“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.
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.”
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.
Click here to read the full-length article on Boise Fry Company that this profile is based on.
