Everyone, dare I say, enjoys a good waffle from time to time, yet Butter & Zeus, whose entire menu is built around them, might be a bit of a daring culinary treat for most. That’s because they take the waffle to new, unfamiliar places—in short: waffle sandwiches.

The options can get pretty out-there. There is pastrami, cheeseburger, brie & prosciutto, even smoked salmon, all using waffles instead of bread. It doesn’t taste as weird as it might sound, and there are even several sweet concoctions available if a BLT waffle sandwich doesn’t sound quite appealing.

However, it is the savory waffle sandwiches that Butter & Zeus have been selling mostly. The layout is very much like a casual sandwich lunch spot, and that’s what they’ve been getting a lot of, people at lunch wanting a sandwich. Besides, you can get sweet waffles anywhere; where else can you get a grilled cheese waffle sandwich?  

The word “sandwich” might not be the best word to describe just what Butter & Zeus offers. Their waffle sandwich consists of  a single, round, soft waffle wrapped around a choice of filling. It’s more of a waffle taco, but that just doesn’t have the same ring as waffle sandwich.

Of the nearly dozen savory waffle sandwiches offered, the store’s top seller, for $6.99, is the Chicken’n’Waffle sandwich, which makes sense since people are already accustomed to combining fried chicken, waffles and syrup together. I found Butter & Zeus’s Chicken’n’Waffle sandwich to be their weakest item. When I eat chicken and waffles, I prefer a thick crispy waffle and extra crispy fried chicken.

The other savory waffle sandwich I ordered, also for $6.99, the Barbacoa Pork, was a delicious, messy treat. The waffle was overflowing with Tex-Mex sweet cola pulled pork and a little bit of coleslaw. I ate every bite, gleefully. It was messier than the Chicken’n’Waffle, and that one had syrup on it.

Both of the sweet waffles I tried were successes. These were also referred to as sandwiches, still in the same taco form. Of the seven sweet waffles, quite a few of them were also odd concoctions, like the Peanut Butter Jellytime waffle sandwich for instance. I ordered the Lemon Cream Waffle sandwich for $5.99, which was full of lemon cream and berries. What really made this one was a healthy dose of butter underneath the lemon cream.

My favorite was the Speculoos Waffle sandwich for $4.99. The waffle is loaded with speculoos spread, a Belgian treat that tastes much like ginger snap cookies. The sandwich comes with a choice of strawberries or bananas.

Butter & Zeus Waffle Sandwiches, 2213 Tasman Drive, Santa Clara. 408.727.1800