french fry fan

Time: December 5th around 2:30pm

What a better way to spend a brisk Seattle afternoon then at Pike Place? My wife and I were headed towards Post Alley when we decided to have brunch at Cafe Campagne because I vaguely remember having pommes frites there way back when. Being a french fry fan, that was the deciding factor.

Once seated, I ordered the Oeufs en meurette – uhh say again? (Two poached eggs served on garlic croutons with pearl onions, bacon and champignons in a red wine and foie gras sauce served with pommes frites) and a freshly squeezed OJ. That aside, on to the main event.

The skin-on pommes frites came in a nice little basket wrapped in a starched cloth napkin accompanied by ketchup and an aoli sauce. The first thing I noticed was that the fries were dry… but in a good way. It was as if someone in the back actually hand dabbed them with a paper napkin to remove any excess oil. That would have been clutch if only they weren’t overcooked. It tasted like they might have been sitting in the peanut oil for a little too long which unfortunately gave it a little bit of a burnt taste. So sad.

The texture of the fries were reminiscent of In-N-Out as they were firm through and through but not overly crispy. It didn’t taste as if any salt was added to them which complimented my already salty crouton dish, but If I were to get these fries ala carte (around $5) I probably would have made it rain.

With salt added the fries were good naked, but, If you’re into sauces, the ketchup and aioli were presented in nice little dishes which made it all the more inviting to dip. The ketchup had a bit of a zing that told me it wasn’t Heinz, and the aioli didn’t overbear the fries. My wife swears she tasted Truffle oil, which if true, would be luxurious indeed. The salt and sauces masked the burnt taste for a while but since the fries were not extremely hot to begin with, they got cold too soon killing my desire to go back for more by the middle of the meal.

After picking off the first “presentation” layer of potatoes, I noticed there were a ton of broken pieces (shorter than normal, bits) at the bottom–combine that with the burnt taste and the potato skins and you might as well be eating fried ashes. Luckily there was enough to fill the void of hunger but not enough to make me want to finish every last fry in the basket.

FFF RATING (out of 5):
For Show: 3.5 (above average presentation)
Firmness: 3.5 (not super crispy, and not super soggy)
Fluffiness: 3.5 (the “fry meat” was definitely in each bite, except the broken pieces)
Freshness: 2 (the “natural cut” skin-on was nice, but it was on the colder side when served)
Flavor: 2.5 (the sauces and salt could only mask the burnt taste for so long)
Filling: 3 (pretty good amount of fries for a side)
Friendliness: 3.5 (Service was great, a little on the slow side)

French Fry Fan Rating: 3.0 – Meh.

Blame it on a busy Seattle Saturday, or just the luck of the draw. Would I come here again? Sure. But I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to come here for a fry fix.

See the review on yelp.com