Sonic Fries Review: Fast and Groovy

Sonic, unlike most fast-food restaurants, has no dine-in option. It is purely a drive-in, which makes for a faster pick-up. It seems you can eat in your car and there are some outdoor seats for those that need some fresh air. With over 3,500 locations across 47 states, Sonic should not be hard to find. It was interesting to learn that Sonic serves crinkle fries, named Groovy Fries. We also know that great crinkle fries are difficult to come by. So we were excited to drive out to a Sonic. Now, we all like fast service, but even if the food comes out in Sonic the Hedgehog speed, we do want to see quality as well. How groovy are the potatoes at "America's Drive-in"?

The drive-in bays surround the restaurant building. We appreciated the fact that it was roofed and shaded.

Each drive-in bay has its own ordering kiosk. Very convenient!

Texture (8/10)

We were genuinely impressed by the texture. The ridges of the crinkles are crispy throuhgout all the grooves and we have not seen any other restaurants deliver crinkle fries of this caliber. Even with any battered coating, Sonic as managed to create the crunch as well, thanks to the intense grooves. When you bite into the fries, you can feel that the ratio between a crunchy, crispy, golden-brown skin and the warm stuffing is perfect. Sonic Groovy Fries nears perfection in terms of texture.

We have never seen crinkle fries with texture of this caliber. We were blown away.

Flavor (7/10)

Sonic fries have great flavor, with the appropriate amount of oil that makes it not too dry, but not moist or soggy either. Though there could have been a bit more salt, the fries were still good. And as a drive-in, we were able to immediately enjoy the steaming fries straight out of the fryer as it was delivered promptly. Even without any dips, the core flavor - potato, oil and salt - on its own still tasted fabulous. We were all scratching our heads to determine if there was something more added, whether seasoning or other spices, but we concluded that it was just straight up basic fries. *Apparently, we were supposed to try the Groovy Sauce with the fries but we had no idea when we ordered.

Shape (8/10)

These fries are longer than the average fry. And knowing crinkle cut fries are more difficult than straight, kudos to Sonic for going for the higher bar. The ridges are stable and solid, and they don’t collapse or droop when you take a bite. Rather you can actually feel every single one of the ridges in its crispy state. The fries are decently thick, and very uniform. Obviously, these are not natural cut fries and but we don't think they were molded from potato puree. Either way, these are fabulously shaped fries.

These are great looking fries. Consistent thickness, and length.

Presentation (5/10)

There was nothing much special here. The fries came in a standard McDonald's style carton, which was packed in a brown paper bag. The carton was shaped almost as a cup, which we think was intentional as it llikely has to fit into cupholders in cars. Even with such pragmatism, we do not think that much effort in the presentation was given. Sonic could have used some more creativity here, perhaps leaning heavily into "eating in the car" and explicitly theming around it. The navy blue did make the golden brown fries pop out visually.

The carton feels a bit small as it is shaped in a cup. Sonic tried to vertically insert the sticks although it doesn't show well for the fries on the top.

Experience (6/10)

The Sonic experience was new to us, since we had never been to a drive-in only restaurant before. Ordering at the kiosk was seamless and the food was delivered promptly. It was a bit strange to just sit and wait in the car until the food arrived but we quickly got used to it. Our team munched through the fries straight away in the car but we don't think we would want to do that each and every time. Yes, this first experience was new and decent but we worry that the food will get cold by the time that you arrive home or whever you plan on eating. We strongly recommend that if you are heading to Sonic, being prepared to eat in the car.

Texture	8
Flavor	7
Shape	8
Presentation	5
Experience	6
Overall	6.8 / 10

Conclusion

Sonic's Groovy Fries definitely has all the key elements down to being one of the top fries with its crisp, crunch, flavor, and more. We honestly didn’t know what to expect when we were driving into the bay, but left really impressed. Crinkled fries are not easy to master as the increased surface area may be an opportunity for extra crispiness but also hold you back with structure. Sonic has managed to produce perhaps the best crinkled fries we have reviewed on this blog. We'll be back next time to try the Groovy Fries with the Groovy Sauce.

Sonic at Hayward, CA. The yellow logo was quite visible with a crisp blue sky as the backdrop.