Emily Gan Week 14 - French Fry Memories
Ever since I was little and had the taste of my first Happy Meal I have been hooked on fries. I would always beg my parents to get me some crispy golden goodness whenever we passed by any restaurant. My fixation naturally led my dad to reward me with fries whenever I did anything good or to distract me when waiting for my brother to finish practice or class. This furthered my want for them since fries became bound with positive events.
As I entered high school with my new-found freedom (at least more than elementary and middle school) whenever I would hang out with my friends I would always get fries whenever we went to get food, further lacing my memories with the nostalgic taste of french fries. Some of my favorite memories revolve around this treat, from studying at a boba shop with friends to going to support my friend at their volleyball game, I always weaseled my way into T4 (I refuse to call it Ain’t Common) to spend five bucks on the best food in the world.
One of my favorite french fry memories is when my dad took me to get fries in the middle of the night (it was like 9 PM but to a 7-year-old that's very late). Originally we were supposed to stay home but my mom went to take my brother to Calphin (yes at 9 PM, my brother was on that Asian kid extracurricular grind) But my dad wanted to take a walk and I was restless, waiting for my brother to come back, so my dad did the thing he did best when I did not want to do something, and offered to get me fries on the walk there. I remember being bundled up since it was early spring and slowly eating my fries one at a time (a trick my dad taught me so I could savor them longer). That day, although was 10 years ago, I still remember the feeling of my joy from such a simple and relatively cheap treat. My day always gets better with fries by my side (especially if they are free).
Rank your favorite fast food fries (I don't have a favorite, fries is fries, I love all fries equally)
I completely agree. I have considered this thought before, but I would like to argue that french fries are superior snacking foods than popcorn. Although I may get a lot of flak saying this, but why is popcorn even that popular? The leftover shells that stick to the popcorn are always stuck to my teeth. The theaters put too much butter and salt on them, and you can never have enough because they're so light and airy that you're eating nothing at all. They exploit that by selling popcorn for exorbitant prices for the nourishment that they provide. French fries, on the other hand, once patted down with something to get rid of the excess oil are much more nourishing, or at least make you feel full. They're cheaper and simpler to make, and they're in extremely convenient sizes to maximize the time you spend eating, because of the extra step required to dip. Popcorn, on the other hand, is small enough that you can shovel a large amount of it in the mouth and run out quicker. French fries are completely solid too, so you end up feeling fuller after eating them. And thus ends my dissertation on why french fries are the superior snacking food.
ReplyDeleteHey Emily! My favorite nostalgic food is Maggi (a type of Indian instant Noodle). I was staying at my friend's house, and got hungry in the middle of the night. So, my friend woke up at two in the morning to make me the delectable noodles. Now whenever I eat Maggi, I am reminded of our midnight rendezvous. Although fries are not my favorite food, I still believe In and Out and McDonalds have the best options. I recently went to India, and the McDonalds over there sells an item called "Peri Peri fries," which are fries that come with an extra bag and a packet of spices, with the process being to combine the fries with the flavoring and shake them together in the extra bag, creating a spicy and flavorful concoction. Overall, I loved reading your sweet personal stories, and really enhanced your writing, creating a much more compelling piece about associating food with memories. Your expierences truly show how happiness is found in the simplest of things!
ReplyDeleteHi Emily! Although I do not eat fries that often, one of my most favorite things to eat is Cotton Candy icecream from Baskin Robbins. I know that is oddly specific, but when I was younger me and my parents used to go get icecream together as a family every two weeks. I always used to get the cotton candy one because of its pink and blue beautiful colors. However, as I kept getting it every time we went, the flavor grew on me and I soon fell in love with the delectable taste. I still to this day love cotton candy icecream, infact I just ate it last weekend!
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