Who doesn’t love a good bag of french fries? Well, barely anyone, but over the course of time, since White Castle first introduced French fries in Wichita Kan., in 1921, foodies have gotten picky about their fast food taters.
Now 100 years later, which French fry is the best is a matter of regional taste.
The team at CasinoReviews surveyed 2,000 Americans from across the country and asked them who makes the best fast-food fries, what kind of fries they enjoy the most, and other similarly salty, crispy, crinkly, delicious questions.
Striking gold, staying national
When it comes to potato gold, it’s the Golden Arches of McDonald’s that takes the crown. McDonald’s fries were favored by 43% of respondents, who said that it was flavor and texture – not price – that were the key factors.
“The Secretariat-like performance McDonald’s put on in this survey suggests that there’s a reason that it remains the king of fast food—no matter what Burger King’s mascot has to say about it,” the researchers said.
“We’re sure that nostalgia and familiarity play some role, but there’s no denying the facts: America likes McDonald’s French fries.”
Size matters
When it comes to how someone orders their fries, most of the respondents say that they prefer small, medium, or large over, say, a dipping sauce or coating. Some of that may be the value proposition.
Medium fries often offer a better value in terms of price per ounce of fries compared to small fries. And, at McDonald’s, for example, their meals often default to medium fries, and sometimes you can upgrade to a large for a small upcharge. So, why not, right?
But not as much as…
Texture and taste of the fries also play a significant role in preference. The survey revealed that both of those aspects are more important to Americans than price or portion size.
Can’t get enough
Cue the Barry White, because French fry lovers can’t get enough of that love, baby. A staggering 83% of Americans who answered the survey eat French fries at least once per month. It's even more surprising to learn that 41% of respondents eat fast food fries every week.
Getting saucy
It’ll come as no surprise that when respondents were asked about their favorite fry toppings, the hands-down winner was ketchup. Next was, interestingly enough, ranch dressing with 19% of the vote. Then, came cheese sauce (17%), honey mustard (13%), and barbecue (12%), followed by parmesan (7%), mayo (5%), aioli (5%), gravy (3%), and tzatziki (1%).
Adding everything up
Behind McDonald’s, the second friar of fries is Chick-fil-A, but it wasn’t even close. Chick-fil-A got a paltry 10%. Five Guys, Wendy’s, and Burger King round out the top five with 9%, 8%, and 5%, respectively.
No other chain managed to get more than 4% of the vote, which almost makes the rest of the rankings almost unnoticeable. Popeye's, Arby's, and Checker's/Rally's were all basement dwellers in the survey.
With only 2% of respondents choosing it as their favorite, In-N-Out Burger validates East Coasters' opinions. Also at 2% were Culver’s and Shake Shack. Dead last at 1% were Jack in the Box, Sonic, Whataburger, KFC, and Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s.
Surprisingly, White Castle – the chain that started this whole french fry lust – got zero votes. Nada. Zilch.
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2024-05-03 16:28:47
