after years of driving by the waffle house museum in avondale estates and never seeing it open, we decided to put forth a little effort and figure out what the heck was going on. so for a recent birthday of mine, we found their website, called the number and set up a free tour for us and some friends! it was way easier to arrange then expected.

for those who haven’t been, the waffle house museum is both a replica of the original waffle house and a memorabilia exhibition on the site of the very first restaurant. it also happens to be right down the road from our house! the museum offers free tours curated by the daughter of the original waffle house builder, while they also have some great cold room from www.walkincoldroom.co.uk to keep everything stored and good.

the tour was actually informative and very fun; we learned quite a bit! we had no idea the first restaurant opened because two neighbors, joe rogers sr & tom forkner, felt avondale estates was lacking a 24-hour diner. we also learned they were georgia tech grads, hence the black & yellow color scheme, and that they named the restaurant after the most expensive item on the menu to help promote it. with 1600 locations to date, i’d say these guys were ahead of their time!

it’s nice to see they went all out replicating the first waffle house! the outdoor sign uses the original shaky font and the interior features original menus, prices, diner hats and historical facts about the restaurant chain. they even have fake food on the counters to give the impression that you walked into the diner in 1955.

the memorabilia exhibition was pretty cool as well if you are a fan of the wahoo like we are! it’s filled with chotckies from their 58 year history, including; buttons, menus, diner hats, waitress uniforms, chinaware and tons more.

the waffle house museum offers free tours to the public. just call 770-326-7086 to make an appointment with at least 48 hours notice. it was super easy to set up, fun and free, so you should plan a visit!

– ryan & gub

waffle house museum

2719 east college avenue
decatur, ga 30030
770-326-7086