From Curly Fries to Cheese Curds: 10 Fast Food Sides, Ranked
Sometimes, the side dish is the real reason you visit a fast-food restaurant. You might crave a burger or chicken sandwich, but crispy fries, cheesy potatoes, or buttery bread complete the meal. Some sides have become so recognizable that customers immediately associate them with a particular chain. Across America, fast food restaurants have turned simple sides into menu favorites with their own identities. Some stand out for their unique preparation, while others have stayed on menus for decades.
So, which ones deserve the highest spots? We’ve ranked ten memorable fast-food sides based on their flavor, texture, originality, history, and connection to their restaurants. This is an editorial ranking, not a nationwide taste test.
Chick-fil-A Mac and Cheese
Chick-fil-A may be famous for chicken sandwiches and waffle fries, but its Mac & Cheese has earned a place among the chain’s standout sides. Introduced nationwide in August 2019, the dish features a cheese blend that includes Parmesan, cheddar, and Romano. The restaurant bakes it to create a lightly crispy cheese layer on top.
That golden topping sets it apart from ordinary fast food macaroni and adds texture to the creamy pasta underneath. It takes tenth place because its history is relatively short compared with some longtime favorites, but its distinctive preparation makes it worth considering.
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Wendy’s Baked Potato
Most fast food restaurants offer fries alongside their burgers, but Wendy’s gives customers another option: a baked potato. The chain introduced baked potatoes in October 1983, making them a long-standing side. Customers can order a plain version or add toppings like cheese, bacon, chili, or sour cream and chives.
What makes this side memorable is how different it feels from the usual fried potatoes. It’s simple, filling, and easy to customize. While it lacks the distinctive seasoning of some higher-ranked contenders, its longevity and unusual place on a fast-food menu earn it ninth place.
SONIC Drive In Tots
French fries might dominate fast-food menus, but SONIC has made a strong case for another potato favorite: tots. These small, golden-brown potato bites are fried and lightly salted, creating a crisp outside that contrasts with the softer potato inside. They’re easy to share, convenient to dip, and offer something different from conventional fries. Their compact shape also makes them a great snack between burger bites.
SONIC’s association with tots extends beyond its restaurants. In 2023, the company announced that branded frozen tots would be available in grocery stores. Their recognizable shape and longstanding connection to the drive-in experience make them a deserving eighth-place choice.
Raising Cane’s Texas Toast
At Raising Cane’s, chicken fingers are the main attraction, but Texas toast is no afterthought. The thick bread accompanies the chain’s chicken finger combinations and is also available separately. Its appeal comes from a buttery, toasted exterior paired with a soft, fluffy center.
Food reviewers have highlighted its buttery, garlicky character and the contrast between the crisp surface and the tender bread underneath. Unlike fries, Texas toast brings a different texture to the meal. It also works particularly well with the chain’s signature Cane’s Sauce. For a restaurant with a relatively focused menu, this simple bread side has developed a memorable identity.
Shake Shack Crinkle Cut Fries
Shake Shack’s crinkle cut fries prove that even a potato’s shape can become part of a restaurant’s identity. The fries feature thick ridges that create a distinctive appearance and plenty of surface area for sauces. Their golden exterior and soft potato center make them a familiar companion to the chain’s burgers.
Interestingly, Shake Shack experimented with replacing its crinkle cut fries with fresh-cut versions. The restaurant eventually reversed that decision and returned to crinkle-cut fries in October 2014. That history helps explain why they deserve a place on this list. They aren’t simply another serving of fries. Their recognizable shape has become closely connected to the Shake Shack experience.
Popeyes Red Beans and Rice
Not every memorable fast food side comes out of a fryer. Popeyes’ Red Beans & Rice offers something different from the usual potatoes and bread. The dish combines smooth red beans with seasoned rice, giving customers a spoonable side that fits the chain’s Louisiana-inspired menu.
Food critics have given it mixed reviews. Some praise its distinctive character, while others prefer the chain’s more familiar fried sides. Still, that individuality is precisely why it deserves recognition. While many restaurants compete with their versions of fries, Popeyes offers a side connected to a recognizable regional food tradition. That distinction earns it fifth place.
Chick-fil-A Waffle Potato Fries
Few fast-food sides are as easy to recognize as Chick-fil-A’s Waffle Potato Fries. Introduced in 1985, these fries use a crisscrossed potato cut that creates a distinctive waffle shape. They’re cooked in canola oil and finished with sea salt. Their broad surfaces make them particularly suitable for dipping into Chick-fil-A Sauce, ketchup, or other condiments.
The crisp edges and soft center create an appealing contrast, while their unusual shape sets them apart from ordinary fries. Their history, appearance, and strong connection to Chick-fil-A put them comfortably in fourth place.
Culver’s Wisconsin Cheese Curds
For something beyond potatoes, Culver’s Wisconsin Cheese Curds deserve serious consideration. Introduced in 1997, these bite sized pieces feature unaged yellow and white Wisconsin cheddar coated in a golden, fried crust. Culver’s sources the cheese from La Grander Hillside Dairy in Stanley, Wisconsin, giving the dish a particularly strong connection to the state where the restaurant chain began.
The appeal comes from the contrast between the crispy coating and warm cheese inside. While breading preferences vary, the combination remains distinctive among fast-food sides. Culver’s connection to Wisconsin cheese making traditions and the dish’s recognizable preparation make it our third place pick.
Arby’s Curly Fries
Arby’s Curly Fries have something most fast food fries lack: an instantly recognizable personality. Introduced in 1988, these seasoned potatoes come in twists and spirals rather than traditional straight pieces. Their shape creates an interesting way to eat them. Some pieces are tightly curled and crispy, while others are larger, offering more soft potato beneath the seasoned exterior.
The peppery seasoning sets them apart from regular salted fries. Arby’s didn’t invent curly fries, but the chain has developed a strong association with them. Their memorable look, seasoning, and decades long menu history earn them the second spot.
McDonald’s World Famous Fries
When it comes to classic fast-food sides, McDonald’s World Famous Fries take our top spot. According to the company’s official history, fries joined the menu in 1949, replacing potato chips. That gives them a history stretching back more than seven decades. McDonald’s uses potato varieties including Russet Burbank and Shepody. Suppliers peel, cut, blanch, partially fry, and freeze the potatoes before restaurants finish cooking them.
The result is a thin, golden fry with a crisp exterior and a softer potato center. Some independent taste tests have preferred competitors, so this isn’t a claim that McDonald’s wins every flavor comparison. However, its lengthy history, recognizable appearance, and strong brand identity make it our overall winner.
