Fish Fry Catch-Up: Fish Fries x3!

Life has been a little crazy lately (and my motivation has been flagging), so I'm three weeks behind on fish fry reviews. I'm going to glom them all together here in this post, so sit back - it's gonna be a long one.

St. Bartholomew/Crabtree VFD, March 24, 2023

The small town of Crabtree does something kind of interesting: their local Catholic church and VFD collaborate on the fish fry and split the proceeds. Last year they held it at the VFD, and this year it was at the church. They hold it in the ground floor of their social hall called Marian Hall. Avery and Steph went with us.

When we arrived around 5:35, there was a good crowd but several empty tables (by the time we left at 6:10 or so, the line was out the door). This was the only church fish fry we attended this year, so I had to get a picture of the requisite religious art on the walls.

Menu options included fried fish and baked fish, pierogis, fries, slaw, haluski, and mac and cheese. We all ordered fried fish; Chip and Steph ordered fries, I got mac and cheese, and Avery opted for a side of pierogis.

The food came out within 10 minutes, which surprised us all. 

I'll be honest - the fish was disappointing. In the car on the way over we'd been talking about "fish triangles" which the occasional fish fry will serve - frozen breaded fish fillets rather than the hand-breaded or battered fish that is so yummy. Guess what arrived at the table?

Yep, fish triangles. It tasted OK, but just OK. 

The sides, on the other hand, were excellent. The pierogis and mac and cheese in particular were tasty and seemed to be homemade. I guess that's where the effort went rather than into fish.

I don't think we'd go back to this one again, although it was nice to be in and out in 35 minutes.

Export Italian American Club (IAC), March 31, 2023

During the first few weeks of Lent, wait time at the IAC can be one to two hours. So if at all possible it's best to go earlier in the day or later in Lent after the early interest has diminished. IAC is a members-only club but they open their doors to everyone during Lent (and sometimes for other events as well). 

Although the parking lot was packed, the public dining room was not super crowded. 

After we grabbed seats and ordered, I went to the bar in the members area to order beer and THAT'S where all the people were. The beer was inexpensive; we got 16-oz drafts for $2.25 each and they were served in actual glasses (everyone else I saw in the public dining room had plastic cups, so we wondered if the bartender thought I was a member. Yeah, I look Italian). 

The menu was pretty extensive. They offered fried fish, either as a sandwich or dinner, two types of shrimp, chicken tenders, and a slew of sides.

Chip ordered a fish dinner, and I got a fish sandwich and hushpuppies. I guess hushpuppies are starting to catch on in western PA, since this is the 2nd or 3rd fish fry we attended that offered pups! 

It took the food about 15 minutes to get to the table, the perfect amount of time for sipping Yuengling and people watching. Chip had ordered a Miller Lite but we both tasted it and think the tap was hooked up wrong OR the keg was going bad, because it tasted off. 

The food was phenomenal. The fish was battered beautifully - it wasn't too thick or greasy and tasted absolutely amazing. The fries were very good. And the hushpuppies weren't quite as good as the ones we had at North Irwin, but they were moist and yummy.

IAC has consistently good food, and we both decided that it deserves to be in our top 3. 

Mutual VFD, April 7, 2023

We arrived at Good Friday only a little burned out on fish, but still very much looking forward to one of our favorites. Like the IAC the week prior, Mutual tends to be super busy in the first few weeks of Lent so we were hoping for a smaller crowd last Friday night. Luckily that was the case. We arrived around 5:15 and there were only a few folks in the dining room, although we saw them taking several orders to the bar in another room, which is members only. They had long tables set up, cafeteria style, and a big TV with a really crisp picture, which was a good thing because it was the Pirates opening day (they won).

We ordered food then Chip went to the bar to get beer.  One of the things that makes Mutual a spectacular fish fry is their French fries. They are the coated variety and delicious. But since Norvelt switched from coated fries to regular thick-cut ones, we were worried that Mutual would have done the same. We decided to split an order and we each ordered a fish sandwich.

The strange thing about their menu is that although they say their fish is battered, it's actually breaded. And the breading is wonderful. I've noticed this the past few years and I have no idea if they don't know the difference or if they used to serve battered fish and just never changed the menu. 

It took about 15 minutes for the food, but the time flew by since the TV was on and it was also a great people-watching spot. Based on the clothes and hairstyles of everyone who walked in the door, it could just as easily have been 1989 as 2023. Longish hair, jeans, flannel shirts, and ballcaps were the standard attire for men (including Chip, hahaha), and one woman had such big hair that I literally thought it WAS 1989.

The food arrived, and we were THRILLED to see that the fries were just as we remembered them. And oh boy - were they delicious. The fish was also wonderful, with a delicately seasoned breading and big fat pieces of fish. We split one sandwich in half and kept the other for the next day.

Mutual remains one of our favorites and it's one we'll continue going to for as long as they hold it.

**

Well folks, that's the end of Fish Fry Season 2023. It's been fun but next week it's back to pizza reviews!