Presto 3510 FlipSide Belgian Waffle Maker
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Presto 3510 FlipSide Belgian Waffle Maker
Customer Review: Great Little Waffle Maker
Summary: 4 Stars
I am very pleased with this waffle maker. The price is great for what you get. I intially chose it for the design. It has a small base and locks in an upright position that makes it great for storing; it takes up very little space in the cabinet. I don't use the timer function. I found it's better to just keep an eye on the waffle. The waffle recipe that comes with the waffle maker works fine, except it says to cook the waffle for 4 minutes, which I discovered was way too long for my liking. 2 1/2 minutes works better for me. There is no tempurature control as on most units. It is what it is - hot. With a little trial and error you will figure out how long to cook the waffles to your liking. My final tip is to spray the iron with oil each time you use it. The instructions say to "season" it once. I tried that and had to dig my second batch of waffles out of every crevice of the iron. Just spray it each time. The only downside to this waffle maker that I could find is that you can only cook one at a time. (One is huge, though. I can only eat 1/2.) If you're cooking for multiple people, you have to be clever with keeping them warm until they are all finished (unless you don't mind eating alone.) Whatever you do, don't use the whole "cover them with a towel or foil" thing like you can do with pancakes. You'll end up with soggy waffles. Try a warm oven instead.Customer Review: Cooks Unevenly (see my picture) and too thick for me!
Summary: 2 Stars
This has a LOT of positive reviews, which is why I bought it. I generally read the reviews on Amazon to guide purchases, and find them very useful. (THANK YOU!! Amazon community for taking the time to give feedback! You are terrific!)
However, people like different things, and so while I was disappointed in this waffle maker, you may not be - here's my take:
PROS - Why I bought it:
Affordable (I bought it elsewhere for under thirty)
Easy to store
LOVE the handle shape; easy to pull out of cabinet
Cooks fast - 3 minutes per waffle
CONS - Deal killers; Why it is going back:
Waffles too thick, even for Belgian waffles (30 mm or about 1 1/4 inches thick)
Cooks unevenly (See picture)
Minor quibbles:
No on/off switch (but not a deal killer for me)
Digital timer not wired in, requires batteries (but I go by smell/steam anyway)
Further comments:
Some people have said you need to double waffle recipes; I don't think so. A recipe with around 2 cups of flour will make about 4 huge waffles.
The thickness of the waffles makes the center more pancake-like than "waffly". I personally prefer a crispy outer crust with a very light, airy interior, which is what I am accustomed to with Belgian waffles.
Customer Review: Good value for the weekend waffler
Summary: 5 Stars
If you are running a bed & breakfast this unit may not be the right one for you, but it fit my needs exactly. I used to think of waffle makers and foot massage machines as gag gifts. Now that I'm getting older, I still think that about foot massagers but after having homemade waffles over the holidays I decided I wanted to do that at home once in a while. Enter the Presto FlipSide.
If you're looking for a compact machine to make waffles a couple of times a month this is a great little machine. Heats up quickly and cooks waffles evenly. I figured out which one of my small measuring cups to use (I fill the 1-cup just below full) and pour the right amount of batter every time, no overfills. The battery operated timer works fine, just tap the button a few times to get to the desired time and it starts counting down automatically. About 3 minutes or less later, it beeps and I have a perfect waffle. Repeat once or twice and we are done cooking breakfast. Since there is no overfilling, cleanup just involves dusting it with a paper towel when it cools.
I'm limited on cabinet space and found that I could stack this on top of a slow cooker to keep it out of the way. If this one disappeared I'd buy another FlipSide in a heartbeat. Now how long will it be before I decide a foot massager is a must have...
Customer Review: more of a gimmick than anything else
Summary: 2 Stars
I purchased this waffle iron to replace a cheap belgian waffle maker that had recently failed after about 5 years of use. I was looking for something better without being too much more expensive.
The flip mechanism turns out to be a gimmick and doesn't really add anything other than bulk. I did not find the design to be very compact unless you compare it to one of those commercial flipping waffle makers. I found it difficult to store this appliance as it certainly takes up more room than my previous waffle maker.
Having used a non-flip model for a while, I was interested to see any differences with the flipside. After quite a few mornings of use I cannot see any benefit to flipping the waffle during the cooking process. In fact it seems more difficult to remove the waffles when done cooking them (altough I suspect it is not seasoned fully yet) and the waffles themsevles seem less savory. The timer is of little value and is really just a guess - also it requires a battery which is silly since this thing plugs into an AC outlet.
Bottom line: You pay more for questionable and bulky features and end up with mediocre waffles. All in all I wish I had saved some money and bought another simple / cheap belgian waffle maker. I hope this review helps others in a similar situation.
Customer Review: Average results
Summary: 3 Stars
+ easy to store (main reason for buying really)
+ quick
- not consistent
We have had it for a few months now and have used it about 7-8 times. first 3 times were duds. to the extent that we almost thought of returning the maker. the good reviews here made us reconsider and we are glad we did. I think the grid does get seasoned after a few uses (as one reviewer had mentioned - thank you!) because lately the results are much improved. however, we still can't guarantee results - it's hit or miss on the crispiness (even with same batter mix used). we cook about 3.5 mins or a little over. it does spill batter a bit if you are not vigilant. consistency is a problem. last weeks were quite soft - inside and outside. ah well, it's a Belgian waffle maker that makes our Sunday mornings fun. if the batter is good, the waffle turns out good (crispy outside or not). we experiment with the toppings, read the paper while eating home made waffles...what's not to like? when we want restaurant quality stuff, we go to the 'waffle window' in portland (best waffles in the world!!) but this has cut down on our weekend breakfast out by quite a bit. so overall, it's a keeper. besides, we have never owned a waffle iron before so who knows, may be the con on this is a con for all of them? :)