Update 9/30/21: It appears Jack in the Box’s Potato Wedges have been taken off the menu. Such a sad day.
Late to the Party posts are about products or brands that have been around for a long time, but I’ve only experienced recently for the first time.
I think Jack in the Box’s fries are mediocre.
But I can’t help but think they’re supposed to be that way. I don’t want to start any fast food conspiracies, like Grimace is actually an extremely expired ketchup packet, but perhaps they’re average because Jack really wants us to order the better tasting, and slightly more expensive, curly fries.
Look, I’m suggesting that without even knowing the curly fries’ profit margins. And I might be boring you with talk of profit margins. So let me get straight to the point. There is a fried potato product on Jack in the Box’s menu that I believe is superior tasting to its regular AND curly fries AND is cheaper — Potato Wedges.
Jack has had these on his menu FOR YEARS, so I’m super late to the party. It wasn’t until last year, when I started mobile ordering from the Jack in the Box app that I learned I could swap the standard fries with potato wedges, and do so without an upcharge like there is with curly fries. I haven’t had Jack’s regular fries since.
When I first tried them, I was blown away by how much better tasting they were. The coating has a light seasoning that’s good enough that I don’t need to dip them into anything if I forget to ask for ketchup packets. It also gives the finger food a pleasant crispiness that doesn’t get limp during the trip home.
But I think what I’ve been impressed by is how crispy the exterior and fluffy the interior has been every time I’ve purchased them. Although, there was that one time, and I don’t know if this is a bonus or not, or something that happens regularly or not, they tasted like Jack in the Box tacos.
I assume the potato wedges’ freshness is the result of being fried when ordered and not produced in large batches that sit like the French and curly fries.
Unfortunately, while the wedges are cheaper than French fries if you order them a la carte, they don’t lower the cost of a combo meal if you swap them in.
To some of you, the greatness of Jack in the Box’s Potato Wedges may not be a revelation. But now I know about them, and it makes me sad that I could’ve been eating these wonderful potato wedges all this time instead of Jack’s inferior fries.