Delfina Restaurant in San Francisco, CA Redux

Perfect fries by candlelight.

Some of you may remember my first post about Delfina Restaurant. Well, the rumors are all still true. The fries are still outstanding. I did want to share that on this second visit to experience the fine fried carbohydrates, the waiter revealed that the fries are "fried twice." Aha, so that's the secret! The original scores still stand, posted below for your convenience.

Price: $4.00

Portion Size: Extra Large (a steal!!!!)

Texture: Crispy outside with tender soft potato inside

Greasiness Level: 1 out of 5 (meaning not greasy at all; very little oil left behind on fingers)

Seasoning: Salt, sage, rosemary

Fried in: Rice Oil

Bonus: Fried sage and rosemary

Accompanied by Condiments: No

Overall Quality of French Fries: 10 out of 10

(It will be difficult to not give every fry I eat a 10. I promise to be as discerning as possible.)

Wurstkuche in Los Angeles, CA

A quick detour to LA to taste the fries at Wurstkuche. I tried to look up the meaning of Wurstkuche but I can't find it, although their motto is "Purveyor of Exotic Grilled Sausages." However, some have been known to come here for the fries alone.

The menu states that the fries are "Double dipped," which I interpret to mean they are fried twice. You can order 2 different sizes: Klein (small, with one dipping sauce) or Groot (large, with two dipping sauces). I opted for the Klein.

There are many dipping sauces to choose from:

Sweet and Sassy BBQ, Buttermilk Ranch, Thai Peanut, Tzatzkiki (greek yogurt sauce), Chipotle Ketchup, Curry Ketchup, Bleu Cheese Walnut and Bacon, Sundried Tomato Mayo, Chipotle Aioli, Pesto Mayo.

You can also order White Truffle Oil Glaze on top for an extra $1.50

I ordered my Klein with the Pesto Mayo and kept life simple.

The portion size was just right, and the fries were beautiful to look at and arrived piping hot. I must say that these fries are cut quite thickly, so there is a lot more potato inside as opposed to the types of fries I am used to--equal parts fried-outside to soft-potato-inside. These are hearty fries and I am definitely more of the shoestring type, so please keep this in mind when reading my ratings below. (I am also waffling on the final rating, because they were obviously high quality fries, but personally, wide fries are just not my favorite.) I did enjoy them, ate every last one, and if I was in the hood I would probably not be averse to coming back to try them again.

Price:$3.50

Portion Size: Medium

Texture: Crispy on outside, soft--and a lot of potato--on the inside

Greasiness Level: 3 out of 5 (slightly greasy)

Seasoning: Just a tad bit underseasoned, but I suppose that's what the dipping sauce is for

Fried in: Some sort of vegetable oil

Condiments: So many to choose from (see review above)

Also, a few types of different mustards on the table, salt, pepper

Overall Quality of French Fries: 7.25 out of 10

Blake's on Telegraph in Berkeley, CA Part 2

This is Part 2 of the Blakes on Telegraph Fry Review. This is for the Spicy Fries, which, by the way, I ordered with an absolutely delicious spicy black bean burger.

Back to the fries: They were very crispy on the outside, and unfortunately, since they were sliced so darn thin, very crispy on the inside as well. I was very quick to note the lack of texture difference between the outside and the inside of the fry, and was not amused. However, a good bar snack with a drink, and I felt they were well salted.

Price:$2.60

Portion Size: Medium

Texture: Really crispy and crunchy on outside,

really crispy and crunchy on the inside!

Greasiness Level: 3 out of 5 (slightly greasy)

Seasoning: Pretty well seasoned with salt

Fried in: Some sort of vegetable oil

Condiments: (not sure if these too come with a side of Ranch Dressing if ordered alone (see previous post) Choose your own: ketchup, mustard, pepper, salt

Overall Quality of French Fries: 6 out of 10

Blake's on Telegraph in Berkeley, CA Part 1

I made a very unexpected fry stop with friends last Friday, and Blakes on Telegraph was the stop (sadly, their logo reminds me of the Eva Joia Club from the 80s).

Fries of the Sweet Potato variety were the first to be investigated (these were stolen off of various friends' plates). They were pretty good for bar grub, but very underseasoned, and the innards were a bit mushier than I prefer. When ordered alone, they come with ranch dressing. The ranch dressing is nothing to write home about, but it's a nice added touch. The Sweet Potato Fries from Blakes get an okay grade from me!

Price:$2.60

Portion Size: Medium

Texture: Crispy on outside, maybe a wee tad too mushy, but overall,

cooked well

Greasiness Level: 3 out of 5 (slightly greasy)

Seasoning: Very underseasoned

Fried in: Some sort of vegetable oil

Condiments: When ordered alone, comes with a side of (possibly store-bought) quite bland ranch dressing; you can also...

Choose your own condiments, ketchup, mustard, pepper, salt

Overall Quality of French Fries: 7 out of 10

Trueburger in Oakland, CA

For all the hype about their hamburgers, the same cannot be said for Trueburger's 'Shroom Burger (as described by the menu, "Crispy portobello mushroom stuffed with smoked mozzarella cheese"). But this is not a burger review site so I will move on (but wait! I want to say that the mushroom burger was fried in overwhelming breadcrumbs or something and tasted like a bland mix of fried breadcrumbs and more fried breadcrumbs!).

Thankfully, however, the fries were pretty good. Well seasoned and a nice crispness to them. Not the best fries I've had, but pretty darn good. Trueburger also has a nice condiments bar where you can add onions, etc. Admittedly, I did not investigate the extra condiments enough, but you could add them to your fries if you really wanted to.

Price:$2.50

Portion Size: Medium

Texture: Crispy on outside, soft inside

Greasiness Level: 3 out of 5 (slightly greasy)

Seasoning: Well seasoned

Fried in: Some sort of vegetable oil

Condiments: Choose your own condiments, ketchup, mustard, pepper, salt

Overall Quality of French Fries: 7 out of 10

Sparky's Giant Burgers in Oakland, CA

The Team took a fun trip to Sparky's Giant Burgers, up in the Oakland Hills. You literally feel like you're in a small mountain town. I had my fries with a fish sandwich, which seem pretty hard to find around these parts. The sandwich didn't do much for me, but the fries were pretty darn tasty!

I should point out that these were the first fries I'd tasted since becoming a victim of salmonella poisoning, so I'm not sure if that perhaps skewed my opinion of Sparky's fries. That being said, I did very much enjoy these fries. They had an unusual chewiness to them that I found very satisfying. I know that sounds gross, but I think it's the way they cook them (and hopefully not that they were old!). As the menu states, the fries are "sliced daily," and for 2 bucks and some change they are worth the trip up the hill.

Price:$2.35

Portion Size: Medium

Texture: Crisp on the outside, soft on the inside. Overall wonderful chewiness to them.

Greasiness Level: 3 out of 5 (slightly greasy)

Seasoning: A bit underseasoned

Fried in: Some sort of vegetable oil

Condiments: Choose your own condiments, ketchup, mustard, pepper, salt, hot sauce

Overall Quality of French Fries: 8 out of 10

The Hard Knox Cafe, 3rd Street Location in San Francisco, CA

The Hard Knox Cafe has a very special place in my heart. It sits right across from where my graduate school studio used to be, and I often caved and gave in to the Cafe's wonderful bad-for-you Southern style soul food.

I recently re-lived my glory days and paid the Hard Knox a visit for a Catfish Po Boy with a side of fries. Now the Catfish was, as it always has been, AMAZING. I usually order mine "blackened" instead of "fried" to trick myself into thinking it's healthier than it actually is. Delicious frikkin' awesomeness.

Unfortunately, the same can not be said for the fries. Slightly crispy, pretty soggy, and very underseasoned. And I hate to say it–because I truly do love this place–but the fries also came with a hair, which was definitely not mine. (I want to take a point off for the hair, but I'm assuming they don't always come with dead human skin cells, so I will forgive them for now. And this is the first time I've ever had a hair served with my food from this fine establishment.)

Price:$8.00 for a Catfish Po Boy with fries

Portion Size: Medium

Texture: Undercooked and soft on outside

Greasiness Level: 3 out of 5 (slightly greasy)

Seasoning: Very underseasoned

Fried in: Some sort of vegetable oil

Condiments: Choose your own condiments, ketchup, mustard,pepper, salt, hot sauce

Bonus Condiment: Someone's hair

Overall Quality of French Fries: 5 out of 10