Deep Ellum's New Tapas Bar Has a Burger with Waffles as Buns. Why the Hell Not?

Almost everything about little Texas Tapas is modest. Eleven bottles of liquor sit on a floating shelf behind the bar. Historic Dallas photos hang above. There’s one long granite bar, no beers on tap (a tall fridge has Deep Ellum cans and other bottles), and one big handful of tables. Aside from a couple of snare drum smashes from the Prophet Bar sound check, it’s pretty quiet inside. The menu isn’t.

Online, it touts: “Texas Favorites served Tapas Style! Burgers Tacos, Steak, Calamari & The American Dream!”

“The American Dream,” at Texas Tapas, is a giant hot dog inside a glazed doughnut for $5.99. They also have a “Deep Ellum Fried” menu; a “Killer Burger” with chili, bacon, fried onions and a fried egg; and a waffle burger. The waffle burger, for $8.50, is: “big fat juicy angus beef patty between 2 crisp butter waffles with a fried egg, cheese and honey.”

Yes, please. Maybe I’m the worst food snob ever, but reading that made me think of two towering and crispy Belgian waffles (the syrup dripping in slo-mo from above; the plate whirling towards you; galaxies exploding, columns of flame) with a juicy burger, speared by a steak knife, in between. 

OK, so that’s not what this was. Texas Tapas’ waffle burger had a couple of crisped-up L’Eggo My Eggo waffle slices. You know what? You can L’Eggo because there are worse ways to swap the bun on a burger, and I’ve had worse burgers. The waffles were toasty, puffy on the inside, and perfectly situated in the “Well Hey, Why the Hell Not!” category of eating. You know how good an Eggo waffle tastes with a pat of butter. A big blanket of cheese was thrown under the egg, melted up to a quarter inch. The egg exploded with yolk, which is only bad on Opposite Day.

The burger was sliding somewhere in between juicy and greasy and punched up with salt. The honey was a neutral throwaway — it needed something sharply spicy and acidic like Frank’s Hot Sauce or Sriracha. If you’re sloshing around with several beers, I don’t see how this is a bad thing. It wasn't dark magic or challenge food. I wouldn't be opposed to an all Eggo waffle-as-buns menu. Screw you, "bread." In fact, I don’t see how Eggo waffles as buns don’t become a food-trucky, trendy thing in the next few years. Eggo Waffle Sandwich truck? I’m sure someone’s done a Eggo Waffle BLT, right? Anyone? There’s no reason to be modest about waffles.

Texas Tapas lives with the Prophet Bar on 2511 Main St., Dallas, and, just a reminder, they have a hot dog speared through the hole of glazed doughnut called "The American Dream."