Restaurant: Cruisers Grill
Location: Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
Dish: Cheddar Fries, with bacon
If you ever go to Jax Beach, go to Cruisers. Get the cheddar fries.
Cruisers has long been a favorite of mine. I had my first date with my high school boyfriend there, have spent many days on the patio hazy from the summer sun sipping on sweet tea and eating marinated chicken chunks, and have a standing date with my TWO of my best friends whenever I come in town – we don’t even have to name which restaurant we are going to; it’s a given.
Cruisers is well known for many things, but I am partial to the combination of cheddar fries and marinated chicken chunks. There is quite frankly, nothing that compares. It’s worth the 5lbs I likely gain by the time I walk out the door.
What makes these cheddar fries so good? Well, for one thing the name is accurate — these are more than cheese fries, they are coated in cheddar goodness that oozes over the fries, sticking to the tinfoil lining the bowl and coating every fry with its deliciousness. I literally pick the cheese off the tin foil, not wasting any morsel of the gooey beauty that is these fries. But what makes them more special than any other “cheddar fries”? The fries themselves! They are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, covered in a heavy dose of salt and pepper that, combined with the cheddar, makes this dish ridiculously flavorful. I am always astounded that the fries can keep their integrity, even under the crushing weight of the pounds of orange goodness that covers them.
