Brunch was made for chicken and waffles

There's a reason why Tony Bennett, native son of New York, didn't leave his heart in Queens. He left it in San Francisco, and if you ask me one of the best reasons is the food.

We just got back from the City by the Bay where we ate our way from the Marina to the Mission District using the SF Chronicles "100 Bargain Bites" as our guide. As with most of our travels, we were on a culinary quest. This time it was twofold -- healthy, vegetarian Mexican food and, from the service standpoint, cafes that had self serve as opposed to a wait staff. Both are trends that I, along with a lot of other people, think will be gaining in popularity. The former because of the public's increased fixation with health, and the latter due to businesses looking for ways to curb expenses.

Being from the Jurassic period, it was impossible for me to imagine good, creative food in a situation that heretofore I have related with burgers and fries. My restaurant career said that you needed not only waiters, but back waiters and busboys, captains and maitre'ds to achieve a quality dining experience.

Not so at the Green Chile Kitchen where after ordering my tofu tacos at the counter, getting our drinks and a number, we showed ourselves to a table and waited for the food. It arrived via one of the cooks who smiled, placed it on the table and left. The restaurant's obligations completed. If you needed anything else, you got up and got it. The food was great in spite of no service.

For the health-food side of our education we set out for Gracias Madre located in the Mission District. Not only is there no meat on the menu, there's no dairy products. "Sour cream" and "cheese" were made by pureeing cashews that had been soaked in lemon juice and Himalayan salt. Their organic produce came mainly from their own "Be Love Farm." They not only made their own tortillas, but they grew the corn to do it.

You can imagine by now my head was about to explode. So far I had seen a waiter-less restaurant that served high quality food and a first rate Mexican place that didn't use cheese. I needed to get back to familiar ground, so we went looking for the Little Skillet, famous for, among other things, their chicken & waffles. I had been wanting to put them on our brunch menu, and thought it would be interesting to see someone else's version.

The decadent if seemingly odd combining of fried chicken with crispy waffles has been around for a while. Well's Supper Club in Harlem started serving the dish to their late-night patrons in 1938. At that hour it was, "too late for dinner but too early for breakfast." The idea moved west to Los Angles in the mid-'70s with Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles. Owner Herb Hudson was in with a lot of stars, which brought celebrity status to his restaurant. References to chicken and waffles show up across the entertainment board from Will Smith and "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" to Snoop Dog's lyrics. In the movie "Jackie Brown," Samuel L. Jackson lures Chris Tucker into the trunk of his car with the promise of a trip to Roscoe's for some chicken and waffles. Jackie Chan refers to them in "Rush Hour." The list goes on.

It's not so much about the recipe for your waffle or fried chicken that makes this dish so satisfying. It's the combining of sweet and savory - the stuff that brunch is made of - that makes it like a buffet on your plate. To be honest, you could probably take some KFC and throw it on an Eggo and it wouldn't be half bad. But then I would be out of a job.

We never did find the Little Skillet in San Francisco, but we still put this dish on our brunch menu. So whether it's your place or mine, check out some chicken and waffles.

Chicken & Waffles

Serves 8

At the restaurant we use the pan drippings from the chickens we roast for enchiladas to make the gravy. Any cream-style gravy will work. Some places don't use gravy at all, but we think everything is better with gravy. Your choice.

Waffles

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

3⁄4 teaspoon salt

2 cups buttermilk

3 ounces (6 tablespoons) butter, melted

2 large eggs

Spray vegetable oil (like Pam)

Preheat your waffle iron and preheat your oven to 250 degrees.

Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and stir with a whip to mix evenly. In a separate bowl beat the eggs, melted butter and buttermilk until mixed. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk until just combined.

Spray the waffle iron with Pam and ladle about a 1⁄2 cup (depending on the size of your iron) into the mold. Cook waffles according to manufacturer's instructions until crisp and golden brown. Transfer to the rack in the oven and carry on. If you want, you can cook all the waffles ahead of time, cool them completely then wrap individually and freeze them. Reheat for about 15 minutes in a 325-degree oven before serving.

Chicken

8 6-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in half

1 ounce fresh lemon juice

1 ounce soy sauce

1 ounce hot sauce

1 cup buttermilk

4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons Kosher salt

3 tablespoons ground black pepper

Combine the lemon juice, soy sauce and hot sauce in a nonreactive bowl (such as glass) and add the chicken. Marinate for about one hour. Meanwhile, combine the flour, salt and pepper in a shallow baking dish for dredging.

Heat vegetable oil to 325 degree. Working with two or three pieces at a time, place the chicken in the buttermilk for a minute or so, then drain off the excess milk and dredge in the flour. Shake off (but not too vigorously) a little of the excess flour, and carefully lay the chicken into the oil. Cook only as many pieces at a time that will allow the oil to keep bubbling. In other words, don't put out the fire or your chicken will be greasy. Cook for about 4 to 5 minutes until golden and moderately firm to the touch. Remove to paper towels and continue cooking.

Place two pieces on each waffle, top with some cream gravy (if you like) and serve with whipped butter and warm syrup.

• Brian Shaw and his wife Ardie own Cafe Del Rio in Virginia City.