The Movies’ Coming Attraction: Fast Fries

If you think the fat findings of the Center for Science in the Public Interest were bad for movie popcorn, take a bite out of this. Thanks to a new machine, French fries may be coming soon to a theater near you.

The MT 2000 is a self-serve machine that delivers kosher French fries in less than 45 seconds, with 20% less fat than fries made at fast-food restaurants. The process starts with a dehydrated potato product, which is reconstituted, pushed through an extruder and dropped into a fryer. After the potatoes are cooked to a crispy golden brown, they are served in a paper cup.

“I got into this because I love French fries,” says Reparata Mazzola, president of Dominion Films, which owns the North American rights to the machine. “I noticed people were stopping by McDonald’s and Johnny Rockets on the way to the movies and figured it could be a profitable business.” The MT 2000 was test-marketed in Mexico last year. It was such a success, “people were stopping to buy fries on their way out of the theater,” Mazzola says. The fry machine will be in Southern California theaters by March.