Ringing Endorsement Steve Reidell, of The Hood Internet and Stay Smooth, on his undying love for Arby’s

Steve Reidell is many things, including one half of The Hood Internet, creator of AlbumTacos.com, bass player in Shapers, and a yacht-rock aficionado. His Stay Smooth nights, with co-yacht DJ Bald E, are a Hall-and-Oates-sanctioned good time, full of captain’s hats, chest hair, and consistently amazing lineups. Saturday’s event, “Stay Smooth XIV: Nowhere Left To Rum,” is being held at the Columbia Yacht Club and features a hosted bar and live set from Quadrophonica, “the finest smooth cover band this side of Lake Michigan.” That’s a party that Michael McDonald himself would approve of.

Reidell’s not just a yacht-rock fan, though. He also loves Arby’s, the maligned fast food giant of yore. For this edition of Ringing Endorsement, where The A.V. Club speaks to local people of note to get their hearty recommendations, Steve Reidell extols the underrated virtues of subtle roast-beef sandwiches and the sweet tang of horsey sauce.

Steve Reidell: The No. 1 reason why I like Arby’s is the curly fries. They are hands down my favorite fast-food fry. ABX from The Hood Internet is also on board with that.

The A.V. Club: What’s the big deal about curly fries?

SR: I like the shape, but that’s more of an aesthetic thing. Really, it’s the seasoning. It’s a slightly different formula than the standard fast-food fry. A cut above the rest, if you will. They’re just fantastic.

AVC: Have you had the regular fries at Arby’s? Don’t other places have curly fries?

SR: I would never get the regular fries at Arby’s. I would go to McDonald’s if I wanted regular fries. Arby’s also has potato cakes, and those are good, but I rarely get them, because I only need one fry-style per meal, and curly fries are definitely it.

As for other places having curly fries, I think Hardee’s might have curly fries. That’s the poor man’s Arby’s. They used to do roast beef, but they don’t anymore. They just couldn’t compete in the market. 

AVC: What else do you get besides the curly fries?

SR: I love the classic roast beef sandwich. I stay away from the beef and cheddar. The cheese is a little… Well, a lot of people love it and I’m not saying anything bad, but my personal preference is to stay away from that processed cheese.

Fast food wrecks shop with your system, so I try to rein it in a little where I can, to a certain degree, of course.

AVC: What’s the overall appeal of Arby’s to you, besides curly fries?

SR: I like that they’re the underdog. Arby’s will never be McDonald’s. They’ll never be Burger King. It’s kind of like how Dr. Pepper will never be Coke or Pepsi, but it’s a very solid contender.

I just enjoy eating at Arby’s. If I’m on the road, need to get some fast food, and the signs come up for the next exit, I’m pretty excited if it’s Arby’s. I’m even more excited if it’s a 24-hour Arby’s. 

AVC: Why do you think Arby’s is so maligned, commercially and culturally? They’re not doing so well, having closed a bunch of locations around Chicago and all.

SR: I personally think it’s because they’re so heavily based in the Midwest, in states like Michigan and Ohio that just aren’t doing well economically. They’ve really tried to boost their value-menu options this past year—10 years too late—and I just don’t think Arby’s is in the collective consciousness as an option as much as the other fast-food restaurants are.

AVC: So what should they do to grow their market? More locations?

SR: More restaurants wouldn’t be the answer. The ones that are open are struggling enough. They’ve had some great ad campaigns, like “Oven Mitt.” I hope they did well with those.

I really think they should build off curly fries, their strength. They should carry other curly items, like curly roast beef. Everything should be shaped into a spiral. They could have fun straws for kids. All curly everything.

AVC: What about increased healthy options? All the fast-food places seem to be doing that lately.

SR: The standard roast-beef sandwich is not exactly a healthy option, but in the realm of fast food, I feel like it’s just as bad as anything else, or at least close. They do have the Market Fresh sandwiches, which are pretty good. I haven’t looked at the nutrition facts, but I feel like it should hold court with other options.

Arby’s isn’t even pushing Market Fresh now. That could be a virtue if they got back to it. Maybe it wasn’t testing well. Now they’re just on the roast beef gyro.

AVC: Roast beef gyro?

SR: I’ve never tried it, but they have it. I think they’re just shooting for variety, like BK’s Angry Whopper, or McDonald’s Angus Burger. People want choice and variety, so Arby’s is just like, “Fuck it. Roast beef gyro. We just have to get some pita and throw roast beef in there and we’re done.”

AVC: The Hood Internet almost played a show in an Arby’s in Brooklyn, right?

SR: That’s right, the world’s fanciest Arby’s. It was very nice, but it’s closed now. It was in an old steakhouse. It wasn’t black tie, but it was very, very fancy.

We got really close to setting up an afternoon DJ set before one of our Brooklyn shows, talking to the owner and everything, but then the place just shut down. Now there’s no way we could ever play at the world’s fanciest Arby’s. I wonder what the world’s second-fanciest Arby’s is.

AVC: You’re not into Arby’s ironically, are you?

SR: Not at all. Real recognize real. The fact that I actually eat at Arby’s makes it legit, not ironic. If I were vegan and said I liked Arby’s, that would be ironic. This is irony-free. I don’t eat there all the time because I want to live long enough, but when fast food comes calling, that’s at the top of my list.

AVC: Are you into smooth and yacht rock ironically?

SR: I definitely take it seriously. Hall and Oates just sold out the Chicago Theatre. They still hold some relevance. There is a little bit of nostalgia that drives interest in yacht rock, but really it’s just an appreciation for the stone-cold quality songwriting.

Also, I think guilty pleasures are over. People like what they like, and if they’re talking about it, they can’t feel that guilty. With Stay Smooth, people legitimately like what we’re playing. No one wants to come out for a whole night of irony. Some of the costumes might be ironic, though.

AVC: What are your top three smooth-rock desert island cuts?

SR: Steely Dan’s “Deacon Blues.” That’s an epic journey. “How Long,” by Ace. “Right Down The Line,” by Gerry Rafferty. Actually, Ariel Pink’s “Can’t Hear My Eyes” is very reminiscent of that Rafferty tune. There’s some modern acknowledgement of yacht rock, even in “cool” music like Ariel Pink.

AVC: Lastly, can you address the rumor that Arby’s roast beef actually comes to the restaurant as a liquid, and somehow turns into a solid?

SR: Liquid roast beef is a rumor debunked on Snopes. I believed it at first, but then I did some research. It’s real roast beef.

AVC: You believed it? And you’re Arby’s No. 1 fan?

SR: Zaid, who’s also in Shapers, worked at an Arby’s in high school, and he told me, so I believed him. You should trust the Internet before you trust your friends.