Here is another of the interminable news stories in which a small group of media people get together and sample, and then rank, comparable products from restaurants.
I was VERY surprised that McDonald’s came in last. Mind you, that’s actually my opinion as well. However, considering the way that the things have developed a cult-like following, I have become convinced that McDonald’s have put some sort of mind-control substance in their fries.
I have a child who is moderately autistic. She has a very limited palate. Her three primary food groups are pizza, pancakes, and McDonald’s french fries.
Has Five Guys always had the type of fries mentioned in this article? Thick “hand cut” ones? For some reason I was under the impression that they were “shoestring” type, like they have at Steak 'n Shake. Those are dumb.
I would go Five Guys of that bunch, followed by McDonalds. Chick Fil A are good, too, and I understand they are one of the most sought-after fast food menu items anywhere, but to me, they’re just waffle fries. Nothing particularly special about them, but taste like other waffle fries I’ve had.
I love Chick Chick’s waffle fries. If I get a drive-thru order, I almost always eat them on the way home; they are much too good to resist, nor do they need condiments, in my humble opinion. I do know that many consider the waffle fry just an improved ketchup delivery system.
Five Guys fries have always been what they are, so far as I know. The article’s comment about their greasiness is true, and is both a detriment and a benefit. No, they aren’t crisp, but man, are they tasty, especially with some malt vinegar, bottles of which are copious at Five Guys.
McDonald’s fries stopped being good in my opinion when they stopped using a two bath system of frying them in the store.
That’s exactly my main criterion for what constitutes a great fry. I personally still think McDonalds taste fine and pass the test. There’s no fucking way anybody is going to convince me that BK’s are better. Wendy’s I can maybe see, but,still, no.
If you want a really good French fry, you need to slice the potato when the customer orders it. I don’t know if Chick Fil-A or Five Guys do that, but the other three definitely don’t. The only chain I’ve seen that done at is Penn Station.
Alternately, the breaded fries they have at Rally’s/Checkers are really good.
You are speaking my language. Del Taco probably has the best fast food fries of anyone. God, I wish they were a national chain—I miss that place so much. Fatburger, though vastly different, also falls into that category for me because I have a weakness for steak fries.
But of the OP’s list, I admit that I’d probably choose Burger King first, followed by McDonald’s.
In n outs fries are freshly cut, but they suck. I think parcooked and then fried a second time fries are perfectly fine, and maybe even better. (I mean, not just necessarily the standard double fry, but ones that have been fried in advance quite some time before the customer orders.)
My favorite is Checker’s. Five Guys and Arby’s are close enough to greatness that they are disappointing to me when they inevitably do not achieve it. Five Guys because they are slightly too thick and therefore never evenly done throughout (but they do deliver on volume and as a ketchup delivery mechanism.) Arby’s because I love me some curly fries - unflavored ones, that is.
Checker’s fries on the other hand don’t pretend to be anything else.
They are still far superior to Burger King and Wendy’s though. Five guys are by far the best, followed by either MC D’s or Chick Fil A depending on mood.
Five Guys are thick cut, which is so superior that it’s really a different category from fast food shoestring fries. The big problem with Five Guys is that the fries are so grease-laden that eating a normal amount sends a fat bomb to the stomach that cancels out their great taste.
Which is compounded by the fact that they give you an absolute fuck ton. I’ve had times when instead of getting my order of fries the guy just opens the bag and fills it to the brim with them.
Wendy’s had great fries. HAD. Then some bean counter swapped in the current abomination. There is not enough Viagra in the world to make a batch non-limp.
There is a snack shack up the road that does a stellar job on the fries. They get my business now.
I have discovered, to my horror, that I can no longer frequent some restaurants. If I dine at the local Red Robin, for example, a half hour later I’m like a Falcon 9 rocket, on final to LZ-1. I’m suspecting something in the oil. Bring back Beef tallow!
McDonald’s number one, then Five Guys, then Wendy’s, then BK. I’ve had Chikfilay or however it’s spelled a couple times but don’t recall if I got fries or what they were like if I did.
