I know this is a weird place to ask, but it seems like people on here appreciate well-built hardware. My sister wants one for Christmas.
Can anyone vouch for a model that’s currently in production? I’ve been mulling over this decision for a while and am having a tough time. I’m limited to about $50 due to gift budget we agreed on. Worst case scenario I could go to $100ish and say it counts as part of her birthday gift too.
Seems like it’s hard to find a waffle maker with removable plates that cooks evenly. And there is too much plastic being used, I see reports of the flippable ones breaking. There is a Hamilton Beach on sale for $40 that ticks a lot of boxes but I hear it makes soft waffles only, no crispiness. Even this one has had reports of loose and breaking hinges.
If they don’t flip, they have the possibility of the batter not going all the way to the edges of the plates and hot getting complete pockets and crunch. It’s not necessarily related to cleaning.
The first question is does she want Belgian or classic waffles.
Belgian makers are everywhere. The classic are not as well represented.
I like the classic style.
Also square seems popular. But trying to get a full pour to the corners is harder to do.
We’ve had a chef’s choice for 30? years. Unfortunately it’s no longer made.
So I’m also looking for a good replacement if this one dies.
All the Best,
Jeff
Also, the one we have is round and doesn’t flip. No problems getting it to fill out all the mold.
I’ve had this Cuisinart waffle maker for years. My father won it at a raffle for work in 2007 and it has been making waffles ever since. It isn’t a deep waffle maker and is quite shallow. However, it heats very evenly and even after weekly use for 14 years, it releases well and the coating hasn’t worn away or chipped. It has a simple setting from light to dark and that’s it. For $25 you can’t go wrong.
I’ve had a Villawear Belgian Waffler for years. It has no bells and whistles …no timer or heat dial. It makes 2 waffles, not toast. That said, not sure where you would find one new …ebay has them used. I asked a couple of my neighbors about waffle makers and only got two replies. One sounds a lot like the Cuisinart that Asian8640 mentions. The other was a Krups …sorry I didn’t get a model # though they said they’d paid around $50 for it, and liked it. Sorry to say, but it seems most of my neighbors don’t eat waffles …probably don’t know bupkis about flashlights either.
These wafflers are like a small appliance where spending a little more can often buy you a lot more. In general, that translates to more consistent and uniform heat, and plates that hold a good durable finish. Seems like the real budget wafflers are OK for the once in a while waffle eater. Some of the more expensive ones will crank out lot’s of uniformly cooked waffles, whenever wanted. Maybe get a sense from your sister about how often she’ll make waffles. Will she use a basic batter each time, or does she want to get into the world of whole grain or sourdough batters? If you really get into this stuff it gets deeper and more expensive fast …like a couple other things we’re all familiar with.
Hope this is of some help.
We have a Dualit. Made in the UK. I’ve never come across anything better. It is expensive and the grids do not come out. The grids are non stick and are easy to clean.
Powerful, fast and makes great waffles. I’m not sure if it is available in the USA or even in 120V. Nisbets has stock in the UK but that will be a 240V version.
Dualit sell spare parts. This will last a lifetime.
i bought a Cuisinart Waffle Maker, Double Belgian, Stainless Steel from Amazon 4 years ago and it makes the best Belgian waffles 2 at a time! My family including grandchildren request (demand) waffles whenever they stay overnight. My 43 yo daughter always requests a double batch whenever she comes up w/family so she has enough left over to take home and freeze. Never had one stick in the maker and they come out perfect every time. I did have to epoxy the plastic end support but it just keeps on making perfect waffles. can not recommend it enough. five-star rating with 11,760 ratings. I have the older style with a knob for adjusting time for the “done” alarm. Amazon.com
I frequently order waffles and frequently disappointed with soft/soggy waffles. The best I’ve had, the small cafe in San Jose uses a single round flip Waring waffle maker (commercial grade). Whenever we visit, we eat waffles there every day for the week that we’re there.
That got me wanting to make waffles but being lazy, I bought the Cuisinart 4 Slice Belgian Waffle Maker. It’s horrible, very uneven heat
and the nonstick surface was never good and only got worse. It’s still better than soggy waffles.
Oh no!! I hope it wasn’t the WAF-150? I finally bought it because the happy reviews showed better waffles than the happy reviews on some other models I was looking at. And there was a $10 coupon that put it in-budget.
Maybe its a heating element lottery. Cusinart actually makes Waring products from my understanding so theoretically they should have good waffle makers. But maybe Amazon is sourcing seconds or something.
