American Legion Fish Fry

Here in north central Ohio as across this great nation, fish fry’s are a Friday way of life for many small towns. In this edition of my restaurant review it’s not so much of a restaurant as it is of an institution. Located in the small Village of North Fairfield east of the center of the town on State Route 162 is the Fireland’s Post of the American Legion. During most of the year they have a fish fry from 5pm to 7pm on Fridays. Now mind you there is absolutely nothing fancy about this place whatsoever, just home grown American men and women frying up fish, shrimp and fries. On Friday February 10th we joined my brother and sister in law for our weekly outing. Both my wife and her sister Jen grew up attending these fish fry events as both of their uncles served in World War II and were active members of the American Legion. I however on the other hand never went to one until moving here. And honestly I’ve only been to one once and it was at the Legion in Monroeville. My experience with the American Legion is memories of Jackie’s Uncle Paul and the Pancake and Sausage Breakfast we attended with him every Palm Sunday. Once we arrived at the Legion we entered to a small table with two sweet older ladies selling the tickets from a vast menu and combinations hanging on the wall. Jen and I opted just for the Perch Dinner which included fries and the salad bar. Jackie and Scott chose the Perch and Shrimp dinner. After making your choice you are then directed to the kitchen counter where you give your order ticket to the kitchen staff. The dinners are made or fried to order so the dinners are picked up piping hot. In the mean time you go to the salad bar, which includes lettuce, sliced tomatoes, ranch or French dressings along with pickled beets, applesauce, and very good creamy coleslaw. Nothing fancy just simple yet satisfying country options. In addition to the salad bar and included are some hot options such as clam chowder, green beans and scalloped potatoes. Sorry all you southerners hoping for hush puppies, just sliced wheat bread (store bought) and butter. I took some small samplings of everything except the beets, salad and applesauce. The coleslaw is a very good choice, creamy yet could be a little sweeter but very good. I would pass on everything else except a cup of the chowder. The fish as I said is fried fresh to order and was quite good, the shrimp however was a frozen variety that was just ok. Coffee and punch are offered with the meal or you can go to the canteen and purchase drinks. The fish is sold in many options and also by the pound, I would consider saving some money and choose just fish and fries; however that coleslaw was good! Desserts for our visit was provided by donation at a side bake sale for a local 4-H club. I choose some very good and homemade peanut butter blossoms which were very good with a cup of the coffee. We spent $30.00 for our evening and was not disappointed. Dinners are $12.50 and just fish and fries are $9.50 – without the coleslaw. So if you are looking for something unique and very American, I recommend a Friday visit to your local American Legion Fish Fry.

We give this a 3 fork rating!