Every night is frite night at European Republic
Are french fries my favorite food? Perhaps. Are friteries my favorite specialty food shop? Yes. My heart jumps when I see a sign for one. I will make special trips for them. So I was very, very excited when I heard European Republic was opening in Old City.
Paper cones of twice-fried belgian-style fries…. need I say more? Well then, how about this — they’re open late! They’re open until at least 10 every night of the week, and until 2 AM on Friday and Saturday nights.
They sell other stuff. I didn’t try any of it. I was there for one thing, and one thing only — a big heap of fries. And they did not disappoint. They put the fries in for their second fry when you order them, so you always get a hot, crispy batch. They had a good mix of the smaller, crispier bits, and the longer, more potato-y fries.
You get one dipping sauce with a regular, two with a large, and three with a triple. We tried the roasted garlic, european and peanut sauces, though we actually ended up with a large order, not a triple.
When you get 3 sauces, you want some flavor variety. Both the roasted garlic and european were mayonnaise-based, and they were very tasty (though fairly similar.) I really wanted to like the peanut sauce. Alas, I did not. It was too vinegary, and I was looking for a classic satay sauce. They have 20 flavors of dipping sauce, though, so get out there and find your own dream combination for lunch, dinner, or a late night snack!
European Republic
213 Chestnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 627-5500
