Tater Tots from Sonic Drive-In
Back to Sonic Drive-In, this time for Tater Tots. In the case of this review, just plain tots with some ketchup on the side. The fast food world has never accepted the tot as a substitute for french fries, but the frozen supermarket variety has remained popular. Tots make a fast-food comeback every few years, appearing as “new” or “limited time” items for various chains, but they still lack the popularity of french fries. Sonic is one place that’s offered tots thru-out the years, and they do a pretty good job.
My Sonic tots arrived quickly and they smelled great. The package was warm, with just a little bit of grease soaking thru. My first look inside revealed one particularly golden brown tot sitting on top. I picked it up for inspection. It looked good, and tasted good. Crispy on the outside, with soft potato inside, and I could feel tiny individual pieces of potato in my mouth. The next one was not quite as brown or crispy, but still tasty.
As I worked my way thru the order, I was pleased with the crunchy potato nuggets, and the seasoning and salt was perfect. They held up to ketchup very well, and are great for dipping. I noticed they tasted and felt much like the frozen Ore-Ida (company who invented the tater tot in 1953) tater tots I’ve been eating for years. That’s not a bad thing, but it makes me question why I would order ‘out’ something I could so easily cook at home. I don’t want the mess or hassle of making my entire meal at home, but I can open a plastic bag and toss some frozen clumps on a cookie sheet.
The Tater Tots from Sonic are good, and a worthy alternative to french fries. They have a crispy crunch, a warm potato center, and just the right amount of seasoning. They might even bring back some fond memories for people who haven’t had tots in a long while. However, there’s nothing unique or special about them, and I can make (basically) the same thing at home with no hassle. I prefer Sonic’s Onion Rings.
Price: $1.19 (regular) / Website: SonicDriveIn.com
Fast Food Critic Score: B-
Click here for rating system details.
Nutrition Facts - Sonic Drive In, Tater Tots (regular size).
Calories - 220
Calories from Fat - 120
Total Fat - 14 grams
Carbs - 23 grams
Saturated Fat - 2.5 grams
Trans Fat - 3 grams
Cholesterol - 0 milligrams
Sodium - 600 milligrams
Have been eating tots at Sonic for years and enjoy them a lot. Just a slight quibble: Tots should not be considered as a substitute for what you can make at home. They should be considered as a substitute for limp, mealy fries. They make a better side for a burger than fries found at most fast food venues.
Howdy Old Geezer!
Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment.
You make a valid point, indeed.
Those look pretty tasty but it’s kinda hard to tell.
If you can afford the bandwidth, how about letting us click the photos for larger versions?
Good luck with the site, the link on AHT should help with your traffic
Hello ratbuddy. Thank you for your honest feedback!
The truth is, my photos are weak, and I’m using my old 1 megapixel brick camera. It took me 20 minutes in photoshop just to make those small pics look decent. I overlooked the importance of GOOD photography — a lesson I’ve learned the hard way, in the past month since starting this site.
But there is GOOD NEWS. I’m in the process of choosing and purchasing a NEW camera, of much better quality. It could be any day, within a week.
So you can expect my photography to improve soon. And I will start to include the big shots too, which you will be able to see by clicking the small ones. I’m anxious to make this happen — just as much as you!
Thank you again for taking the time ratbuddy.
I got my new camera. I’m still learning how to use the features, but I went back to Sonic again, and have just updated my review with NEW - BIGGER pictures.
My camera is the: Canon Powershot SD870 IS Digital ELPH.
Wow! I can almost taste them from the new pics.
Heck yeah, they look soooooo good in that last pic..
i ate at sonic the other day and for some reason everything tasted like vanilla the hamburger fries and onion rings. I called the 1800 number because i like sonic drinks and did not want to feel embarrassed if i ever go back, but i probably should have complained because i wasted 8 bucks. but after contacting sonic’s 1800 number for customers they sent me a free sandwich coupon. i may use it next time i go for a drink but i just can not get the vanilla out of my head. anyone have this similar problem i know they have a lot of ice cream items