Fish and Chips at the Seafood Market, Central Ave.

[Jeremy Iggers]

Fish and chips is the hot new dish in town. In recent weeks, we have seen the arrival of the Irish version at Anchor Fish and Chips in Northeast (a favorite of mine), the Scottish version at L'Ecosse at 48th and Chicago; the English kind at the Lyndale Tap House, but before any of these opened their doors, we had the Seafood Market at 628 Central Ave. N.E. I've driven past the little storefront dozens of times, and always wondered about the fish and chips advertised on their sign, so finally the other day, I stopped in and ordered them. Turns out this actually is a seafood market, with a small selection of fresh (i.e., not frozen) fish and shrimp in display cases at the counter, and frozen clams and other items in a self-service freezer. Menu options include a basic fish and chips, made with tilapia for $7.25, but for a dollar or two more you can order your chips with any kind of fish or seafood you want, including cod, whiting, haddock, salmon, mahi-mahi, shrimp or scallops. All are served in a basket with plastic cutlery and little plastic packets of catsup, tartar sauce and cocktail sauce on the side.

I opted for the tilapia with chips, which was perfectly satisfactory, though the dull plastic fork made it impossible to carve up the fillets without completely separating batter from fish. The fries were of the frozen variety, but not too greasy. The soft drinks are self-service and there is an old tv in a corner that was tuned to a soap opera.
How was it? It was okay.
628 Central Ave SE Minneapolis, 612-379-6387.

[Kate]

I drive by that place ALL the time and still have yet to go in. Regardless of the fish and chips, I always forget we have an option for purchasing fish in Northeast that isn't Lunds. I'll have to stop by and check out their selection