- Right off the bat, I can't help
but notice these globs of what looks like
a cheese poop.
I guess that's why they call it "poo-tine."
(upbeat music)
- [Announcer] Ladies and Gentlemen!
Who's going to take home the fork in this week's episode
of Meal Swap?
We have two contestants here from different
parts of North America, here to compete
for the glory of the golden fork.
Two people come in.
Two meals are swapped, but only one can win.
- Today we are swapping fries.
- I'm representing the Philly, Jersey, Delaware area
with some disco fries.
These don't look like traditional disco fries.
Disco fries are supposed to have gravy on them,
and some like sprinkled cheese.
I guess these will do for today.
Disco fries to me,
are (sighs) oh god, so nostalgic.
Basically, when you grow up in an area where
diners are on every street corner.
You go with your friends, when you're 16, to a diner.
And you just get the cheapest (beep) thing on the menu,
which is disco fries.
They're pretty much like a poor man's poutine.
(laughs)
So.
- So I'm representing Canada.
We have poutine, and it's from Quebec.
- Say it again?
- Poutine.
Poutine is the English version.
But I've been so used to saying it the French way.
So, poutine.
- Poutine.
- Yes! There you go.
Educating everyone today.
So this is pretty similar to disco fries.
It has fries.
And what's the difference is that there's cheese curds.
And the word cheese curds sounds gross.
But if you say it in French, it's nicer.
Fromage en grains.
- Ooh!
- So it's like.
- Say that again!
- Fromage en grains.
- Fromage en.
- Grain, en grains.
- Grains.
- Yeah, so it's like grain of cheese.
- Alright.
- And so it's like little clumps of cheese
that's very like chewy, and like squeaky when you put it
in you mouth. (squeak)
It's because they're fresh.
If you put it in the fridge,
it like absorbs all the moisture so it becomes really hard.
So, it has to be fresh.
And then you melt it with like hot gravy.
It's just a beautiful combination.
So this is very common in Canada.
I'm from Montreal,
so it's like in the province of Quebec.
And same thing.
Like, it's a great hangover food,
or like after like a night out.
- Let me tell you something about disco fries.
Once you have them, you won't want any other.
Cheese fries?
Forget it.
Chili-cheese fries?
Absolutely not.
Nacho fries?
No, don't even think about it.
Disco fries!
You get potato.
You get the gravy.
You get the cheese.
You understand.
- Mm-hmm.
- But you don't get that squeak.
What's that squeak? (squeak)
Cheese curd gets hard and absorbs the moisture
in the fridge?
Sounds like a bacteria place that I don't want to be.
(bell dings)
- I think this is gonna win
because once you've tried cheese curd,
that squeak in your mouth. (squeak)
- That is pretty great.
- You can't go back.
Like she said,
"It's the poor man's version of poutine".
So this is like the classic.
The one thing that you should try.
- Most of us are poor though, so.
- Mm-hmm.
(upbeat music)
- We found some gravy.
So now, I think we have a much better chance of winning.
And it smells pretty (beep) good too, so.
- It really does.
- It does.
- I'm a little nervous. (bell chimes)
- Let's do it.
M'lady.
- Enjoy.
- Thank you, you as well.
Right off the bat, I can't help but notice
these globs of what looks a cheese poop.
I guess that's why they call it "poo-tine."
(crowd sighs)
I'm excited to try it.
I mean, it smells like french fries, and cheese, and gravy.
So, there's no reason why this shouldn't taste good.
(laughs)
- Okay, well I'm Canadian,
so I can't help but be nice.
(crowd sighs)
This presentation is really beautiful with the gravy.
And the parsley just adds a nice little touch.
- Bottoms up!
- Is there a way to say in English, "Bon Apetit".
But like, the English way?
- We don't have words for anything.
- Okay so I'm trying to make a cheese pull.
But it's kinda clumpy.
Again, being nice.
It feels a little bit more heated.
It'll be a nicer cheese pull.
- I'm not getting the squeak. (squeak)
There's no squeak in these curds. (squeak)
I will say, these are really tasty though.
- The gravy is really good.
- The cheese kinda tastes like a mild,
watered-down mozzarella, maybe.
It's not really doing it for me.
- I don't really taste the cheese because
the gravy is so flavorful.
But I could feel the cheesiness in my mouth.
But the cheese doesn't have any distinctive flavor.
But the gravy, very good.
- Got some neutral cheeses here.
I like that you can kind of get one with every bite
but it, I just wanna be able to mix it all up
kinda like you can with those guys.
This is kinda like you have to piece it together.
Again, not bad, it's kinda like a salad,
it's like a french fry salad.
- I do see your point of how it's
like everything's already like mixed together.
But the only thing is when everything's melted,
it kinda feels like a big clump.
When I pick it, it's all like together,
so it's really hard for me to just like eat it.
- We're not cute over there in the tri-state area.
- This isn't really similar to the Canadian version so.
- They're cousins.
- Yeah.
I feel like if I missed home, and I wasn't in Canada,
and I was like in like New York or New Jersey,
I would totally go for disco fries
because it's the same.
It just reminds me of home.
It's close enough.
- Well I wanna try those things so.
- Try this gravy it's so good.
- I'm pumped!
- Immediately my face changed.
Really happy.
There is a bit of a squeak. (squeak)
If it was more fresh you'd really feel the squeak. (squeak)
But I can imagine it. (squeak)
- She's imagining the squeak, it's not there. (laughs)
(squeak) This is like disco fries served
in an Italian restaurant.
This gravy tastes very like,
it's got a bunch of oregano in it.
It's almost like a pasta sauce.
It's really tasty.
It's not quite it.
I would say that's more like gravy in my mind, gravy.
- Yeah it's a little more thicker.
- Yeah.
- Like that was almost like a soup.
I feel like you should just try this one more time.
The cheese, now that you've compared that cheese.
- Okay.
- Versus this cheese.
- Okay.
- There's just more like personality to the cheese.
- That little guy right there.
(squeak)
Yeah, you're right.
(squeak)
It's got more personality.
(laughs)
(dramatic music)
Poutine was very good.
Cheese curds tasted really great.
Disco fries, little disappointing,
not the Jersey-Philly diner way.
- I did really like my experience with disco fries.
I would be curious to try the authentic ones.
- They have to.
- I love the name disco fries.
But at the end of the day,
my heart goes to poutine because it's the cheese. (squeak)
- Yeah I would say that's true.
- The texture.
- We have come to a final decision.
(drum roll)
Canada!
- Canada!
("O Canada")
- Congratulations. (claps)
- I'm sorry to US but Canada wins.
- Canada does win.
- We have cheap tuition for school. (ding)
We have free health care. (ding)
Nature. (ding)
Fresh air. (ding)
Poutine. (ding)
- And Lillian! (ding)
- And me!
(claps)
I wanna share this because Canadians are nice.
- Wow, do you see this?
- Look at us.
- I love Canada.
- We just need to be friends.
- That's all.
- Yeah.
- People who eat disco fries, this is devastating.
Please help me describe how just amazing they are
in the comments, please.
- Poutine lovers, you need to try disco fries.
Try the cousin version of poutine
because that's great as well.
But at the end of the day, Canadians win.
- The squeak. (squeak)
- The squeak, yes, cheese curds.
- The squeak.
- Don't be afraid of the names cheese curds.
Remember, fromage en grain.
- Say it again.
- Fromage en grain.
- One more time?
- Fromage en grain.
- Great.