Eggloo: Hong Kong Style Waffles
One of the food trends these days are egg waffles. They are not new to the food world, but it has become a popular hit in the US, especially when topped with ice cream. Egg waffles first originated from Hong Kong, known as "gai daan jai" (้ท่ไป), or egg puff, bubble waffle, eggette, egglet and puffle. These days, they are making their way over to the US with a twist of flavor.
Egg waffles are not unfamiliar to me. Growing up, my sisters and I would get egg waffles from the street carts in Chinatown. They would be about $1 for 20 pieces and came in only one flavor, which was classic, plain. Each egg waffles were separated for you to eat, while in Asia, they are sold as one waffle piece. Texture wise was also different because the ones here were soft and fluffy, while the ones I had in Hong Kong were crunchy on the outside but a bit chewy on the side.
I don't remember how I stumbled upon Eggloo. It might have been through Facebook while scrolling through my newsfeed. (Their name was Eggettes at the time, but since then they have renamed to Eggloo.) I noticed at the time that they were attending the Grub Street Food Festival, which occurs once a year, so I took that opportunity to go try it. Customers were able to see the egg waffles being made fresh from the iron, along with customize them to their personal preference. It was a chilly day, but it did not stop me from getting my egg waffle and ice cream fix! (Thankfully we got there early because that line was insane afterwards!)
My friend and I tried the green tea egg waffles with green tea ice cream, topped with fruity pebbles and strawberries. The waffles come in a paper cone with the egg waffles as the cone of the ice cream.I had another friend who decided to try their Pumpkin Spice flavor. The waffle itself was more cake-like, with a more dense texture than what you would get from the street carts. Flavor wise, the green tea wasn't very strong, but apparent for you to notice. The ice cream, although also not very strong, was very creamy. I was surprised I enjoyed the ice cream as much as I did, but it was more of a soft milky, creamy green tea ice cream. (It felt like a mix between soft serve and regular ice cream.) I chose fruity pebbles mainly because it was aesthetically pleasing to be honest. Strawberries on the other hand, we could have done without because they were not defrosted by the time we had them.
The pumpkin spiced flavored egg waffle on the other hand had a little more crunch to the exterior, along with more flavor to the batter. My friend felt that there could have been more egg flavor to it, but it can be personal preference. Overall, we were happy with our choices and glad to have been able to try the waffles out.
A few months later, Egloo has finally had their own space to call their own located in Chinatown. They had a soft opening on Chinese New Year which I missed, but I did make it for the Grand Opening. It happened to be one of the coldest days that year, but they were also having a buy one get one which was hard to pass up on. I got there by 11AM and there was already a line forming. We bared the cold for an hour before getting in, which wasn't bad compared to others.
Savory and sweet egg waffles were being offered on the menu that day, but we opted for the sweet. Sweet egg waffles were going for $4 by itself, but adding ice cream and toppings would cost you $7. Fillings can be put into the waffles for an additional 50 cents. (The cost during grand opening was $8.)
This time, I decided to try the chocolate egg waffles filled with almonds, topped with strawberry ice cream, fruity pebbles and condensed milk. My friend went for the original egg waffles (only because green tea was a 30 minute wait at the time) with vanilla ice cream, topped with mochi and condensed milk.
Both the egg waffles were cake-like in texture, but the chocolate was more on the dense side. It also had a more deep flavor, almost dark chocolate-like, but with the added almonds, it helped out with the taste and texture to make it less boring. The ice cream, like previously, was super creamy and smooth. The strawberry ice cream also came with bits of strawberries mixed into it. The original flavored egg waffles were not as dense, but could have used a little more egg flavor. I also wish they had a little more crunch on the exterior, but that's just my personal preference.
The only complaint I have is that the cone holder that they use could be more sturdy. It is made of paper and even though the egg waffles are used as cones, they still have a opening at the bottom which can lead to leakage from the ice cream, especially on a hot day. Other than that, these are definitely worth a try if you are ever in the neighborhood.
Eggloo
60 Mulberry St.
New York, NY 10013
Hours: 12PM-9PM
Egg waffles are not unfamiliar to me. Growing up, my sisters and I would get egg waffles from the street carts in Chinatown. They would be about $1 for 20 pieces and came in only one flavor, which was classic, plain. Each egg waffles were separated for you to eat, while in Asia, they are sold as one waffle piece. Texture wise was also different because the ones here were soft and fluffy, while the ones I had in Hong Kong were crunchy on the outside but a bit chewy on the side.
I don't remember how I stumbled upon Eggloo. It might have been through Facebook while scrolling through my newsfeed. (Their name was Eggettes at the time, but since then they have renamed to Eggloo.) I noticed at the time that they were attending the Grub Street Food Festival, which occurs once a year, so I took that opportunity to go try it. Customers were able to see the egg waffles being made fresh from the iron, along with customize them to their personal preference. It was a chilly day, but it did not stop me from getting my egg waffle and ice cream fix! (Thankfully we got there early because that line was insane afterwards!)
My friend and I tried the green tea egg waffles with green tea ice cream, topped with fruity pebbles and strawberries. The waffles come in a paper cone with the egg waffles as the cone of the ice cream.I had another friend who decided to try their Pumpkin Spice flavor. The waffle itself was more cake-like, with a more dense texture than what you would get from the street carts. Flavor wise, the green tea wasn't very strong, but apparent for you to notice. The ice cream, although also not very strong, was very creamy. I was surprised I enjoyed the ice cream as much as I did, but it was more of a soft milky, creamy green tea ice cream. (It felt like a mix between soft serve and regular ice cream.) I chose fruity pebbles mainly because it was aesthetically pleasing to be honest. Strawberries on the other hand, we could have done without because they were not defrosted by the time we had them.
The pumpkin spiced flavored egg waffle on the other hand had a little more crunch to the exterior, along with more flavor to the batter. My friend felt that there could have been more egg flavor to it, but it can be personal preference. Overall, we were happy with our choices and glad to have been able to try the waffles out.
A few months later, Egloo has finally had their own space to call their own located in Chinatown. They had a soft opening on Chinese New Year which I missed, but I did make it for the Grand Opening. It happened to be one of the coldest days that year, but they were also having a buy one get one which was hard to pass up on. I got there by 11AM and there was already a line forming. We bared the cold for an hour before getting in, which wasn't bad compared to others.
Savory and sweet egg waffles were being offered on the menu that day, but we opted for the sweet. Sweet egg waffles were going for $4 by itself, but adding ice cream and toppings would cost you $7. Fillings can be put into the waffles for an additional 50 cents. (The cost during grand opening was $8.)
This time, I decided to try the chocolate egg waffles filled with almonds, topped with strawberry ice cream, fruity pebbles and condensed milk. My friend went for the original egg waffles (only because green tea was a 30 minute wait at the time) with vanilla ice cream, topped with mochi and condensed milk.
Both the egg waffles were cake-like in texture, but the chocolate was more on the dense side. It also had a more deep flavor, almost dark chocolate-like, but with the added almonds, it helped out with the taste and texture to make it less boring. The ice cream, like previously, was super creamy and smooth. The strawberry ice cream also came with bits of strawberries mixed into it. The original flavored egg waffles were not as dense, but could have used a little more egg flavor. I also wish they had a little more crunch on the exterior, but that's just my personal preference.
The only complaint I have is that the cone holder that they use could be more sturdy. It is made of paper and even though the egg waffles are used as cones, they still have a opening at the bottom which can lead to leakage from the ice cream, especially on a hot day. Other than that, these are definitely worth a try if you are ever in the neighborhood.
Eggloo
60 Mulberry St.
New York, NY 10013
Hours: 12PM-9PM
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