How do you take your Waffle House hash browns? For me, it’s scattered, smothered, covered, chunked, and peppered. I like the hodgepodge of savory flavors and the hint of heat in this order, which sees the grated Idaho potatoes scattered and fried up on a hot griddle and mixed with sauteed onions, jalapeno peppers, and hickory smoked ham crowned with a slice of American cheese. For those wanting their hash browns topped with a fried egg, order a build-your-own hash brown bowl instead.
Let’s face it: there’s no wrong way to order hash browns at Waffle House, except maybe not ordering them at all. But you might want to consider adding one more breakfast potato preparation to your lineup: the pierogi.
Matt Reeves serves dinner at Full Commission in Grant Park four nights a week via his Polish comfort food pop-up Brave Wojtek. On Saturday mornings, Full Commission transforms into “Wojtek House”, where Reeves offers “fancy fast breakfast” that includes a plate of Waffle House-style pierogies on the menu.
Six potato and cheese dumplings come served with the option to add up to ten different toppings with decidedly local and Eastern European twists.
Scattered: just pierogies
Smothered: grilled onions
Covered: Porter beer cheese
Capped: Southern Cap Farms mushrooms
Diced: Cherokee purple tomatoes
Chunked: smoked kielbasa
Peppered: hot Hungarian wax peppers
Country: Matt’s “Country Ass” chorizo gravy
Topped: New Mexico Hatch green chili
All the Way: all of the above
I highly recommend scattered, covered, smothered, chunked, and peppered pierogies. I’m adding “Country Ass” chorizo gravy to my order next time, along with an order of shrimp pierogies served over cheese grits if those are on the menu again. The Frytki Dziwkie fries are also calling my name, which are loaded with crème fraîche, Porter beer cheese, and kielbasa atop ajvar (Serbian roasted red pepper sauce).
“This is sort of our ‘European’ style Saturday breakfast love letter to our industry friends, Atlanta foodies, college football watchers, soccer fans, and everything that makes weekend mornings in Atlanta in the fall and winter our favorite time of year,” says Reeves. “Most importantly, it’s 100 percent just us having fun.”
Reeves and chef Ian Corey (Gunshow, Lyla Lila, Atlas) plan to roll out even more creative dishes and specials over the coming weeks as they continue developing the breakfast menu for Wojtek House, including a kielbasa, sweet potato, and leek hash. But if the Waffle House-style pierogies are on the menu, order those right away before they sell out. Consider it an appetizer.
Wojtek House: Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Full Commission. Brave Wojtek: Wednesday - Saturday, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Full Commission. Check Instagram for updates.