Jack in the Box Curly Fries Review: Curls for the Season-ing

With a score of 6.2 on their regular fries, Jack in the Box impressed us with a solid set of potato sticks. So we were super excited to return to check out their curly version. Now here at TheFriesBlog, we are no strangers to curly fries (we recently reviewed Arby's curly fries). From the pictures, these definitely looked like proper curly fries, seasoned to an orange hue, and a bumpy texture with batter. So how to these fries stack up? Here is our review of Jack in the Box's curly fries.

Jack in the Box in San Carlos, CA.

Texture (8/10)

The curly fries had a clear crisp and a meaningful crunch, and we saw that there was a batter coating, which resulted in little bumps of joyful crisps that covered every single fry. Theses were a nice golden-orange color from the seasoning, and you could feel every layer of batter, sking, and the potato innards as you munched through. Because they were curly and coiled, the crisp was exemplified as you bit through more of the skin per bite. We think this texture was even better than the original fries, let alone being one of the best in the industry.

The orange batter texture is consistent. The innards are on the lighter side, but definitely not flimsy.

Flavor (8/10)

We are happy to say that instead of just a regular pinch of salt, Jack In The Box took it a huge step further by adding a flavorful seasoning on top. This seasoning was quite magical, adding a tiny bit of sweetness and even an ever so gentle spicy kick at the end. We thought the balance between the salt, the seasoning, batter, and potato was near perfect. Depending on your tastebuds, the amount of salt may be slightly bland, but it absolutely makes you reach for another handful of fries before you even finish your first. All of this, without the need of ketchup! And yes, they are on the greasy side but it just makes the taste profile deeper in our opinion.

Shape (3/10)

The shape is where these curly fries started to disappoint us. The fries were broken and many coiled up bundles fell apart when we pulled them out of the paper bag. While on the menu, the fries looked perfectly curled and springy, the fries we received were a bit floppy and quite small as the biggest fries were only about 3 inches long. We think that the fries were broken from longer strands because they were not thick enough. Essentially, you have a bag full of semi-circle potato curls that somewhat look like shrimps. This was pretty disappointing, especially because the texture and flavor were top notch.

The fries are all short and look even smaller curled. Oh, look at those regular fries that were mixed in by accident.

Presentation (2/10)

Like their regular fries, Jack in the Box does not put too much effort in their presentation. The fries were placed in a carton and just dumped into the brown paper bag. We appreciate them filling it to the brim of the carton but that just results in half the fries spilling out to the bag. Given curly fries are somewhat all entangled, a lot of fries fell out of the carton, which made the overall presentation look even worse. Since we weren't going to pick up all the individual fries from the bottom of the bag, the only way to consume was to tear open the brown bag. We are extremely surprised and disappointed that the fries were treated with this type of care. Why create great fries yet just dump it in a bag without care?

The carton of curly fries are just dumped into a deep brown bag. Almost half the fries are spilled out to the bag. The only way to eat this is to tear open the brown bag.

Also, the carton design almost resembled a popcorn container. There is nothing wrong with this, but it falls short in two dimensions. Having no U-shaped cutout in the front does not show off the fries well. Also the short "headrest" makes it difficult to grab the carton out of the brown bag as there's nothing to hold. We think simple thoughtfulness can definitely improve the presentation.

We like the playful messages, on brand to the fast food chain.

Experience (5/10)

The food came out pretty fast, but other than that, the experience was average, fitting of a standard fast-food chain. There was nothing that really stood out to us, and the fries went okay with the burgers and sandwiches. At $4.29 for the large carton, we think the price is fair. However, one interesting note is how there were a few regular fries mixed in the batch. We understand that perhaps both the curly and regular versions are prepare in the same fryer. But this just feels a bit unprofessional.

We just don't think there was care put into preparing these fries, especially with the regular fries in the mix.

Texture	8
Flavor	8
Shape	3
Presentation	2
Experience	5
Overall	5.2 / 10

Conclusion

Though the taste and texture were great, all the other categories didn’t quite meet the bar. With broken curls of potatoes, and even the wrong type of fries, we were disappointed because this would have had the potential to be one of our top fries. The regular fries were a solid all rounder but its the curly sibling was a half-step down. We believe that if Jack in the Box just cared a bit more in preparing and presenting these fries, it could receive a lot of laurels. Pro tip: when you are at a Jack in the Box, we recommend that you get the “Halfsies” fries, which is a mix of the regular and curly fries so that you can taste them both!

Jack in the Box has a diverse set of menu items. We're impressed on how the kitchen keeps up with the numerous items yet prepares it fast.