Whether they were created during a harsh winter in 1680 in Namur, Belgium, or created in France as early as 1795, French fries have been around for forever. French fries have been a staple of “American cuisine” since the 1900s, according to National Geographic. The South Florida Reporter published that the average American eats 30 pounds of French fries each year. The whole nation consumes around 4.5 billion, according to Grit, a news publication. People like Franklin senior Olivia Zabell stated, “If you give me any kind of potato with oil and salt I’m in love,” showcasing how enamored the American public is with these crispy, little sticks. With billions of pounds of fries sold and consumed, there are a lot of options for the average American when they’re craving a French fry, so, looking at 13 of the fast food French fry options in Portland, who comes out on top?
The 13 fast food restaurants I included in this list are Popeyes, Burger King, Dairy Queen, Carl’s Jr., Burgerville, Wendy’s, KFC, Jack in the Box, McDonald’s, Arby’s, Five Guys, Super Deluxe, and Little Big Burger, which isn’t exactly fast food but is still included in this ranking. Each fry was ranked on a 1-10 scale based on flavor and texture. Curly fries and additionally seasoned fries were not considered, only looking at each location’s base fry option. Furthermore, fries are judged based on the expected quality of a fast food restaurant fry, not general taste compared to all foods.
In 13th and last place is Dairy Queen, with a flavor score of 2/10 and a texture score of 2.5/10. Dairy Queen has a soft spot in my heart, but that’s not because of their fries. The fries were unsalted and had a weird aftertaste. Along with an interior too soft, and an exterior not crunchy enough. Dairy Queen’s fries resemble more wet cardboard than good comfort food. They received zero votes as the best fry in a poll of 54 different people around Portland.
Taking the 12th spot is Burger King. Burger King was largely the same as Dairy Queen but with slight improvements across the board. The King earned a score of 3/10 on flavor, and the same for texture. As Franklin senior Owen Kellon put it, “They blew hot garbage,” conceding that maybe it was just because he “was having a bad day and they just didn’t improve it.” They had pretty much the same flavor as Dairy Queen except without the weird aftertaste, and this time with salt! The outside was a bit crunchier, and the inside tasted a bit more cooked. Another weird, but positive aspect of Burger King’s fries is they taste a lot like their pretty good onion rings, likely due to shared equipment. However, Burger King still, like Dairy Queen, received zero votes for best fry on the same poll.
The 11th spot is home to Jack in the Box, which offers fries of very similar quality to that of Burger King, earning a flavor and texture score of 4/10. These fries are a slimmer version of Dairy Queen’s fries, making them slightly better, as there is a bit more crunch, and each fry tastes a bit less bland. But they are still not done well enough to even be average, also receiving zero votes from the general public.
In 10th, Carl’s Jr. earned a grade of 4.5/10 in both categories. It’s pretty average for the most part, slightly unseasoned, slightly undercooked. There was nothing substantial to note other than the weirdly large variance in the size of the fries making some way too soft. They received 0% of the votes on the poll, and a harsh review from Franklin senior Connor Lawrence, who believes that “they’ve always been [bad, and] always will,” elaborating by stating they “ain’t seasoned well, [and are] soggy.” Lawrence’s opinion is backed up by the 0% of the vote the fry holds.
Arby’s ranked ninth and scored a 5/10 in flavor, and a 4.5/10 in texture. They taste practically the same as Carl’s Jr. except their base fry is crinkle cut, which is a slight negative, and they are saltier, which is a slight positive. However, they rank higher because of the consistency of the fries being a lot better than Carl’s Jr., which was enough to earn one vote as the best fry, or 2% of the vote.
Eighth place goes to Super Deluxe, which tastes like a slightly saltier, slightly less crispy, version of Carl’s Jr., earning a score of 5.5/10 for the flavor and 4/10 on texture. Unfortunately, they received 0% of the vote and were just consistently underwhelming.
Five Guys earned seventh place, due to their strong potato taste, and overall freshness of the fry. When eating them I didn’t feel nearly as sick as some of the highly processed fries make me feel, and their texture wasn’t the worst. They earned a flavor score of 8/10, and a texture score of 5.5/10 as the fry was pretty limp, and lacked crunch. Lawrence voted Five Guys fries as his favorite, citing the “real potatoes” as he puts it, giving Five Guys its first and only vote as best, earning 2% of the vote.
Burgerville came in sixth, with a fry extremely similar to Five Guys except the interior of the fry was more cooked, earning it a 6/10 on texture, and also receiving a strong 8/10 on flavor due to its relatively fresh potato taste. However, Burgerville took home a whopping 24% of the vote as best fry and earned a rating of “good” from Zabell.
Looking at the fifth spot, McDonald’s earned itself a flavor score of 6.5/10 and a texture score of 8.5/10. Despite its score, the majority of people who participated in the poll voted for McDonald’s as having the best fries, earning 52% of the vote. Kellon is among the many voting for the fry as the best, stating that its “soft chewy [inside]” makes it world-class. In my opinion, they are a bit overhyped, the salty flavor is good, but very average. McDonald’s special “natural beef flavoring” contributes to the overall highly processed flavor of the fry. However, the texture is nearly excellent: crispy, but soft and hot on the inside.
In fourth place is Popeyes, earning an 8/10 on texture and a 7.5/10 on taste. The fries have a cajun seasoning that is a stark contrast to the blandness held by many of the other fries. The actual taste, combined with a genuine crunch and warm interior, make it a very solid stand-alone fry. However, the interior could be cooked a little more; plus the fries are very fatty and heavy and hurt the stomach to eat a lot of them. They received 5% of the best fry vote.
Claiming the third spot is Little Big Burger, earning a 9/10 on flavor, and a 7/10 on texture. The fries are tossed with truffle oil and kosher salt, giving them an extremely fresh and distinct taste. Zabell backs up this opinion, stating they are “obsessed with truffle,” giving Little Big Burger the win, and one of its six first-place votes, causing Little Big Burger to have an 11%. However, the texture is just solid; it has a good crunch, but needs a little longer in the fryer.
Taking home the silver medal are KFC’s fries, which are practically the same as Popeyes fries except they don’t have as fatty of a taste. This earns them a 9/10 on taste, and an 8/10 on texture. For some, the seasoning and still slightly fatty taste may be a bit too much, but for me, they are spot on. Despite this, KFC received 0% of the vote for best fry.
Finally, declaring the gold medal as their own is Wendy’s. No fancy seasoning or shape is needed, the sea salt coat covering the fry is more than enough. The Wendy’s employee who served me the fries stated that it’s the “salty taste” that makes them so good. They possessed the best texture of the lot, earning a 9/10 due to its fresh crispiness as well as its hot potato-tasting interior. A classic, salty taste, and being cooked with the skin on the potatoes make this fry truly the best. You can pair it with anything, it stands alone, and it doesn’t make me feel sick. However, Wendy’s only received 4% of the general public’s vote.
For the most part, the different locations offered fries of similar quality. However, the fries that did stand out, stood out in a big way. A crispy texture and actual seasoning are the biggest factors towards a fry’s success. Wendy’s fries further prove that all you need to add to a fried potato to make it amazing is a little time and salt.
