I’ve spent most of my life knowing there are some things I can never resist (pie, wine, barbecue) and others I love but consume less of as a matter of self discipline (breakfast pastries, cocktails, steak). This practice of saying “no, thanks” has always helped me justify my tendency toward overindulgence.
For decades, fries have been on my watch list. I’d always ask to sub a side salad at lunch cafes, and insist at hot dog stands that I don’t want the fries even if they “come with” and even if I have to pay the same price. (Despite the threat, I almost always got a buck off.)
I could resist fries until I couldn’t. Maybe it was the pandemic that opened my eyes to the all-too-real pleasure of fishing fries from the bottom of a paper bag. Now I obsess over them. This job has given me the opportunity to scout out the best fries in Chicago, because if they’re on a menu I’ll never say no.
My criteria — highly subjective to be sure — rule out many kinds of fries other people would put on their best lists. For starters, I’m a shape purist. Potato wedges, curly fries, and waffle fries, tasty as they are, could never make the cut. I also flat-out reject any fries coated in seasoning powder. Particularly egregious are those blends that contain sugar and citric acid in addition to the usual garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. Fries should be seasoned with salt, full stop. Though this may be my most controversial position, I don’t think shoestring fries belong on the list. Eating a full portion of shoestrings always gives me that “too much grease” feeling. I’ve rarely finished a bag of McDonald’s fries, though that first four-fingered scoopful is admittedly a great food moment.
A fry should be about a quarter inch thick and crisp enough that you can snap it in two. The interior can be creamy like puree or chalky like a baked potato, but ideally have a fluffy texture somewhere between the two.
Here’s another thing: a fry should be delicious on its own. I’m down with all the fancy housemade sauces and aïolis chefs like to serve with their fries but I haven’t found one yet that bests Heinz ketchup. In fact, I’ve always been tempted to sneak packets of Heinz into restaurants but I know that would be disrespectful.
Here are my top three picks:
No. 1: Creepies
How do you make fries taste like butter? With butter. At this new restaurant from the Elske team, chef Tayler Ploshehanski has put thought into the two-step frying process that gives pommes frites their snap. The first fry at around 325 degrees makes the starch swell and move toward the cut surface. The second at around 375 degrees turns it crisp and brown. Ploshehanski uses clarified butter for flavor and rice bran oil, which has one of the highest smoke points of any fat, for crispness. The result is a marvel of craggy, golden snap, and a flavor like drawn butter. The fries have a perfect texture, inside and out. She serves fermented garlic aïoli and caramelized onion chutney, which I found tasty but unnecessary. I may work up the courage to ask for ketchup next time. ($10)
No. 2: Hawksmoor
This English import — part of a small chain with stateside locations in New York and Chicago — has many signature items, among them “beef dripping chips.” They have enough of a following that the company has packaged jars of its beef dripping, otherwise known as tallow. Beef fat is widely regarded as one of the best mediums for frying potatoes, both for its flavor and high smoke point, and it really shows in these fries. The housemade ketchup is good but too runny. There are a variety of steak sauces in the kitchen, from anchovy hollandaise to bordelaise, but I settled on béarnaise, which was lovely. A very nice bar snack with the house sour cherry Negroni. ($10)
No. 3: John’s Food & Wine
Chef-owners Adam McFarland and Tom Rogers use beef tallow but also Kennebec potatoes, which are notable for having both a thin skin and a low moisture content; they ideally fry up crisp and fluffy. Part of the process at John’s involves freezing the potatoes after their first fry, which may explain why they come out so spectacularly crisp on the surface but more creamy in the center. These are the best fries to hold in your hands and snap in two. They come with a leek aïoli that is the best sauce of any I’ve tried. I still want ketchup. ($14)