French Fry Diary 689: Famous Nathan

I like documentaries, so there's that, but folks that know me know the real reason I watched Famous Nathan, the bio-doc about Nathan Handwerker and his restaurant empire Nathan's Famous. Yeah, for the fries.

Regular readers know that I count Nathan's Famous Jumbo Crinkle Cut French Fries among the best fast food franchise fries, so of course I'd like some possible background on them. While Famous Nathan is a doc on Nathan Handwerker, you never know, there might be some insight on the fries.

The first thing on that front that caught my attention were the old pictures of the original Nathan's at Coney Island. The price I saw for fries (although the potato chips were more prevalent, at least in the old days) was five cents, which is cool, but I also noticed something else.

Nathan's had a lot of stuff for sale like malteds, different flavored sodas, hamburgers, potato chips, and roast beef. Look close, you'll even see fried sea food, barbeque, and chow mein. Clam chowder, frog's legs, shrimp - what couldn't you get at Nathan's?

The bio-doc goes on to reconstruct Nathan's journey to America, his rise in his chosen field, include interviews with family and friends, as well as feuds. Everyone in the doc is a larger than life character who plays a part in the world of famous Nathan and his empire on that corner in Coney Island. This is a delicious treat full of wonderful stories.

Fries aside, Famous Nathan, while failing in the best way as a biography because Nathan Handwerker was a hard man to get a handle on, the film is an amazing look at the American Jewish experience in the 20th century. The home movies may be of a specific famous family, but the tales are that of every family. This is America. Highly recommended.

French Fry Diary 465: Coney Island 2013

First off, this place is open, despite what FourSquare or Yelp may say, as of January 2013, Coney Island is most definitely open. Consider the sign from Clerks up in their window.

This time, I got the cheese fries, which is to say, the same great fries we got last time, but with a couple generous ladles of hot orange cheese on top. It's the kind of cheese that's perfect on a Philly cheesesteak. Very tasty.

I also got onion rings to see if they would be as good as the fries were last time (and this). I was not disappointed. They were made fresh, beer battered, and deep fried. They were very good hot, but as they cooled, not so much.

The hot dogs, and the price for a filling lunch, were still very good. I still have all high marks for Coney Island, I will definitely come back if it's possible.

French Fry Diary 445: Coney Island

On a recent road trip with The Bride, we stopped at Coney Island in Pottsville, PA. It was just one of those places that just call to you from the road. You know when you cruise through an unfamiliar small town, that this is the place you must stop and have lunch. Yeah, it's like that.

There was a giant sign both by the road and on the building itself proclaiming Coney Island outside but inside it was just all cozy little hometown diner. Just a few tables, a counter, and a TV up in the corner, and on the other side some more tables - maybe they were expanding. We sat in the cozy side. They also sold lots of local beers, and lottery tickets at another counter just a few feet away from us. Wow, I loved it.

We ordered at the counter and sat down, our food came out almost immediately. I got a great but simple hot dog, good snap and flavor. The Bride also got a dog and some deep-fried cheesy veggie things. The latter was the most expensive thing we got, and I don't think it cost more than two bucks.

You know I also got French fries, right? The fries were big thick natural regular cuts, battered in seasoning, and deep-fried. They were a little greasy, but with a good crunch to them. No complaints, an almost perfect fry - crisp shell, hot and soft and potato-ey inside. We both cleaned our plates like champs. Yeah, that good.

The best part? We got a pretty full meal, good portions, and it was crazy inexpensive. This place was an all ways winner. If you ever get out to Pottsville in the Poconos, definitely stop at The Coney Island. Recommended.

Coney Island Taters

Coney Island Taters
Makes 4 servings

Make quick work of this main dish by using one batch of frozen crumbled meat mixture, made with chopped onion, instead of preparing the ground beef and onion from scratch. You may need to heat frozen crumbles longer than the time cited in the recipe; heat until steamy hot throughout.

1 pound lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup prepared barbecue sauce
2 large all-purpose potatoes
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 cup sliced green onions (optional)

1. In large skillet, brown ground beef and onion over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking up into 3/4-inch crumbles. Pour off drippings. Stir barbecue sauce into beef; cover and simmer over medium-low heat 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile pierce potatoes in several places with fork. Place on paper towel in microwave oven. Microwave on HIGH 10 to 11 minutes or until tender, rearranging potatoes halfway. TIP: Some potatoes may become tender before this – start checking a few minutes before time is up.

3. Cut potatoes lengthwise into quarters. Cut each quarter crosswise in half. Arrange 4 pieces potato on each serving plate; top with beef mixture. Sprinkle with cheese; top with green onions, if desired.

Source: Recipe courtesy of National Cattlemen's Beef Association at beefitswhatfordinner.com