In-N-Out fries do indeed suck. All you need to know if you live in LA is that the best fries are at the Bellwether. Period. End of story. I would venture to say they are the best fries I’ve had anywhere on planet earth.
The Bellwether fries are good (especially with their hot sauce, but the fried cauliflower with fish sauce is better). However, unless they’ve changed in the past month, the Bellwether isn’t a fast food restaurant.
Yes, one has to ask for well-done fries at In’n’Out. It makes them edible.
I concur with the article that both McDonald’s and Steak’n’Shake fries are tasty. My wife’s from Bloomington-Normal, IL so I make sure to get the SnS fixes their. I went to the SaMo outpost once and it was not as good.
I (actually my wife and I both) didn’t like 5 Guy’s fries, either. But we have a 5 guys 3-4 minutes from our house. But they have really grown on us. Out first time or two they were soft. But every time since they have been very good. McDonald’s fries, if they’re done right, are pretty good, too,
Steak & Shake back east is good for fries. McDonald’s used to be good, before they switched from beef tallow to vegetable oil (ca. 1990, before we knew that trans-fats are worse than other saturated fats). Some brave chain should go back to beef tallow for fries.
This article has a bit about the history of McDonald’s fries (ignore the rest; the info is dated).
I’ve found the key with 5 guys fries is they are so hot when they put them in the bag that if you close the bag they get soggy from the steam awfully fast. I think they are great right out of the fryer though.
You hit one of the keys to 5 Guys, but also remember to pull out the wad of napkins at the top of the bag as well to improve air flow and avoid steam. I’ve also gotten better results asking for them to be extra crispy, which at least seems to ensure that they don’t pull them from the fat too soon. When cooked properly no other chain fry comes close, but when undercooked no one has worse fries. Not even In-N-Out, which got by far the best line of the article with:
Just as dumping the fries into a dirt pile on the shoulder of a highway access road and running over that pile with my car would also probably not make the fries any worse.