I have been spotted by friends leaving McDonald's, brown paper bag in hand. They express astonishment that I would eat there, implying that such fast food should be beneath the notice of this magazine's food and wine editor.
I'm not embarrassed to admit that I like some "Maccas'" food (although not the burgers) and occasionally make a meal out of one of three combos: the McWings and fries, McFlurry and fries, or apple pie and fries.
You'll notice the constant - the fries. But who doesn't like fried potatoes, whether they're called French fries, chips, pommes frites or papitas fritas? And in the absence of the delicious duck-fat fries I ate at La Tupina, in Bordeaux, France, and the pommes frites served with the burgers and steak tartare at Le Salon de Thé de Joel Robuchon, I'm happy to eat the versions made at certain fast-food joints.
Some people like fat chips (although I'm not one of them); others prefer them at the other extreme, the so-called shoestring potatoes. Whatever your preference, I'm sure you'll agree they should be hot out of the fryer: when cold, they become soggy, heavy and lose their crispness. Eating them that way is a waste of stomach space. The only way to reheat them is by frying them again - please, don't even try to microwave or bake them.