Recently I found myself craving onion rings, and surprisingly Original Joe's doesn't have such. It was always too early for them before work, and I usually just feel like going home afterwork, so I finally fed my craving on my day-off. Out of boredom, I decided to amuse myself by trying to find the best onion ring in Moose Jaw, but within reason; I didn't try every onion ring in Moose Jaw, but narrowed it to 4 choices. So for your amusement I looked for various elements in the onion rings and ranked them accordingly; much like something I saw on a food show.
#4 Grocery Store Brand
I thought I should do a cook-it-yourself brand of onion rings; a person who was too embarrassed to order a large amount of onion rings could bask in their gluttony in the privacy of their own home. However, there was one problem: I couldn't find any. I went to the 3 big stores in Moose Jaw: Wal-Mart, Superstore, and Sobey's (sorry Safeway, I didn't want to go back downtown) and none of them sold onion rings for you to cook for your family; I guess you have to make them from scratch. This kind of surprised me; I didn't expect 30 brands of onion rings, but didn't expect none. Perhaps it is a sign of the sad decline of this greasy snack that wreaks havoc on your breath. I expect I could find some at Costco, but I'm not driving to Regina for onion rings. I realize onion rings are best when deep fried and not everyone has a fryer, but more people seem to own fryers; perhaps people with fryers are above generic rings and make their own. Anyways with nothing to try, grocery stores rank at the bottom for onion rings.
#3 A&W
I know I just shocked some of you; there are people who love onion rings at A&W like they love their rootbeer; perhaps this is where objectivity or difference of opinions come in. However, let me assure you this is not a case of me being over-critical or biased. Let me say what's good about their onion rings. First, you seem to get the most bang-for-your-buck; they were the cheapest of the rings I ordered and had the most rings as well. Second, they were fresh; I actually saw the guy in the back drop my order into the fryer and had to wait for it. Third, they are different; you can distinguish A&W rings from any other as they use more dry breading. That being said, let me tell you why they are at the bottom of the rings I tried: they're process is open to bad experience as mine was. I know they're a fast-food chain, but I never know what I am going to get; I have had great rings at times, but this last time was one of the worst. These rings were super greasy!!! These rings soaked through their individual bag, through the take-out bag, and through the notebook they were sitting on. The breading never seems to stay on the onion; you eat it and you got crumbs everywhere and you're mostly eating oily onion; which is true for many times that I've had them. And this is always a knock on their rings: they are super, super salty! I don't know if they are trying to increase pop sales, but I am always super thirsty when I have their onion rings. I may have got the most rings there, but I also threw-out a whole whack of them.
#2 Dairy Queen
Dairy Queen is the Switzerland of onion rings and this competition. My initial thought was I can enjoy these with a meal, but I'm not going to go out of my way to get them. For just under $3 I got 13 medium-to-small sized rings. They had little-to-no saltiness. I don't believe they make them in house; in fact I felt they were something I could buy in a grocery store and reproduce at home, but they were worth it. I don't know why I don't eat more at DQ over other fastfood chains; their food is pretty good. But for this comparison they were not bad like #3, but they were not great like #1
#1 Burger Cabin
The Burger Cabin is a local spot in Moose Jaw that is only open in the summer in Wakamow park. People often dismiss local places like this for the bigger chains, and that is a mistake. Burger Cabin is a throwback to pre-fastfood burger joints, and is reminiscent of some of the places you encounter at the lake. That being said it is a great place for onion rings. For $3.45 I got a dozen moderate sized rings, with just the right amount of seasoning. These rings are beautiful; they are a textbook example of what an onion ring should be. They were hot, but weren't greasy. When I was there I saw the perfect example of their deliciousness when an elderly couple who had ordered ahead of me and upon receiving their order the woman instantly grabbed a ring, crunched it down, and smiled like she was 10 again. So if you are ever in the predicament I was, don't waste your time and just go straight to the Burger Cabin for rings in Jaw.
