and with a lifelong passion for new and interesting foods, I eagerly set myself to the challenge of discovering the secrets to these amazing treats. After much research I discovered that what my sons had eaten were Liege sugar waffles, a traditional street food across northwestern Europe. I was soon in the kitchen of my husband”s restaurant (Bread and Ink Cafe on SE Hawthorne Blvd in Portland, OR) trying out every sort of recipe I could find for the Liege sugar waffle. As I followed these recipes I soon began to realize that I did not just want to recreate a waffle from Europe, I wanted to create a new type of waffle all together. After several weeks of testing (and sourcing hard to find ingredients) I began to hone in on a truly unique waffle, similar to a traditional Liege style sugar waffle, but with my own secret twists. Success! But what to do with this new kind of waffle…
In the Summer of 2007 inspiration struck while I was at my husband’s restaurant. There was a long forgotten service door on the side of the building which I always thought we could put to better use, but nothing had really called to me. Then I thought to my self “Old service door…useless. waffles…fast, fun, delicious… OF COURSE!” So my son Brendan set to work converting that old door into a fun Dutch style Door/Window and the Waffle Window was born!
Now almost 6 years since we opened our window we are still overwhelmed by the wonderful response to our waffles. Through all of my years as a pastry chef I never imagined I would have a Waffle Window or that I would have so much fun making up waffle creations. I also never imagined that I would partner with my sons and start a family business. But here we are an we are! We know you will enjoy eating our creations as much as we enjoy making them, so stop on by and give it a try!
