# Why are McDonald's french fries so tasty? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 24, 2009, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291 "2009-02-24T23:02:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/21 "2009-02-25T04:28:18Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > McDonald’s is a solid fry. My main criterion for what makes a good fry is that it does not require a condiment. A condiment (such as ketchup or malt vinegar) may heighten the experience, but is not necessary. My secondary criterion is that it requires a beverage. A bevarage (such as Coca-cola for McDonald’s fries) definitely heightens the experience. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/22 "2009-02-25T04:31:53Z")
Since nobody called it I’ll call dibs on “little fried orgasms” as a band name. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/23 "2009-02-25T04:35:01Z")
I like both McD’s and Burger King fries. Wendy’s fries are thicker, so have to be dipped. McD’s and Burger King can be eaten straight or dipped. All this assumes that the fries have the right amount of salt on them. Wendy’s fries allways need extra salt. McD’s seems to depend on the day. Honestly, BK is the only place that always has the right amount of salt. I wish they would all use tallow. There is no such thing as trans-fat free partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. The industry is allowed to say trans-fat free when it is below 0.5 grams per serving. How many servings are in a large fry? All partially hydrogenated vegetable oil contains trans-fat, no exceptions. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/24 "2009-02-25T04:36:12Z")
(Calling in from left field) If you’re old enough to remember when McDs used a different oil… _and_ you recognize how that oil made a difference… Poke around your grocery store until you find Coconut oil. Go home and make popcorn. _Real_ popcorn. You’re welcome. (strolling back out to left field) ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/25 "2009-02-25T05:06:52Z")
Tasty? _Tasty??_ MacDonald’s FFs are no longer edible, if you have been around long enough to remember the original formula, made with beef tallow, IIRC. Decades ago, they were the mainstay of my schoolage diet, but now, I never get them at Mickey D visits. Ah, nostalgia…it ain’t what it used to be. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/26 "2009-02-25T05:19:09Z")
I don’t like McDonald’s fries much at all. [Red Rooster](http://www.redrooster.com.au/) chips are fantastic, though. They just don’t [get it](http://www.redrooster.com.au/new.htm) in America. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/27 "2009-02-25T05:24:00Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I don’t like McDonald’s fries much at all. > > [Red Rooster](http://www.redrooster.com.au/) chips are fantastic, though. > > They just don’t [get it](http://www.redrooster.com.au/new.htm) in America. They don’t need to; they have KFC. Which- and let’s be fair here- is pretty much the same thing, despite Red Rooster’s clever marketing. 😉 And FTR; the only decent food McDonalds has are their Breakfast McMuffins. Tasty! ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/28 "2009-02-25T06:53:37Z")
Wendy’s or McDonalds? Hard choice - both are very good. I only eat fast food at work if I have nothing to bring, since Wendy’s is easier to get to, I usually go there. Neither fry needs anything - certainly not ketchup. BK fries are pitiful. Too bad we can’t have a place with McD’s fries and In’N’Out burger burgers. Their fries are so flippin’ bad (either style) that I avoid the place like the plague. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/29 "2009-02-25T07:00:48Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > I’ve never understood the cultlike following of Mickey D’s fries, they seem mediocre at best > > Now, Wendy’s fries, OTOH, are my favorite, they’re thicker cut and have both a nice crispy outside and a soft interior, it’s like eating strips of baked potato, rather than warm potato sticks that are Mickey’s fries I agree with all of this, except that I think Burger King fries are way below average. Every time I have them, they taste like they’ve been cooked in extremely dirty old grease, like they haven’t changed the grease in weeks. Nasty. Dammit. This thread is making me need fries and it’s 2AM. Off to McDonald’s I go, as they’re the only ones open at this hour. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/30 "2009-02-25T07:04:07Z")
Both McDonald’s and Burger King have about the fries that you would expect from a mass-market American fast-food place: Boring, bland, and worth little more than as a vehicle for red corn syrup and salt. And they’ve been that way for as long as I (31 years old) can remember. Wendy’s are a little better, but still not exactly a high culinary experience. If you actually want good fast-food fries, then you need to go to either Arby’s or Rally’s. But even then, they pale in comparison to the places you see occasionally (for some reason they always seem to crop up at fairs and carnivals) that specialize in fries. And in all cases, once they’ve gone cold, there’s nothing you can do to rescue them: Cold fries are no longer food, except possibly to pigeons. ---
**Author:** ![Electronic\_Chaos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Electronic\_Chaos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electronic_Chaos)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/31 "2009-02-25T07:26:44Z")
My gripe with Wendy’s fries is that the salt they use is too fine, and they use way too much of it. If I’m eating at Wendy’s I always need to order the larger size drink because I need something to wash down the salty. And, I agree. Properly prepared McDonald’s fries are probably the best of any fast food I’ve had ever. And probably in the top 5 of any other fry I’ve had. ---
**Author:** ![lawoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lawoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawoot)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/32 "2009-02-25T07:42:11Z")
Wendy’s fries are tops to me - I always get 'em. McDonald’s Fries are good, but nothing major. Half the time I DON’T get them. Burger King fries are crap - they taste like potato CHIPS (crisps) to me. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/33 "2009-02-25T07:58:10Z")
McDonald’s makes an awesome fry. I agree they used to be better, but they’re damn good now, too. I don’t have them often but they are pretty much the main point of the meal, when I do go McDonalding. I can’t say I ever really appreciated Wendy’s fries or noticed any similarity to McDonald’s. Burger King … ugh on all counts. I think I’ve been to BK’s three times in my entire life, and never enjoyed it, except for the existence of onion rings. I’d say my second favorite fast-food fry would be Ranch 1, which is a grilled chicken franchise here in NY. I don’t know if it’s national or not, but their fries taste rather like belgian fries. Favorite fry, non-fast-food division? The former B-Frites, a Belgian pomme frites shop that used to be on Broadway & 50something. Dayum those were good with the store’s homemade, sassy mayo. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/34 "2009-02-25T08:07:48Z")
I’m always disappointed when they give me fresh fries. They need to be a bit soggy - not cold, just soggy - and oversalted for me to really like them. And In-N-Out’s normal fries stink, but if you get them “Animal Style,” they leap ahead of all other fast food fries. Joe ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/35 "2009-02-25T11:26:35Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > (Calling in from left field) > > If you’re old enough to remember when McDs used a different oil… > > _and_ you recognize how that oil made a difference… > > Poke around your grocery store until you find Coconut oil. Go home and make popcorn. _Real_ popcorn. > > You’re welcome. > > (strolling back out to left field) So how did McDonalds get the fries to not taste like someone poured toasted coconut on them? My sister-in-law bought this crap claiming it’s healthy or something, and made pancakes for my husband and I, greasing the pan with it. Yuck. Coconut has its time and place, and that wasn’t it. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/36 "2009-02-25T11:50:16Z")
I’m surprised by the Wendy’s love. I’ve never gotten fries at Wendy’s that were anything but limp, lukewarm, undersalted, stale crap. I’ve tried asking for fries they made _today_, to no avail. McDonalds and Burger King fries are much better, but any fast-food fry has about a five-minute shelf life. If it’s not almost too hot too eat, it’s not worth bothering with. ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/37 "2009-02-25T11:58:09Z")
unless MacD fries taste a whole lot better in the US than they do here, there’s an entire universe of tasty french fries you’re missing out on if you think MacDonald’s fries are the best tasting fries. I’d say they’re mediocre at best. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/38 "2009-02-25T12:04:20Z")
But have you tried McDonalds? ---
**Author:** ![zenith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zenith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zenith)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/39 "2009-02-25T14:11:48Z")
McD’s fries only taste good to people too young to remember the fresh fries they used to make. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2009, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291/40 "2009-02-25T14:12:11Z")
Forgot two more great ones – Nathan’s large, crinkle-cut fries and Mr. B’s (local place – used to be a chain, but I only know of one still open) tater tots. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-mcdonalds-french-fries-so-tasty/487291.md?page=3)