Burgers on the Side: The Boise Fry Co. Story

“I was in a restaurant in Washington, D.C. and was frustrated because the type of french fry I wanted wasn’t on the menu,” Blake recalls. “I remember being in Belgium and going to places that just served fries and being able to choose from different types of fries and sauces.”

“Fries with burgers on the side.” It’s a clever little marketing tag that begs a larger question: why would anyone create a restaurant concept that makes a leading man out of America’s favorite culinary sidekick, the humble french fry? For Blake Lingle, co-founder of Boise Fry Co., the answer is simple. He just wanted a great fry.

“I was in a restaurant in Washington, D.C. and was frustrated because the type of french fry I wanted wasn’t on the menu,” Blake recalls. “I remember being in Belgium and going to places that just served fries and being able to choose from different types of fries and sauces.”

For a guy born in the heart of Idaho potato country (Burley, Idaho), it seemed a shame to Blake that with all the choices of burgers one could find, there were so few choices in America’s ubiquitous side dish. Coupled with a growing fascination for the hospitality industry, he returned to the Gem State from years of school and career spent elsewhere, and decided to pursue his vision of a new kind of casual dining experience centered around the beloved french fry.

While Blake freely admits that Boise Fry Co. is a “slight spin on a classic burger joint”, there are a number of attributes that set it apart from your average fast food restaurant – starting, most obviously, with the french fries. At Boise Fry Co., the fries are cut fresh daily, and the majority come from potatoes that are organically grown.

The person Blake most wanted to pitch his restaurant concept to was a guy who was more than a little familiar with the culinary industry. Riley Huddleston had received his culinary training at the prestigious New England Culinary School, then went on to gigs that included working as a chef at the famous Gramercy Tavern in New York City, pastry chef at a hotel in Seattle, and stints as head chef at Mortimer’s and Café de Paris in Boise.

With Riley’s chops, you might think that opening a “burger joint” would be come down, but Blake’s pitch fell on receptive ears. Riley’s culinary experience had taught him that while every community has its fine dining staples, fine dining concepts could have a limited shelf life. “We wanted something that would be casual but different, and ultimately more ‘franchisable’,” says Blake.

While Blake freely admits that Boise Fry Co. is a “slight spin on a classic burger joint”, there are a number of attributes that set it apart from your average fast food restaurant – starting, most obviously, with the french fries. At Boise Fry Co., the fries are cut fresh daily, and the majority come from potatoes that are organically grown. “We don’t use frozen fries, although they’re a much more consistent product to deal with,” notes Blake. “Using fresh cut potatoes poses more of a challenge, and we had to develop some unique ways of preparing them.”

Despite its tongue-in-cheek description of “burgers on the side”, Boise Fry Co. takes just as much care with burger side of its menu board as it does with the fry side. The restaurant’s bison burger is a good example.

To begin with, Boise Fry Co. uses the Belgium technique of “twice frying” their potatoes. A more innovative example of Boise Fry Co.’s cooking methods are its yam fries. Like most pre-packaged fries, yam fries typically have a coating of preservative that keeps them firm when cooked and retains heat longer. “We’ve found a way to cook the yams without any preservatives at all,” Blake discloses. “We think it may be unique to us.”

With anywhere from 10 to 12 french fry selections based on type of potato and fry cut, ones first encounter with the Boise Fry Co. menu board can be a bit overwhelming. “The first time someone comes in, we like to walk them through the menu and explain the different types of potatoes and styles we’re featuring that day,” says Blake. “After that first experience, it’s a lot less daunting.” From the fry selection, customers move on to their of burgers (bison, beef, and vegan) and daily specials. From there, it’s on to the seasoning station, where they can customize their fries with a variety of house made sauces and seasonings.

Despite its tongue-in-cheek description of “burgers on the side”, Boise Fry Co. takes just as much care with burger side of its menu board as it does with the fry side. The restaurant’s bison burger is a good example. “Bison is healthy, lean, and tasty,” Blake notes. “Our bison is grass fed and comes from organic sources. We know the people who raise it, and how it is raised.” Boise Fry Co. burgers are served on a custom bun with caramelized onions, fresh tomatoes and lettuce, and a garlic aioli sauce. “We could cut a lot of corners to get a cheaper burger, but there is a high cost to cheap food,” says Blake. “We wanted something that wouldn’t cause the degradation of your gut, the environment…or your wallet.”

A larger goal of the Boise Fry Co. is to achieve a 100 percent organic menu from local producers, and the restaurant is well on its way toward that end. In the meantime, in a culinary landscape dotted with plenty of burger concepts, it’s nice to know that there’s a little place on Broadway and Main that, in the course of renewing our love affair with America’s favorite side dish, is also treating the beloved hamburger as anything but an afterthought.

So, just how serious is Boise Fry Company about their mission?  This quote from their website leaves no doubt as to their seriousness: Because for too long restaurants have persecuted fries, treated them like second-class citizens, stuffed them with preservatives and MSG, and forced them to share fryers with drumsticks and jalapeño poppers. And why? Have not these beautiful, slender pieces of fried potato graciously accompanied entrées without condition or prejudice? Have not fries comforted, satiated, and delighted us? Are fries not entrée worthy? These are the questions that we have asked. And these are our answers: fries should be cooked with natural and healthy peanut oil, fries should not share fryers with other foods, and fries are indeed entrée worthy.

Boise Fry Company is located at 111 Broadway Avenue in Boise.  For more information, call (208) 495-3858 or click here to visit their website.