The Official French Fries Pages
Contest Winners
March, 1999
The question for the March, 1999, contest was:
Tell us your best experience involving French Fries.
Again the answers trickled in. And again it was easy to rule out a few entries, like those from Dorothy K. of New York, who needs to fix her CAPS LOCK key and told us "WE LIKE FRENCH FRIES WHEN WE MEET." Joe P. of Austin, Texas, Kelly B. of Waterloo, Ontario and Ziad S. of Springfield, NJ (among others) all simply told us they love french fries and love ketchup . While we agree that eating French Fries in itself can be quite an experience, we were really hoping for a little more.
Some people still don't read the full page or its rules and disclaimers. Some people like LDJ of Washington, D.C., who swrote in telling us, "I want to try your ketchup.!" It ain't ourketchup. It's provided by Mr. Labbe of Califrance Foods. It's great stuff. We only get a limited amount to give away each month and if you want to get it for free, you'll have to put in a little effort. Alternatively you could call Califrance and place an order.
Larry, of Raleigh, NC, told us a lovely little tale complete with double entendre and old joke at the end. That was only one of the many things in the submission that killed it. There was the blood, the spelling and the unnecessary use of the word "quivering." Sorry Larry.
What people won't do to try and sneak in an advertisement! WSW of Cambridge, MA tried to get the name of a particular brand of cooking pots in (or maybe WSW bought a friteuse from this particular company). Unfortunately, the submission was a whole sentence and wasn't terribly descriptive. The makers of cookware and appliances will get an awful lot of mention and attention if they simply submit their products for review (or alternatively send us some money and a banner graphic). Of course, we'd like to keep any products sent for our Museum of French Fries, which we hope to open one day (if we can get the funding), but we'er willing to return items if shipping is pre-paid.
We can't give an honourable mention to Kim H. of Fremont, CA, because there's no need to fight with an 8-year-old over French Fries. And we can tell you from experience that it's no good getting a large order and splitting it up. Little kids are rather posessive and have to have "their own" everything.
Nathan R: of Kitchener, Ontario, submitted the same entry twice. He really likes French Fries.
Here now are the winners of the March Contest:
I do believe that my best french fry experience was international. Not that you have to go around the world to find a good potato, I love Prince Edward Island for that. However, I was in France and was not about to pay for a shipment of Canadian potatos just to happily consume them. I am the epitome of a starving student. Anyhow, a few of my friends and I decided to get a drink whilst were wondering around the !beach! which is actually rocks next to water. We decided to enter a small diner just up the street. Beer was the same price as Cola, so we all ordered German beer and sat down at a nearby table. Carolynn worked extra-hard to get this entry in -- our server wasn't working properly the day she tried to submit this. Carolyn also thought our special question was assinine. So what do you call a 50-page Web site about French Fries? Congratulations, droog.
First prize goes to Carolynn Jaye of Kingston, Ontario
There was a girl sitting alone at another table, and she seemed the shy quiet type at the time, so I decided not to bother her. Next thing I know I smell the fries. They came out, not too greasy, smelling heavenly, and looking fresh, so I asked her if I could "steal" one off of her plate. All I ever found out about her was that her name was Jenny. I do believe she lives somewhere in the States. Well, I ended up following her home. She played the guitar, I sang. She took me to an outlook at the top of a small mountain and I meditated for the first time under her guidance. It was truly an amazing experiance. I asked her how she ended up there all alone and she stated that her friends had gone swimming before she did, and they dried off faster. As a result she stayed on the beach and decided to grab some lunch.
I am so thankful for those delicious-smelling fries. Without them, I would have never met Jenny, and would have never found someone so confident and happy being herself that she inspired me to do the same. It is truly a wonderful thing, the french fry. It brings people together who would have never met otherwise. I am glad I have a certain
fry fetish, and since I met her that way, I've never thought twice about "stealing" a fry from a random person. Maybe one day I too will be the Jenny in someone else's life.
Runners up: (so there are four, not three. We couldn't help ourselves. Again.)
Karianne Bottenvik of Frosta, Norway (Roasted Pepper Ketchup)
I was sitting by myself in the local McDonald's here, and suddenly a very good looking guy came to my table, looked at me and then said, !Where have you been all my life? Can I sit down?! I was blushing. No one had ever said something like that to me before and I was charmed. His name was Peter and he was 3 years older than me. We ate French Fries and really got to know each other very well. Before the night had ended, I was seriously in love, and he told me later that he was, too. He walked me home, and gave me my first kiss. It was more romantic than I had ever imagined it to be. We got together and now, after 4 years, we have decided to marry. We love each other very much. And every time we think about how we met, we always make ourselves a large plate of French Fries. Because where would we be today if I hadn`t be hungry that time 4 years ago...
We were touched by this letter. It made one judge very hungry for French Fries, but then another judge wondered if the first judge wasn't just trying out the technique in this story which would be a Bad Thing so the first judge stayed hungry.
VTimothy Hodges of Oakton, Virginia (Cranberry Ketchup)
There's this place around here called Red Robin. It's a burger place, but part of it is that instead of unlimited drinks, they have unlimited French Fries! So I go there whenever I can, of course. So one time I decided to stay there as long as I could. I spent over three hours, and had more than twelve baskets full of the most crispy, delicious fries I've ever had before I was informed that I would 'Have to leave, sir.'
Now THAT sounds like our kind of restaurant! Is there some sort of catch? Is it only on certain days?
Joe Opitz of Monterey, California (Roasted Garlic Ketchup)
Some of my fondest memories of childhood, growing up in Baltimore, Md., were taking vacations every summer to Ocean City, Md. There is a spot near the end of the Boardwalk (whose name I won't mention so that you don't think I'm being paid large sums of cash to give a plug) where you can get some of the most delicious French Fries. People line up for an hour or more just to get them. I am now married to a Brazilian woman and we live on the West Coast. I've yet to find anything comparable out here and I've spent hours and hours trying to explain to my beloved what it is about French Fries from this spot in Md. that make a person stand in 90-degree weather for an hour just to taste. Unable to convey this satisfactorily, I've decided I'm going to open my own place, make my own fries, challenge the OFFP to rate them, get rich selling them and retire in luxury with my georgous wife. Please understand I've got to win this contest so I can put it in my business plan, get the loan, open the business, and bribe.., er, persuade the OFFP to come out here to rate the fries, etc. and live happily ever after (oh, and all expenses paid since I went over the word count limit) It all starts with you!
French Fries Have inspired another entrepreneur! Suzanne Levinson used our site to write her business plan when she opened Belgian Fries in New York City's East Village. We'll be happy to come out there and test your French Fries. And how can we refuse "all expenses paid"? (We can't.) We'll be waiting for that invite.
Dale Bruckelmyer of Duluth, Minnesota (Roasted Garlic Ketchup)
I was overweight and went on a special diet that did not include French Fries (if you can imagine such a thing!). After about a month on this diet I mentioned to my wife that it wasn't too bad except that I craved French Fries! I even had a dream that I was sitting in a restaurant and the table all around my plate was piled with golden brown fries! I could even smell the delicious aroma of them but I kept reminding myself about my diet and didn't eat even one! I woke up with more of a craving than ever and decided then and there that life was too short to deprive myself of something that I really enjoy. I stayed on the diet but fries became part of it and I still lost the weight I wanted to lose!
Congratulations Dale! The French Fries Diet! We may have to interview you and cowrite a new book, do the talk show circuit and maybe a half-hour commercial for late-night cable TV and get rich.
Honourable mentions (but unfortunately no ketchup) go to: Kate Walker of Jacksonville, FL and Lisa of Newcastle, DE, who told us a story about a little dog that was injured and got better but was forever afterwards afraid of French Fries.
We want to thank everyone who submitted an entry (even the ones we teased). It's not much of a contest if there aren't any entries, and this was at least as amusing for us as it was for you. Feel free to enter future contests.
By the way, everybody who entered got the Germany question right (or checked the box that said Not Applicable). We were pleased to see that people take such interest in foreign affairs.
he Official French Fries Pages states for the record that we are solely responsible for this silly contest and probably deserve any problems we have as a result. Unless you mean "probably deserve" in a strictly legal sense, in which case we plead Not Guilty of whatever the charge is and plan to use ignorance and anything else we can come up with as our mitigation. Actually, we only thought of this disclaimer at the last minute and even then had to write it without the luxury of a boilerplate or legal counsel.The maker of the ketchup, Califrance, is only involved in this contest inasmuch as it is providing the prizes and paying for the shipping. It has no authority or control of the contest nor of the content of any pages on this Web site. None. It's our site. And in case you're wondering, no, we didn't "kiss up" to them by writing a great review just to get free ketchup.
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