John Oliver marvels over Waffle House’s quirks, from music to orders

On HBO’s “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” Sunday night, the host spent seven minutes comically obsessing over Atlanta-based chain Waffle House.

He used Hurricane Milton as the news peg, noting the infamous “Waffle House Index,” in which federal agencies over the past 20 years have used whether a Waffle House stays open as a measure of the severity of a natural disaster.

“It’s jarring to have something so important conveyed in terms of Waffle House,” Oliver said. “It’s like finding out NORAD relies on the OshKosh B’Gosh Nuclear Threat Level. Wear red overalls, get underground everyone!”

ExploreWhy the government turns to Waffle House when tracking emergencies

As Oliver explained, “The company’s had a fanatical devotion to being open. It has seen business skyrocket at restaurants that open quickly after hurricanes so they embraced a business strategy centered around keeping their restaurants operable during and after a disaster.”

He described how Waffle House has “become a light in the storm, 11 Scrabble tiles of backlit hope, which is wild for a place that embodies total chaos.”

Oliver acknowledged the frequent late-night brawls there as well as the “staggering variations of Hashbrown Bowls.” He also amusingly cited how Waffle House itself calls its Hashbrown Bowls the “jazz music of the breakfast scene.”

He then highlighted how Waffle House has its own record label, which records restaurant-themed songs for its jukebox. Oliver played a sample of “Raisins in my Toast,” a variation of the Four Seasons’ “Sherry.”

He also noted that while “Sherry” is about Frankie Valli’s longing for a girl, “this is that, but with raisins,” Oliver said.

He then marveled over the “bonkers” way line cooks keep track of orders using jelly packets and butter containers. “That system is ludicrous,” Oliver said. “I don’t have space in my life for jelly choreography. I have a family!”

ExploreWaffle House’s record label keeps customers singing original tunes

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