"They better not eat them because they're covered in resin," says Mark Ramadan, co-founder of Sir Kensington's. This morning, he's surrounded by numerous variants of French fries from across New York City. Displayed in individual glass cases like exotic butterflies, singled out as lone fries, the specimens are highly tempting—particularly one plump pomme soufflé courtesy of 21 Club. But for all their crispy skins, sprinkled herbs, and golden-brown color, these fries are for edification, not eating.
Fries of New York, a new exhibit organized by Sir Kensington's, a Manhattan-based condiment company selling ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise, takes visitors through the dozens of fries offered by New York restaurants, as well as the various sauces, spices, and herbs that go with them. "We wanted to mimic the approach of a civic organizer, or a Victorian-era botanical garden," Scott Norton, the company's other co-founder, explains to Opening Ceremony. As we learn from a timeline on one of the walls, French fries first got their name around the turn-of-the-century, when similar World Fairs and traveling exhibitions were in vogue. The history of ketchup, meanwhile, dates back to ancient China when it was made of fish and spices (in Mandarin dialect, this was called "kôe-chiap").
Today, fried starch is so commonplace that, in 2000, 29 percent of the US potato crop was used to produce frozen fries. Which is why it's so fascinating to see them displayed like valuable art objects, with small cards describing their provenance and classifrycation (curly, waffle, tornado, shoestring, and ten other taxonomies Sir Kensington's developed expressly for this event). Of course, there are truly valuable objects on display, too. Like the whole Burgundy truffle loaned by Urbani Truffles (estimated worth $500). Or the out-of-print book, Warren Lehrer's illustrated play French Fries, also on loan (estimated worth $1000). "We're watching this closely," Mark jokes. "No French fry hands on this one."
Today, from 5 to 8 PM, there will indeed be real fries to snack on at Fries of New York, as part of the company's "FryDay" happy hour. And what happens to the ones preserved in resin after the exhibit closes? "We're giving them back to the restaurants," Scott reveals. "They don't know that yet."
Fries of New York is open Friday, November 7 and Saturday, November 8
Fries of New York
168 Bowery
New York, NY 10012
MAP
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A French fry on display at Fries of New York. Photos by Cynthia Chung
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Fries of New York, an exhibit organized by Manhattan-based condiment company Sir Kensington's, takes visitors through the dozens of fries offered by New York restaurants, as well as the various sauces, spices, and herbs that go with them.
![]()
The fries are displayed like valuable art objects, with small cards describing their provenance and classifrycation (curly, waffle
Fries of New York, a new exhibit organized by Sir Kensington's, a Manhattan-based condiment company selling ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise, takes visitors through the dozens of fries offered by New York restaurants, as well as the various sauces, spices, and herbs that go with them. "We wanted to mimic the approach of a civic organizer, or a Victorian-era botanical garden," Scott Norton, the company's other co-founder, explains to Opening Ceremony. As we learn from a timeline on one of the walls, French fries first got their name around the turn-of-the-century, when similar World Fairs and traveling exhibitions were in vogue. The history of ketchup, meanwhile, dates back to ancient China when it was made of fish and spices (in Mandarin dialect, this was called "kôe-chiap").
Today, fried starch is so commonplace that, in 2000, 29 percent of the US potato crop was used to produce frozen fries. Which is why it's so fascinating to see them displayed like valuable art objects, with small cards describing their provenance and classifrycation (curly, waffle, tornado, shoestring, and ten other taxonomies Sir Kensington's developed expressly for this event). Of course, there are truly valuable objects on display, too. Like the whole Burgundy truffle loaned by Urbani Truffles (estimated worth $500). Or the out-of-print book, Warren Lehrer's illustrated play French Fries, also on loan (estimated worth $1000). "We're watching this closely," Mark jokes. "No French fry hands on this one."
Today, from 5 to 8 PM, there will indeed be real fries to snack on at Fries of New York, as part of the company's "FryDay" happy hour. And what happens to the ones preserved in resin after the exhibit closes? "We're giving them back to the restaurants," Scott reveals. "They don't know that yet."
Fries of New York is open Friday, November 7 and Saturday, November 8
Fries of New York
168 Bowery
New York, NY 10012
MAP
A French fry on display at Fries of New York. Photos by Cynthia Chung
Fries of New York, an exhibit organized by Manhattan-based condiment company Sir Kensington's, takes visitors through the dozens of fries offered by New York restaurants, as well as the various sauces, spices, and herbs that go with them.
The fries are displayed like valuable art objects, with small cards describing their provenance and classifrycation (curly, waffle