French Fry Diary 674: The So-Called KFC Rat

So it's happening again. Every once in a while, someone supposedly finds something in their fast food that is a deep fried something that shouldn't be there. Rarely is it true, usually it's a hoax, or an attempt to make money from a lawsuit. Check your Snopes to make sure. But always, always, these things go viral, and the powers that be, that don't like fast food, use it as a reason not to eat fast food.

Today, we have the rat from KFC. It's just a piece of chicken that may look like a rat, that's all. Just like clouds may look like Lady Gaga, I assure you, they are not Lady Gaga. KFC assures us this is not a rat, just as the man who got this chicken tender and posted it to Facebook will not come forward and let them (or anyone else) examine the 'rat.' It's just a tender with the shape of a rat. There's a reason that McNuggets are made in the same shapes all the time, and this is it.

This might also be the place to mention another ugly rumor. KFC is not KFC because they no longer serve chicken, but because of the Health Nazi stigma of the word 'fried.' They are still Kentucky Fried Chicken, as seen in the new commercials featuring Darrell Hammond as Colonel Sanders, and the less said about those commercials, the better...

So KFC is safe, they're not cooking rats. And furthermore, you should go to KFC today, and get some chicken tenders, and a side of fries too while you're at it.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #190

Wow, that's a whole lotta fries…  and everything else...

French Fry Diary 609: McDonald's Shakin' Flavor Fries

I finally got a chance to go over to the local McDonald's and try their new Shakin' Flavor Fries. The first thing I noticed was that there was no difference in price for a regular size fries and a regular size Shakin' Flavor version. That's a definite plus.

Shaker fries are a big deal in Asia and the South Pacific, usually with exotic flavors like seaweed. The flavors available at American McDonald's are Garlic Parmesan, Zesty Ranch and Spicy Buffalo. Guess which one I chose? I went with the buffalo as it was the closest to barbecue. I wish they had just a regular barbecue, or a cheddar like Burger King had when they did their Shake 'Em Up Fries.

The special shaking bag comes with directions that are fairly simple, and trust me, when you've done it once, you won't need to consult the directions again. It's easy. Put some fries in the bag, put some seasoning in, close the bag, shake it up, baby, and you're done, easy-peasy.

The shaking process gives the fries a pretty thorough coating. The Spicy Buffalo has a solid bite to it. I wasn't expecting that kind of heat based on how pedestrian Mickey D's nugget dipping sauces are, for instance. There's more burn to this than actual buffalo flavor. The fries of course are just as good as always.

As I mentioned above I wish there were more than just the three flavor seasonings available, but let's see if they last first. The trend these days with fast food is to only offer the good stuff on a temporary basis.

McNugget Rage in Toledo

This 24-year-old woman, Melodi Dushane, wanted some Chicken McNuggets from a McDonald's drive-thru in Toledo, but it was 10:30 AM, and the restaurant, as it has always been for as long as I can remember at least, still serving breakfast. She apparently could not deal with that fact, and yeah, she just lost her mind.

The police caught Dushane, and she was sentenced to sixty days for felony vandalism - assaulting two employees and smashing the drive-thru window. She was apparently drunk, and was also made to pay for the damaged window. I love how the next car pulls up like nothing happened. I hope they didn't want McNuggets too…

The following video contains violence and profanity, not suitable for the kids or for work. You've been warned.



Wow. Don't make her assume her ultimate form. Just imagine if she wanted fries too…

French Fry Diary 349: Herr's Tangy BBQ Flavored Popped Chips

It would seem that the popularity of Pop Chips has caused at least one of the major potato chip company to fire back as it were. The other day at CVS I came across a tiny six ounce bag of Herr's Tangy BBQ Flavored Popped Chips. I picked them up right away.

It was not so much the fact of competitive popped chips or even the barbecue flavor - but the word 'tangy' was what grabbed me. I admit I was excited. If they could make a 'tangy' barbecue flavor of popped chip, could regular or kettle tangies be next? Of course it might just be a ploy like when McDonald's added the word 'tangy' to their McNugget BBQ sauce without changing the formula one bit.

For the health-conscious, there's a lot to be happy about as they are, as noted on the front of the bag, all natural, gluten free, and with no transfats, preservatives or cholesterol. The chips themselves are round, but with more broken pieces than Pop Chips. And for creatures made from potato flour, the taste is not bad but that may just be the BBQ flavor covering up any bad taste. Not a bad snack at all, and a step above the BBQ Pop Chips.

911 for McNuggets

Wow.



Hey, I love French fries, but they are no emergency, and they are certainly not a 911 emergency. What a nutjob…

But then again, it's nothing new...



Do people know that 911 is for emergencies only?

Fast Food Olympics

One of the more memorable things about the 2008 Beijing Olympics was the constant almost annoying McDonald's commercials for their recent Chick-Fil-A rip-off sandwich. Not very Olympic, but this Mickey D commercial from earlier in the summer is more fitting. Gotta love the McNuggets, almost as much as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon... and don't forget the fries!