<P> The 1941 novel Mildred Pierce by James M. Cain concerns a woman who finds success running a chicken and waffles restaurant . </P> <P> In the 1988 film Tapeheads, best friends Ivan (John Cusack) and Josh (Tim Robbins) land their first non - "on - spec" gig as music video producers with a Run - D.M.C. - styled commercial for Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles . They are paid in chicken and waffles . </P> <P> In the 2005 film Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, Deuce (Rob Schneider) finds T.J. (Eddie Griffin) in, in Deuce's words, "the only chicken and waffles place in all Holland". T.J. says that it is "racist" for a Black man to have to be in a chicken and waffles place; when Deuce counters that T.J. is, in fact, there, T.J. responds "Yeah, but figuring it out is racist ." </P> <P> The 2009 blaxploitation parody film Black Dynamite includes a scene in which the character "Roscoe" is inspired to create a restaurant based around the dish after losing interest in his previous venture, a chili and donut restaurant . </P>

When did chicken and waffles become a thing