Colorado French Fry Topic

[Chezhoff]

edit: Do we need a dedicated french fries in colorado thread?

Yes, I agree, we do need this thread, so here it is!

Fries that I love, other than my own homemade ones...

CityGrille

any that are made at Kevin Taylor's restaurants

Brasserie Rouge

for fast food, I agree that Mustard's are great. Those at Steak Escape can be passable at times. There's a hot dog place called Gabe's Chi-town Dogs on Washington (tween 104th and 120th) in Northglenn that has both great fries and great homemade chips (another passion of mine) plus pretty darn good dogs.

[afoodnut]

Yes, I agree, we do need this thread, so here it is!

Fries that I love, other than my own  homemade ones...

CityGrille

any that are made at Kevin Taylor's restaurants

Brasserie Rouge

for fast food, I agree that Mustard's are great. Those at Steak Escape can be passable at times. There's a hot dog place called Gabe's Chi-town Dogs on Washington (tween 104th and 120th) in Northglenn that has both great fries and great homemade chips (another passion of mine) plus pretty darn good dogs.

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Thanks for starting the thread, Chezhoff. So this makes a little more sense: In This thread, I said:

Anybody been back to Icon to see how they're settling in?

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When I saw this thread, I was reminded about Icon and the debate over their fries. I hadn't bothered to go yet, because our earlier discussions didn't make it sound great.

But, being the french fry junkie that I am, I decided to try it, if only to be able to offer an up to date opinion. And now I can say, from first-hand tasting, that the fries are blah. Piping hot out of the fryer, they're mealy, and flavorless. They're not even as good as Good Times or Sonic, and don't come anywhere near close to the quality of Mustard's Last Stand (my favorite for fast food fries).

I didn't try a burger, I just got a takeout order of fries ($1.99). The fries were uninteresting enough that I threw them out after tasting a few; I didn't even want to think about what they would taste like as they cooled and lost the fresh from the fryer sort of almost crisp outside.

edit: Do we need a dedicated french fries in colorado thread?

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(Hmmm, I haven't quite figured out how to do multiple quoting in the new interface.) Edited September 11, 2004 by afoodnut (log)

[rlm]

Mustard's fries are pretty good. If a small place like that can have fresh-cut fries, why can't other places? (Their Chicago dogs are pretty good too.)

Chezhoff, I have not tried Brasserie Rouge's fries, but I'm curious if they fry theirs in goose fat like Napa's Bouchon reportedly does. (Fries were the only thing we really enjoyed there, sadly.)

[Chezhoff]

First off, sorry that I didn't do a good job of setting the context for this thread, i.e. that it started on the We're Famous - Kinda thread. Thanks foodnut for doing that.

Now back to your regularly scheduled fries...

From RLM:

Chezhoff, I have not tried Brasserie Rouge's fries, but I'm curious if they fry theirs in goose fat like Napa's Bouchon reportedly does. (Fries were the only thing we really enjoyed there, sadly.)

I'm not sure, they didn't taste especially...goosey...

Does Bouchon use goosefat entirely or just add a tablespoon or two? I can't imagine it would be practical to use all goose fat (can you imagine the poor low level cook whose entire job it would be to render out goose fat?) but I don't know. I will sometimes add a tablespoon or two of bacon fat when I make french fries, it makes them better I think.

[TheMatt]

My favorites of all time were those at Mazzio's much-missed Triana. Not a traditional fry, but I loved 'em. That said, the fries at Mateo were good the last time I was there. Of course, by now they probably cost $2034 like everything else there.

I also quite like the fries at Carelli's in Boulder. They remind me of the fries that my mom used to make in the ye olde days. So, I can't really give a critical view of them, nostalgia just makes them good to me.

[afoodnut]

My favorites of all time were those at Mazzio's much-missed Triana.  Not a traditional fry, but I loved 'em.  That said, the fries at Mateo were good the last time I was there.  Of course, by now they probably cost $2034 like everything else there.

I also quite like the fries at Carelli's in Boulder.  They remind me of the fries that my mom used to make in the ye olde days.  So, I can't really give a critical view of them, nostalgia just makes them good to me.

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Wow. Fries at Carelli's. Who'd a thunk it?

Are they Italian style fries, or regular good ole 'merican style french fries? Sorry for the questions, but I don't think I've ever had Carelli's fries, and I shudder to think that all the times I've eaten at Carelli's, I somehow managed to miss good fries, whether they be Italian, French, or just plain fries.

[TheMatt]

Since I'm not sure what Italian-style fries are (the mind boggles), I'll say American-style since they don't seem to be anything different than I'm used to. They probably aren't a gourmet's fries, but as I said, they remind me of the type my Ma used to make back in the day. Probably use the same oil temperature and potatoes that she did...

If you've never had 'em, I'm guessing you've never had one of their sandwiches (come with fries or pasta salad). They're pretty good, as I'd hope since Greg Carelli opened a sandwich shop to begin with, I think. The Chicken Parm is probably my favorite, but the Italian Sub is a close second.

[afoodnut]

Since I'm not sure what Italian-style fries are (the mind boggles), I'll say American-style since they don't seem to be anything different than I'm used to.  They probably aren't a gourmet's fries, but as I said, they remind me of the type my Ma used to make back in the day.  Probably use the same oil temperature and potatoes that she did... 

If you've never had 'em, I'm guessing you've never had one of their sandwiches (come with fries or pasta salad).  They're pretty good, as I'd hope since Greg Carelli opened a sandwich shop to begin with, I think.  The Chicken Parm is probably my favorite, but the Italian Sub is a close second.

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The boggled mind is why I asked the question; I couldn't wrap my mind around the idea of fries at Carelli's (and I've got a vivid imagination). You're right, of course, that I've not tried the sandwiches. I'm always there for dinner with friends, and the sandwiches on the menu don't register. Next time....

I'm trying to remember the menu when Carelli's first opened, but I'm lost in the mists of age and forgetfulness.