Semantical French Fries

A true story: As I was walking into the tunnel that connects the Thompson Center to the building across the street, I passed a little food stand selling Middle Eastern specialties. A woman was drilling the counterperson:

"Are you sure your French Fries are homemade?"
"Homemade?"
"Right! Not frozen at any time."

I laughed, but only to myself. We're talking sticks of starch deep-fried in oil. Is not being frozen going to make them healthy for you?

I also considered the girl behing the counter. I've bought hummus from her before; she's Middle Eastern, possibly an immigrant for whom English was a second language. She may have been wondering why this customer would have expected her family to be scrubbing and slicing up potatoes at home in the morning, then lugging them to the Loop to serve for lunch. It could very well be they made the fries fresh in that cafe's kitchen, but that wasn't the question. If they were "home-making" anything, it might have been their stuffed grape leaves. Or rather, they may have developed their recipe at home. Health inspectors take a dim view of making food at home, then selling it these days.