By this time next year, if not sooner, Washington residents and others should be able to utter some or all of these words: smothered, covered, chunked, diced, peppered, capped, topped and country.

 

Anyone familiar with Waffle House will recognize those words. They are used when ordering hash browns.

 

“Waffle House said that they weren’t sure what the schedule was, but it might be December until they start (building),” Rodman said.

 

Waffle house will be built on land adjacent to the Days Inn at the intersection of Hackney and Carolina avenues. A sign on the lot reads “Coming soon.”

 

Zaxby’s, a restaurant known for its chicken sandwiches and platters, has submitted a site plan for its proposed location at the former car wash next to McDonald’s

 

Zaxby’s is in the process of obtaining a city-issued permit to demolish the car wash so it can prepare the site for erecting the restaurant building, Rodman said.

 

Earlier this week, the Washington Planning Board approved the Zaxby’s site plan.

 

Cook-Out, a fast-food chain based in North Carolina, is planning to build a restaurant on Carolina Avenue on the land between Down East Motors and El Tapatio.

 

“We contacted Cook-Out to try to find out (its construction plans) because they’ve got those three old buildings they’ve go to do something with. They’re vacant. They’re not serving any purpose. So. They’ve got to take them down or do something,” Rodman said. “They said originally they had tried to get Zaxby’s to go on their property with them, but Zaxby’s didn’t want to.”

 

“Then we heard that Cook-Out, this is what they told Wayne (Harrell, chief building inspector for the city): that Cook-Out said that if Zaxby’s didn’t go beside them, they were going to build a full-scale Cook-Out which has a sit-down place in it,” Rodman said.

 

Cook-Out has few restaurants with indoor seating. Rodman said he’s been to one of those, the one in Dunn.

 

“The one in Dunn is nice,” he said.

 

Cook-Out has about 125 restaurants in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia.