Potato, french fries, with cheese: fast food restaurant vs school USDA FDC 2709465 vs 2709466
Per 100 g, fast food restaurant reports 365 mg sodium, while school reports 195 mg sodium.
The comparison uses two cited USDA records. Their complete source names, household portions, nutrient values, and FoodData Central links remain visible below.
Record A · FDC 2709465
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant
Check this record in FoodData Central ↗Record B · FDC 2709466
Potato, french fries, with cheese, school
Check this record in FoodData Central ↗Highlighted difference
Calories at the same 100-gram weight
Bar length shows the two cited values on one shared denominator. It does not rank either food or establish why they differ.
-
260 kcal -
181 kcal
Shared basis: 100 g · kcal
Equal-weight evidence
Nutrition per 100 grams
Both columns use the same mass, which compares nutrient concentration without allowing the two representative source amounts to change the denominator. “A +” or “B +” reports the arithmetic difference between the cited values; it is not a quality score.
On smaller screens, focus a comparison table and scroll horizontally to read every column.
| Nutrient | A · Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food… | B · Potato, french fries, with cheese, school | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| CaloriesMaterial difference | 260 kcal | 181 kcal | A +79 kcal |
| Protein | 3.3 g | 4.6 g | B +1.2 g |
| Total fatMaterial difference | 14.2 g | 10.3 g | A +3.9 g |
| CarbohydrateMaterial difference | 29.8 g | 17.7 g | A +12.1 g |
| Dietary fiberMaterial difference | 2.6 g | 1.5 g | A +1.1 g |
| Total sugars | 0.3 g | 1.2 g | B +0.9 g |
| SodiumMaterial difference | 365 mg | 195 mg | A +170 mg |
| Saturated fat | 2.6 g | 2.4 g | A +0.2 g |
| Potassium | 387 mg | 384 mg | A +3 mg |
| Calcium | 37 mg | 84 mg | B +47 mg |
| Iron | 0.7 mg | 0.6 mg | A +0.1 mg |
Values come from the two cited USDA FoodData Central Survey Foods records. Feast does not average records, impute missing values, or infer a nutrient from the food name.
Read the table by question
Every material primary-nutrient difference on this page is numerically higher in A (5 of 5).
These answers describe concentration per 100 grams. “More” and “less” identify the arithmetic direction only; they do not decide which record is a better match or which food is better for a person.
Which reports fewer calories?
Record B
Record B reports 181 kcal, compared with 260 kcal in the other record—a difference of 79 kcal.
Which reports more protein?
Record B
Record B reports 4.6 g, compared with 3.3 g in the other record—a difference of 1.2 g.
Which reports more fiber?
Record A
Record A reports 2.6 g, compared with 1.5 g in the other record—a difference of 1.1 g.
Which reports less sodium?
Record B
Record B reports 195 mg, compared with 365 mg in the other record—a difference of 170 mg.
What differs in the source descriptions
The exact names carry information the numbers cannot.
USDA assigns both records to “French fries and other fried white potatoes,” but the topic label is broad. Record A is “Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant.” Record B is “Potato, french fries, with cheese, school.” Feast paired them because their contrast-neutral food identities are an exact match, not merely because they share a generic category.
The controlled name parser found 1 interpretable distinction. These labels organize wording already present in the names; they do not establish that a distinction caused a nutrient difference.
| Description dimension | Record A | Record B |
|---|---|---|
| Source context | restaurant or fast food | school |
Even a clean name contrast can carry hidden companions. A fried record may also include coating; a restaurant record can use a different recipe; a reduced-sodium description can differ in more than salt; and a source amount can reflect a different reporting convention. That is why this page reports the complete pair rather than treating one word as an intervention.
Portion context
A representative source amount is not a shared “serving.”
Record A uses USDA reference amount at 130 g. Record B uses USDA reference amount at 245 g. Those labels and gram weights come from their respective records. They are useful for scaling the chosen profile, but they are not recommendations and need not describe equal amounts.
The two representative amounts differ by 115 g (47% of the larger amount). This is why the main table holds mass at 100 g. After selecting the closer description, use its household measure or a gram estimate for the amount actually eaten.
A cup, piece, slice, sandwich, fillet, or fluid ounce can have different gram weights across records. A matching label is not enough: check the listed grams. If accuracy matters more than convenience, weighing the food or using a current package label can be more specific than a generic survey-food measure.
Record A measures
- 1 kids meal order107 g
- 1 value/dollar menu order130 g
- 1 small fast food order169 g
- 1 medium fast food order222 g
- 1 large fast food order276 g
- 1 fry, any cut8 g
- 1 cup92 g
- USDA reference amount130 g
Record B measures
- 1 fry, any cut11 g
- 1 cup135 g
- USDA reference amount245 g
One shared household label
1 cup: 92 g in A vs 135 g in B
The household label matches, but the source gram weights differ. These values scale each record by its own listed grams; they are practical portion context, not an equal-mass comparison.
| Nutrient | A · 92 g | B · 135 g |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 239 kcal | 244 kcal |
| Protein | 3.1 g | 6.1 g |
| Dietary fiber | 2.4 g | 2 g |
| Sodium | 336 mg | 263 mg |
USDA source formulation evidence
The listed inputs provide another way to audit the match.
FNDDS includes input-food rows behind each standardized survey-food record. Record A’s leading listed inputs include Fast foods, potato, french fried in vegetable oil, Cheese sauce. Record B’s include Potato, french fries, school, Cheese, cheddar, reduced fat (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program). Ingredient-code overlap is 0%, and normalized listed-input-weight variation is 100%.
Record A · 2 coded inputs
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant
- Fast foods, potato, french fried in vegetable oilIngredient code 21138 · open source index65.2% of listed input weight
- Cheese sauceIngredient code 14650100 · open source index34.8% of listed input weight
Record B · 2 coded inputs
Potato, french fries, with cheese, school
- Potato, french fries, schoolIngredient code 7140103390% of listed input weight
- Cheese, cheddar, reduced fat (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program)Ingredient code 1260 · open source index10% of listed input weight
0 shared coded inputs
The two listed formulations do not share an ingredient code in this source extract. Shared codes can still carry different listed weights.
2 A-only and 2 B-only coded inputs
A-only entries include Fast foods, potato, french fried in vegetable oil, Cheese sauce. B-only entries include Potato, french fries, school, Cheese, cheddar, reduced fat (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program).
Important: repeated rows carrying the same ingredient code are combined before the shares and overlap are calculated. These weights belong to USDA’s source formulation: they are not a reconstructed plate, final cooked yield, visitor serving, ingredient declaration, or estimate of what is visible in a photo. USDA’s FNDDS documentation explains that these calculation recipes can represent multiple variants, may include retention or moisture adjustments, and are not product-label ingredient lists.
Choosing the closer record
Match context first; scale second.
- 01
Read both names literally
Compare cooking method, coating, edible skin or peel, sauce, additions, venue, source form, and food subtype. For this pair, the full A and B descriptions above are the evidence—not shortened search labels.
- 02
Use listed inputs as a check
If the name still leaves ambiguity, compare the leading and unique source inputs. They can reveal that two near names refer to meaningfully different standardized formulations, but they do not reconstruct your dish.
- 03
Choose an amount for that record
After choosing A or B, use its own named measure and gram weight. Do not transfer a cup, slice, or “typical amount” from the other record as if the measures were interchangeable.
- 04
Account for missing details
Brand, current restaurant recipe, cooking oil, drained weight, toppings, substitutions, and unfinished portions may not be captured. A label or weighed recipe can supersede a generic reference when it better matches the actual food.
Limits and responsible interpretation
This is a comparison of records, not a causal study.
The two records come from 2021–2023 FoodData Central Survey Foods data. The nutrient table faithfully compares their published values on the same weight basis. It does not measure two plates prepared at the same time, isolate one ingredient, or estimate the uncertainty around either value.
For this pair, the source names differ across 1 documented description dimension, while the listed formulations show 0% ingredient-code overlap and 100% normalized listed-weight variation. Moisture, ingredient proportions, preparation, and record construction can therefore move together. The page can describe the combined record difference; it cannot isolate the effect of one word.
A higher or lower number is not an overall verdict. Protein, fiber, sodium, energy, fat, micronutrients, preferences, allergies, budget, portion, and an individual’s goals answer different questions. Feast therefore reports directions and magnitudes without applying a universal “healthier” label.
This page is educational and does not diagnose a condition, prescribe a target, or replace advice from a qualified professional. For an allergy, medically directed diet, or strict ingredient limit, use verified ingredient information and guidance appropriate to that situation.
How this page qualified
A page is published only when the pair clears materiality and diversity gates.
Both records must occupy the same USDA survey-food topic and share a close food identity after a controlled vocabulary separates preparation, edible-part, source, claim, crust, and sauce wording. Exact contrast-neutral identities receive priority. Close ingredient or form substitutions can qualify when name overlap remains high and the numerical evidence is material.
For primary nutrients, Feast requires both an absolute and relative difference: at least 20 kcal and 12% for energy; 2 g and 18% for protein or fat; 5 g and 15% for carbohydrate; 1 g and 20% for fiber; 4 g and 20% for sugars; or 100 mg and 20% for sodium. A focused one-nutrient pair also needs a material representative-amount or formulation distinction. Rounding-only pairs are not published.
Unordered FDC IDs define a canonical pair, so reversing A and B cannot create another page. Each source record can appear twice at most, each USDA topic contributes no more than 40 pages, and closely repeated identity families are capped. Those rules produced a selective comparison library rather than every mathematical combination in the corpus.
Read the complete nutrition-page methodology for import, nutrient mapping, portion scaling, Daily Value, and uncertainty rules.
Decision support from the exact records on this page
Turn source data into a better next decision
These conclusions and reading paths are computed from 2 exact records behind Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant versus Potato, french fries, with cheese, school. Links are chosen by record identity, controlled contrast, formulation input, nutrient spread, or serving context—not by loose keyword similarity.
Equal-weight result
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant is higher in calories per 100 g
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant reports 260 kcal versus 181 kcal for Potato, french fries, with cheese, school: a 79 kcal difference when both are normalized to 100 g.
Inspect the underlying evidenceThe denominator changes the answer
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant is denser; Potato, french fries, with cheese, school is higher in its source amount
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant reports 260 kcal per 100 g and 338 kcal in USDA source amount (130 g). Potato, french fries, with cheese, school reports a lower 181 kcal per 100 g but a higher 443 kcal in USDA source amount (245 g).
Record identity is part of the estimate
Distinguish “Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant” from “Potato, french fries, with cheese, school”
These are separate USDA records with separate formulations or survey descriptions. Match preparation, additions, and the named household amount before borrowing either record’s nutrients.
Inspect the underlying evidenceContextual knowledge graph
Follow the relationship that matches your question
For Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant versus Potato, french fries, with cheese, school, each path states why the destination belongs here, so you can distinguish a true evidentiary connection from a merely similar label.
Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant and Potato, french fries, with cheese, school are explicitly linked in this guide, which separates direct name matches from contextual variants.
Follow this evidence path Test a nearby record choice Potato, french fries, from frozen, baked vs Potato, french fries, with cheese, schoolPotato, french fries, with cheese, school is held as one side of the comparison. The explicit record-description contrast is Preparation wording: baked, roasted, or broiled versus No matching controlled term in the source name; it is a selection cue, not evidence of cause.
Follow this evidence path Put the observed spread in corpus context Calories: density and serving contextIn this page’s records, calories runs from 181 kcal in Potato, french fries, with cheese, school to 260 kcal in Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant, all per 100 g.
Follow this evidence path 2 exact records carried forward PotatoPotato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant and Potato, french fries, with cheese, school are explicitly linked in this guide, which separates direct name matches from contextual variants.
Follow this evidence path A formulation detail that separates records Cheese, cheddar, reduced fat (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program)USDA input 1260 appears in 1 of 2 context records; its summed listed input weight spans 10–10 g across those source formulations. These are source-formulation input weights, not plated or serving weights. Follow the code to inspect every represented occurrence.
Follow this evidence path A formulation detail that separates records Cheese sauceUSDA input 14650100 appears in 1 of 2 context records; its summed listed input weight spans 64–64 g across those source formulations. These are source-formulation input weights, not plated or serving weights. Follow the code to inspect every represented occurrence.
Follow this evidence path Test a nearby record choice Potato, french fries, school vs Potato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurantPotato, french fries, with cheese, fast food / restaurant is held as one side of the comparison. The explicit record-description contrast is Source context: school versus restaurant or fast food; it is a selection cue, not evidence of cause.
Follow this evidence path