Blog: 
The French Fry Poll

By John Sailors | April 28, 2016

My poll on best fries is complete, though it garnered only 60 replies over three days.

Not surprisingly, McDonald's takes the top spot for best french fries among the big three (with BK and KFC), though also not surprisingly, the fourth choice, Other, was not so far behind.


Among the replies for Other was praise for the fries from Red Robin, Wing Stop, and In and Out Burger. There was also one vote for "Momma," which would be a hard one to argue with.

I can vouch for some of these. At In and Out Burger, clean-cut kids in pressed uniforms cut fresh potatoes using french fry cutters, all in a window facing the drive-thru. (See video below.) The chain's "secret menu" is said to offer flavors and variations.



I also recently discovered Wingstop fries. Between the seasoning and the oil they're cooked in, they definitely stand out for flavor.

At any rate, one message is clear. Fast-food chains including BK, Jack in the Box, Carl's Jr., and Wendy's have introduced new fry recipes with good reason, even if without good result. If they could come up a taste that equals or beats McDonald's, they could take a lot of the gold out of those arches.

I know I'm tired of picking up burgers and chicken sandwiches at Burger King, and then driving to McDonald's for fries. (And child-size sodas for a dollar, "child-size" meaning the size of a small child.) It reminds me of when I was young and idealistic, and would choose Texas Fried Chicken but still hit KFC for gravy.

This poll, by the way, was inspired by an article I was writing on the origin of french fries. People argue over whether fries came from Belgium or France, and some claim they were invented by the Spanish—who introduced potatoes to Europe and had a tradition of frying in oils.

There is no certain answer, but the history of potatoes as they hit Europe makes for an interesting read.

On an editorial note, MW11 lowercases french fry on first entry, but caps French bean, ~ bread, ~ dressing, ~ pastry, and ~ toast. The same is true for American Heritage 5.

Whether this choice is because of the Belgian origin of fries or just to anger the French, I don't know. Remember that in 2003 the US House of Representatives voted to rename french fries in their cafeteria, dubbing them "Freedom fries." This was in response to French opposition to the invasion of Iraq, and probably it's the US House that's looking dumb on that one, in retrospect.


For AP fans, Webster's New World 4 caps French in French fries, though offers lowercase as a variant. These things seem minor, but try writing about wines and cheeses, for which you need to look up spelling and caps in atlases.