Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

The wildest things on the Funky Fries & Burgers menu

Freak shakes are what might result if an ice cream truck crashed into a candy store

Oreos and a Klondike ice cream sandwich top this "freak shake" from Funky Fries & Burgers
Oreos and a Klondike ice cream sandwich top this "freak shake" from Funky Fries & Burgers

Over the top burgers probably make up the biggest draw to Funky Fries & Burgers. A bacon cheeseburger topped with mac n cheese ($13.50) first lured me in, when I was specifically searching for out of control burger embellishments. I also found one topped with pizza sauce, pepperoni, sausage, and fried mozzarella sticks ($13.50).

Place

Funky Fries and Burgers

115 W. Washington Avenue, El Cajon

Or maybe the dirty fries tempt more fans. This is the sort of shop that will top a massive pile of fries with the contents of a Philly cheesesteak ($13.50), or a surf and turf burrito ($14.50). It’s the rare place where a mountain of chili cheese fries ($11) could be seen as ordering light. Why settle for those when you can get chili mac and cheese fries ($13)?

Sponsored
Sponsored

There’s gluttony to be found, for sure. But, if you ask me, Funky has saved the most outrageous for last. Because, while I can imagine finishing a burger laden with BBQ pork, or a plate of fries loaded with bacon and eggs, or — if I’m really hungry — both, in one gut-busting sitting. But I cannot fathom finishing what lurks on the beverages menu. I’m talking about the freak shakes.

Place

Funky Fries and Burgers

3030 Plaza Bonita Rd, National City

Hit the drive-thru window, and you can get your choice of standard, $6.50 milkshakes. And by “standard,” I mean thick, decadent shakes with the option to blend in bits of candy bar, sweet syrup, or sugary breakfast cereal. They’re a lot. They should be enough.

But enough is not Funky Fries & Burgers’ style. For those dining in, they’ll make you about the most lavish, indulgent milkshake imaginable. About $13 apiece, the freak shakes offer much more than ice cream; they’re practically dessert sculptures. For the so-called breakfast freak shake, the frosted glass is coated with Cap’n Crunch and Fruity Pebbles cereals, while above a heap of whipped cream are toothpick-mounted pancakes, pop tarts, and strips of bacon.

The Chocolate Overload Freak Shake lives up to its name, with chocolate chips, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, M&Ms, fun sized candy bars, hostess cupcakes, an ice cream sandwich, and a gummy hamburger.

The cin-ful cinnamon freak shake gets built upon with cinnamon rolls and churros; while the Oreo galore shake is embellished with whole Oreo cookies, and an entire cookies and cream Klondike ice cream sandwich!

King of them all has to be the appropriately named chocolate overload. First, the chocolate-frosted glass gets ornamented by chocolate chips, M&Ms, several fun-size candy bars, and a thick coat of rainbow sprinkles. Then a pile of whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and more sprinkles. Then not one, but two Hostess cupcakes, followed by a full-size ice cream sandwich. Topping the whole thing off is a bit of cheek: a burger-shaped gummy candy.

Basically, this freak shake makes the mac n cheese bacon burger look like a snack. I bought one for the most candy- and ice-cream-loving kid I know, and he barely made it past the first ice cream sandwich and half the actual milkshake. He didn’t even mind when I swiped one of the candy bars.

And I can’t blame him. Thor himself might struggle to finish a freak shake. But if you think you can climb this milkshake Everest, Funky Fries & Burgers has locations in both National City and El Cajon. Best of luck.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Colorado governor Polis’ days in La Jolla canyons

Why Kamala might not run for Calif. governor
Oreos and a Klondike ice cream sandwich top this "freak shake" from Funky Fries & Burgers
Oreos and a Klondike ice cream sandwich top this "freak shake" from Funky Fries & Burgers

Over the top burgers probably make up the biggest draw to Funky Fries & Burgers. A bacon cheeseburger topped with mac n cheese ($13.50) first lured me in, when I was specifically searching for out of control burger embellishments. I also found one topped with pizza sauce, pepperoni, sausage, and fried mozzarella sticks ($13.50).

Place

Funky Fries and Burgers

115 W. Washington Avenue, El Cajon

Or maybe the dirty fries tempt more fans. This is the sort of shop that will top a massive pile of fries with the contents of a Philly cheesesteak ($13.50), or a surf and turf burrito ($14.50). It’s the rare place where a mountain of chili cheese fries ($11) could be seen as ordering light. Why settle for those when you can get chili mac and cheese fries ($13)?

Sponsored
Sponsored

There’s gluttony to be found, for sure. But, if you ask me, Funky has saved the most outrageous for last. Because, while I can imagine finishing a burger laden with BBQ pork, or a plate of fries loaded with bacon and eggs, or — if I’m really hungry — both, in one gut-busting sitting. But I cannot fathom finishing what lurks on the beverages menu. I’m talking about the freak shakes.

Place

Funky Fries and Burgers

3030 Plaza Bonita Rd, National City

Hit the drive-thru window, and you can get your choice of standard, $6.50 milkshakes. And by “standard,” I mean thick, decadent shakes with the option to blend in bits of candy bar, sweet syrup, or sugary breakfast cereal. They’re a lot. They should be enough.

But enough is not Funky Fries & Burgers’ style. For those dining in, they’ll make you about the most lavish, indulgent milkshake imaginable. About $13 apiece, the freak shakes offer much more than ice cream; they’re practically dessert sculptures. For the so-called breakfast freak shake, the frosted glass is coated with Cap’n Crunch and Fruity Pebbles cereals, while above a heap of whipped cream are toothpick-mounted pancakes, pop tarts, and strips of bacon.

The Chocolate Overload Freak Shake lives up to its name, with chocolate chips, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, M&Ms, fun sized candy bars, hostess cupcakes, an ice cream sandwich, and a gummy hamburger.

The cin-ful cinnamon freak shake gets built upon with cinnamon rolls and churros; while the Oreo galore shake is embellished with whole Oreo cookies, and an entire cookies and cream Klondike ice cream sandwich!

King of them all has to be the appropriately named chocolate overload. First, the chocolate-frosted glass gets ornamented by chocolate chips, M&Ms, several fun-size candy bars, and a thick coat of rainbow sprinkles. Then a pile of whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and more sprinkles. Then not one, but two Hostess cupcakes, followed by a full-size ice cream sandwich. Topping the whole thing off is a bit of cheek: a burger-shaped gummy candy.

Basically, this freak shake makes the mac n cheese bacon burger look like a snack. I bought one for the most candy- and ice-cream-loving kid I know, and he barely made it past the first ice cream sandwich and half the actual milkshake. He didn’t even mind when I swiped one of the candy bars.

And I can’t blame him. Thor himself might struggle to finish a freak shake. But if you think you can climb this milkshake Everest, Funky Fries & Burgers has locations in both National City and El Cajon. Best of luck.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

O’side Tree Lighting & Gift Market, Holiday Lights at the Museum, The Elovaters and Little Stranger

Events December 5-December 6, 2024
Next Article

Tuna within 3-day range Back in the Counts

Mind the rockfish regulations
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader