h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Good article, but you've obviously never been to some of the Waffle Houses I've been in. In Georgia, I've found that the Waffle Houses around Georgia Tech are full of angry waitresses, hardened, I suppose, by the constant influx of obnoxious college students. There are a few exceptions - heck, there are so many Waffle Houses PERIOD that there are bound to be - but it's a good generalization to say that the atmosphere in these Waffle Houses is somewhat less than friendly.
One interesting point about the number of Waffle Houses in the south: the plan for Waffle House is to have two Waffle Houses for every exit of every highway, one on either side. That way, if you are traveling, you WILL pass a Waffle House every single time you get on or get off of the highway. The idea here is that the sheer convenience of location will bring the customers, and thus, the money. Despite this, Waffle House's main rival, Denny's, is doing quite well. In addition, the nighttime clientele of Denny's I have found to be considerably more interesting. Having a really nice, constantly-refilling-your-Coke(tm) waiter with a lisp who is usually homosexual is a given, all-black-wearing homosexuals discussing physics is common, and there is usually a tranvestite or two present. In addition to these characters, you'll have four or five burly truck drivers who smell like they've been smoking 8 packs a day in their cab for 30 years, and the surrealistic Denny's experience becomes quite the enjoyable break from reality. In contrast, the Waffle Houses I've frequented seem to be populated primarily by obnoxious frat kids (usually drunk) or dazed ravers/punks (usually high).
Waffle House makes much better grilled cheese sandwiches though, and puts way more vanilla syrup in their Cokes(tm) then Denny's. And if you've never had a vanilla Coke(tm), well, you've never really been to a Waffle House.