Nothing gets me to the front of the line faster than the promise of, yes, Fried Chicken and Waffles. You say I've already talked about my love for this dish of olde made new? That may be because my love/quest for this perfect dish is legendary. Enough so that I have been approached by friends and loved ones with the opening line of "you need to come and try this place's Chicken and Waffles". They know I will not say no. More likely I will say "What time do they open?"
This was the case when K and I accepted an invitation (dare I say challenge) to brunch with friends at NEPO 42. So, so very glad we did. First off, there was no line. In Portland. On a Sunday. For Brunch. Was there something wrong with this picture? Yes. But not in the way you may be thinking. I'll blame the crummy parking situation. There is only street parking available and it is sketchy but let's not digress into negativity. Inside, you'll find a quaintly decorated, slightly Portlandy but not over the top, cozy neighborhood pub. It holds all of the familiar trappings: pool table, large tv, dark wooded bench booths and a large chalkboard with the taplist (local and extensive) and today's specials. In the lower left corner you'll also find a small list of the current infusions. Luck have it, Cucumber Vodka will be there. Have it in a Bloody Mary. Yes, go there.Now, let's talk about the delicious food.
In spite of a delicious sounding menu of biscuit dishes and scrambles I had, drum-roll please, the Fried Chicken and Waffles. Delicious fried Chicken and Waffles. In this case I would place more emphasis on the Chicken than the waffle. The waffle, although flavorful without being overly sweet, became too soggy too quickly. The Chicken, however was tasty and succulent and generously portioned. Two full chicken breasts on top of two strips of peppered bacon on top of the waffle doused in a maple sage syrup. Fragrant, sweet, savory, mmmm. Yes, I've had better (see Austin), but you could do a whole lot worse. 
K enjoyed a delightful combo called Mr. October: A bacon (yes bacon) and cheddar biscuit topped with a fried chicken breast, bacon, sausage gravy an two eggs. Yes, yes, yes! I'll have what he's having. Sounds greedy? Maybe, but to tell you the truth it would have been my first choice if I wasn't being driven by my quest. But oh, what a wonderful quest it is.I was so impressed with this first round of yum that K and I brought some more friends back in later in the week for Happy Hour. We stared out the window, drooling over someone else's food choice that I would have sworn were corn dogs. No. They were the Poppers. Peppers, stuffed with your typical cream cheese, cheddar, cilantro and spices. These were not run of the mill frozen poppers. These were...tender, tasty and filling (plan on splitting your order). I ordered the Mac and Cheese. Yes, I am a comfort food fanatic. Although I enjoyed it's blend of flavors, I found it to be more of a Penne Alfredo with bacon and chives than a true Mac and Cheese. Enjoyable but not what I expected. K ordered the Chicken and Waffle HH size. Perfect.
