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'fries' vs 'french fries'
While it's true "chips" is used more than "fries" in the UK, both are common enough. As well, "fries" often implies a smaller, thinner form of chip.
'Chips" is quite common in Canada too. Any Ottawa Valley folks out there will recognize the term "chip wagon."
Dear Adam,
Of course, the bombs in London were not used by people who emigrated in UK and were british. No, for sure...
I usually call them french fries, and occasionally just fries. Everyone in America knows what french fries are.
Guest Fri Nov 11, 2005 2:19 am GMT
AmE = BE Fries = Chips Chips = Crisps I call french fries "fried potato" or "potato-fry". And in Japan, potato chips always mean "crisps".
The only time I refer to those cooked potato products as "french fries" or "fries" is at fast food places such as McDonalds, Hungry Jacks. Otherwise, they are chips to me, regardless of size.
<< I call french fries "fried potato" or "potato-fry". And in Japan, potato chips always mean "crisps". >>
Yes, In Japanese: furaido poteto
Nasty confusingness occurs when you enter Australia, for here we use both the words "chips" and "fries", and never the word "crisps" (at least, most people don't, but there's always someone!).
So, you think, "Ahah!" (Pardon me, I've gone mad.) "The American Invasion-by-Stealth is succeeding, and those Australians are forgetting their British roots and adopting the American word for many a foodstuff!" Not so! We're only doing it to confuse poor Americans; confused brains are all the better for drop-bears to eat (and we're only happy when they're happy!). (If it confuses anyone else, this is bonus, but drop bears much prefer American brains, so the aim is confusion of Americans.) Hereabouts, we use "chips" for what Americans would call "chips" and Brits would call "crisps". But that's not all! We also use "chips" for what Americans would call "fries" and Brits would call "chips". Also, we use "chips" for what both Americans <em>and</em> Brits would call "chips" (like computer chips or wood chips). Lastly, the long very thin ones you get from McDonalds are called "fries"—I don't think I've ever said or heard an Australian say "french fries" before (in the context of ordering the things or discussing the items, rather than discussing the words). (When it becomes necessary to distinguish them, we don't suddenly adopt words like "crisps" and "fries", but instead, prefer "hot chips" for the AmE fries sense, and by contrast the other sort of chips are often called "cold chips" but have varying other one-off creations that everyone understands anyway. Of course, the very act of making the distinction always leads to a discussion of the fact that Aussies do this sort of thing differently from the rest of yas.) Chips are by far more common than fries; Maccas and Hungry Jacks (the local names for McDonalds and Burger King; the first informally, the second because of trade marks initially) as well as Diners with a fifties American theme are about the only place that sell fries. Everywhere else sells chips of varying quality (including KFC, whose chips are crap—something about chicken and chips always leads to the lowest-quality chips). So, in summary: AusE = BrE = AmE chips = chips = fries fries = chips* = fries chips = crisps = chips chips = chips = chips * or sometimes "fries" apparently; so quoth JJM above.
I normally call them "fries", but sometimes I call them "french fries". I've never called them "freedom fries", at least not with a straight face.
I like to call my fries shefrees put ice cream on them and suck the ice cream off. My cat eats them too with me.
chips=crisps
fries=chips french fries=freedom fries which is which ????????
Hey, whatever happened to Felix the Cassowary?
We also have steak fries (much thicker slices of potato, fried), curly fries (mmmmm!), waffle fries (thick slices of potatoes cut to look like little waffles, then fried), and some sort of crazy potato chip that you find only at fairs, where they make a continuous spiral thin slice from an entire potato and frie it up as a whole piece (enough salt and grease is involved to stop your heart right at the fair).
Here, anywhere you go that isn't MacDonalds or BurgerKing you would call them Chips, even if they look like MacDonalds Fries. But in pubs, you would order Spiral Fries, not Curley Fries. Potato Waffles not Waffle Fries.
Ive never seen the fabled continuous Spiral Frie/Fry. Damian should get involved with this, the Scots know alot about fried foods. |