funky fries and burgers

On Saturday, Jake and I went out for a bite to eat at a brand-spankin’ new spot in El Cajon called Funky Fries and Burgers. We managed to get their BEFORE the torrential rain started (though we got stuck in it later after we went to Parkway Plaza). I found it over on Yelp. There was a video on Yelp showing a basket of fries with two eggs on top and gravy being poured over the top. I showed the video to Jake who replied (before the video ended), “I want to go. I want to go now.” 

He’s easy to convince, eh? 

We had trouble finding the spot at first. It’s on the corner of West Washington Avenue and Magnolia Avenue. It’s in between the Little Caesar’s Pizza and the Washington Market. It’s a tiny little spot and they only have a banner up right now. The signage will be going up very soon. 

Here’s how it looks when you first walk in. Teeny tiny! 

There’s a little counter top space with four stools. Jake and I talked to the owner (who told us they had only been open for 5 days!) and said he would be sending overflow customers over to the taco shop next door for seating. His uncle owns the taco shop and his family owns the Washington Market right next door. How cool is that?

This is kind of what drew me in – they have a whole french fry (“Funky Fries”) menu! There’s a ton of interesting sounding menu items like the Chili Mac & Cheese Fries, The Buffalo Chicken Fries, and the Gyro Fries. There are a bunch of great looking “Funky Burgers” as well from the Pastrami Burger to the Hangover Burger (with egg and hash browns) and the El Diablo Burger for you spicy lovers out there.

We sampled a tiny bit of their signature Diablo sauce. Jake gave me a tiny bit to try. It wasn’t spicy at first and then my whole mouth felt like a flame licked through it! It tickled the very back of my throat and I thought, “Yep, no thanks!” It had a nice flavor though but I’m glad Jake only gave me a tiny, tiny bit. 

They also have Funky Dogs and Funky Breakfast! 

In retrospect, I wish I had a salad with this meal. You’ll see why. 

[sausage and gravy fries / $6]

Here’s the dish that caught our eye and that Jake saw a video of. You have the option of regular skinny shoestring fries, waffle fries, or tater tots. We picked the waffle fries. 

Burrowed beneath the gravy like a hiding ostrich were two fried eggs. Once you stabbed the eggs they released their yolky glory all over the place. So gluttonous and yet so delicious. The sausage gravy was the perfect consistency – on the thicker side with nice bits of sausage. The sausage pieces are on the smaller side and looked more like ground beef (Jake was wishing for larger sausage pieces but I thought it was fine). The yolk make this dish even richer. Most of the gravy stays on top so the waffle fries managed to stay crispy for quite awhile. This could easily serve multiple people – it was a bit too much for just Jake and I to share! I wished we had a teenager with us, but he was off at the skate park that day. 

At Funky Fries and Burgers they also make their own sauces! I didn’t find out what all the sauces were, but we tried the Garlic Aioli (left) and the Ranch. Both had a really nice amount of flavor and would be excellent with any dish. 

[philly cheesesteak burger / $9]

It took us forever to decide which burger to share and we finally settled on the Philly Cheesesteak Burger. It came with garlic truffle aioli, sautéed steak, caramelized red onion, bell peppers, garlic mushrooms, mozzarella. We ordered it without the bell peppers and I thought Jake was just being nice to leave the mushrooms on there. Once we got it though he realized it and didn’t really want to eat it anymore since all he could taste were the mushrooms. But the mushrooms were completely delicious to me, mushroom lover that I am. Eating it all together, the burger tasted wonderful with the melty cheese, patty, steak and flavorful garlic mushrooms. 

I ordered the burger medium rare but it was a bit overcooked. But the patty was still juicy so I didn’t mind that too much. The brioche bun is from a local bakery that they get delivered fresh each day. The bun had a slight sweetness to it that added to the overall flavor of the burger. They grind their own meat in house to make their patties fresh every day. 

Jake and I were quite happy to find a new family run business (the owner’s mom also works with him in the kitchen) that does things the right way by making all of the sauces and burgers from scratch. The owner was incredibly friendly and more than happy to talk to us about his new restaurant. He was very warm and welcoming and you could tell he was really excited about his food and his new business. We’ll definitely be back (with a teenager next time to share the lover) to try out more of the menu and see how they’re doing. 

Funky Fries and Burgers
115 West Washington Ave
El Cajon, California 92020
619-328-2929