Waffle House and Roadie: Scattered, Smothered, Covered — Delivered?

In news that sounds like it should be coming from The Onion, Waffle House is getting in on the mail delivery business. The Norcross-based greasy spoon chain announced Tuesday that it is partnering with Atlanta-based startup Roadie, an Uber-like service that focuses on quick regional shipping.

Roadie's business model, in a nutshell: A user needs to ship a package, and needs faster delivery than what the United States Postal Service, UPS, FedEx, etc. can offer; someone is already planning to make the same trip, so pay that driver to drop off said package. Deliveries can be door-to-door, but there are designated drop-off points as well.

That's where Waffle House comes in. Its 1,750 restaurants in 25 states are now taking packages from Roadie drivers, and in return offering them free waffles and beverages. The partnership's launch party is going on today from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the 5565 Northside Drive location.

"For the last 60 years, Waffle House has been a place for travelers and a preferred meeting place for our customers," Walt Ehmer, CEO of Waffle House, said in a prepared statement. "Roadie combines the two making it easy for senders and drivers who love waffles to meet at the nearest Waffle House. And who doesn't love waffles?"

"A sense of community and Americana is at the heart of the Roadie story, and we couldn't have asked for a better partner than Waffle House, a beloved brand that shares that same spirit," said Roadie founder and CEO Marc Gorlin. "Waffle House provides a friendly, comfortable place for our folks to meet, and grab a plate of scattered, smothered and covered while they're at it."

The Roadie app is available for iOS and Android devices.

Does substituting Waffle House for the post office make a lot of sense? At first glance, maybe not. But knocking out two birds with one stone — consuming waffles and hashbrowns and picking up mail at the same time — isn't a bad idea.