Boise Fry Company

111 Broadway Avenue
Boise, ID 83702
(208) 495-3858

Daily: 11am - 9pm



We arrived at this fry shop just a little before noon on a Sunday not knowing really what to expect. It was on the news quite a bit when this place first opened a year or so ago. It had to undergo a name change because of brand name issue, you'd be surprised how many variations of the word "Idaho" "Potato" or "Fry" cannot be used in the same title because it's already owned.

Anyhow, the instant we walked in we were met by a small walled counter that sectioned off the open fryer/kitchen from the dining area which was a bit small but somehow fit the vibe of the restaurant. There was a back door opened to more shaded outdoor area, that place had 2 or 3 tables.



The instant we arrived we were greeted by a helpful staff member who's first question was "Have you been here before?". A simple "no" got us the guided tour of their menu selection, which at first glance was a bit like being back in math class and trying to build a Venn diagram of fries.

The staff quickly explained how the menu works, the types of potatoes with the different cuts that are offered, the burgers, and his personal recommendations on types of seasoning and sauce to go with what type of fries. The staff recommendations can be found on the handy pictures of what the different types of potato looks like.



This establishment seem to be very conscious about where their product arrives from. Carefully marking the fact certain potatoes came from Idaho and others from California, which were organic, and their Bison meat was local.

ORDER: 1 small Red Lady - Curly, 1 small Sweet - Home Style, 1 regular bison burger, 1 beef and cheese, and 2 fountain sodas.
COST: $23

Everything was made after ordering. The burgers were made by hand, which is in keeping with the theme of the place. The buns of the burger were lightly toasted, and it wasn't that sesame bun that comes by the dozen, this was a nice roll kind. It came with lettuce, nice thick slices of tomato, red onion gastrique, and a garlic aioli.



Okay, so at the time I order my burger I didn't look real closely at what the toppings were so it was a surprise when I flipped the top bun over and saw this pink-ish stuff sitting right on top of the tomato. Label me puzzled, I quickly looked up to the menu board and through a process of elimination figured this was the "red onion gastrique" which prompted the question: what the heck is gastrique?

"Gastrique is a thick sauce produced by a reduction of vinegar or wine, sugar, and usually fruit. It is often served over meat or seafood to add a fruit flavor to the dish. It is made in its simplest form by caramelizing sugar and then adding vinegar." -Wikipedia

Of course, at the time I didn't have that definition but being that it's a regular item on their burgers it must be good right? So I decided not to pick it off, too much (I did remove some of it because it looked like there was a lot of it). It was really good! Just like how the process of how it is made describes it, it was sweet and tangy at the same time.

The fries arrived unsalted, that's because just to the right of the soda fountain there is a collection of seasoning that ranged from Smoked salt to rosemary to vanilla salt. And another collection of dips that had everything from Spicy fry sauce to garlic sauce to Blueberry fry sauce.



Our Sweet fry was recommended by the staff to be seasoned with vanilla salt, they knew what they were talkin' about. It gave the otherwise nice sweet potato fry an added depth that kicked it into really good. Our Red Lady was rather unimpressive, the curly cut was rather thin and made me feel like it was a burger topper rather than the main event. The recommendation board says to season it with Tomato Salt and dip it with garlic sauce. Hoping to help boost the rating of this order of fries I went in search of the seasonings. Alas, the poor tomato salt was MIA. I asked the staff and was informed that they regularly change out the seasoning and dips. No tomato salt today (bummer, I was really curious about the salt, maybe next time). However, the garlic sauce was present and off I went - dip dip dip. YUM! A creamy sauce with the hint of garlic after taste, the fry was salvaged!

So here's the thoughts on the sauces:
Garlic Sauce: thick 'n creamy, mild garlic taste that won't blow your senses, I like!
Blueberry Fry Sauce: the blueberry flavoring is strong and not unpleasant but somehow it didn't really go well with either the sweet nor savory fry in my opinion. Not bad, just out of place.
Chipotle: I really don't have an opinion on this one because I couldn't find a flavor on this, it had a ketchup consistency.
Spicy Fry Sauce: This had more than just your average ketchup and mayo, it was made spicy with something that tasted like Tabasco without making the sauce into a runny soup. I like!

There are many more sauces to try, but these 4 were the ones we chose for the day.

So by the end of the hour here's what we came up with:

The burgers - DELICIOUS! Love the fact that it wasn't the round frozen patties sold by the millions. The red onion was a delicious discovery.
The fries - Average, nothing that made it stand out extra ordinary. While the quantity was sufficient, the cuts of the fries were a little on the small side.
The spices/seasoning - FUN! Lets go back and try some more.

While the restaurant does offer high chairs for the younger crowd, it is highly doubtful that a stroller could be easily maneuvered so if you're going to bring the stroller, I'd recommend to try one of the two outdoor dining areas. The menu offerings were minimal but chosen with careful though.

My friend noticed and commented that it's great that they offer vegetarian burger, that still severely limits the choices to red meat or veggie. The lack of poultry or fish makes it puzzling. And where's the Kid's menu? Ordering a $6 burger for a toddler is a bit much, no?

Final thoughts: It's worth coming back for more, even though it's just a tad on the pricey side for burgers and fries.