Ballydoyle Irish Pub
http://www.ballydoylepub.com

5157 Main St
Downers Grove, IL 60515
(630) 969-0600


I tried their fish & chips today and I thought it was a good value. For $11 they served 3 nice size fillets, fries, and slaw. I have a paper napkin test for fried foods. I wrap them and hold for 3 seconds. These fillets passed my test.

Although the breading was a little too thick for me, it was tasty. Each fillet held a nice size piece of fish which I enjoyed. The fries & slaw were a little above average.

The only negative was that they served the most bitter ice tea I think I have ever had. Not very good at all.

D.

dodger wrote:Ballydoyle Irish Pub

I tried their fish & chips today and I thought it was a good value. For $11 they served 3 nice size fillets, fries, and slaw. I have a paper napkin test for fried foods. I wrap them and hold for 3 seconds. These fillets passed my test.

Although the breading was a little too thick for me, it was tasty. Each fillet held a nice size piece of fish which I enjoyed. The fries & slaw were a little above average.

The only negative was that they served the most bitter ice tea I think I have ever had. Not very good at all.
D.

Yes! Excellent choice - one of my favorites! But ya gotta have them with a pint of Guinness!

We paid a visit to The Gage on Michigan Avenue this past Sunday. I have had the fish and chips from many restaurants and Irish Pubs in the city and suburbs. Still, I really think The Gage has the best. The quality of the fish, and the crisp, flaky batter make their version exemplary. I have a more detailed review HERE.

Here is sample of what I had. (And another note worth mentioning is that the tartare sauce is made fresh here, and it is excellent!:





The dinner was $17.00, and worth every cent. Enjoy yours with a pint of Guinness as well!

Lilya wrote:Anyone able to recommend something out towards the west/northwest suburbs?

West of Elgin, there is a little town called Gilberts. If you take Higgins/72 just west of Randall, there is a restaurant called Cruisin 72. It's kind of a sh*thole with a vintage car theme, but the fish fry is pretty damn good (and maybe the ambience just adds to the whole fish fry thing). Wouldn't vouch for anything else out there (especially the $5 pints of Sam Adams--in friggin Gilberts?!?), but on Fridays, you can choose between walleye, cod, perch, and shrimp (all you can eat). The walleye in particular is pretty amazing.

I regularly visit the Town Tap in Warrenville for their Friday fish fry...usually do lunch. They have perch, smelt, or catfish. Definitely not a fancy place...more of a bar...but specifically the perch and smelt are excellent. Very resonably priced. If going for lunch go early (11:30) so you can get a seat...definitely a popular friday destination.

Towne Tap
28W247 Warrenville Rd
Warrenville, IL 60555
(630) 393-1633

ChicagoTRS wrote:I regularly visit the Town Tap in Warrenville for their Friday fish fry...usually do lunch. They have perch, smelt, or catfish. Definitely not a fancy place...more of a bar...but specifically the perch and smelt are excellent.

What kind of perch?

Cogito wrote:

ChicagoTRS wrote:I regularly visit the Town Tap in Warrenville for their Friday fish fry...usually do lunch. They have perch, smelt, or catfish. Definitely not a fancy place...more of a bar...but specifically the perch and smelt are excellent.

What kind of perch?

I am not 100% certain but they seem like genuine lake perch to me...the fish fry comes with: a good amount of fish (I am a big guy and it fills me up), mound of thin cut fries, cole slaw, tarter sauce, and a bun/butter. Personally I usually get the smelt...with the perch you usually get 4 or 5 medium size breaded filets. It is under $10 per person.

The bar is connected to Al's Pizza...I have heard good things about hte pizza but never tried it.

Al's Pizza is the shit! Try their "special" with pepperoni instead of sausage.

Hi,

Starting January 30th through Easter:

Friday fish fry featuring cod, shrimp and perch purchased from Supreme Lobster, then breaded and fried on the premises.

American Legion Post 330
950 Legion Drive
Calumet City, IL
708/862-8685

Regards,

St. Mary of Vernon Men's Club

Fridays during lent at the Vernon Hills Golf Club, 291 Evergreen Drive, Vernon Hills.

Includes fresh baked and fried fish, mostaccioli, macaroni & cheese, coleslaw, fresh cut fries, chips, and desserts.
The food is good and the price is very good at $30 per family or $9 per adult. The coleslaw and fries are way above average.

http://www.maryofvernon.org/smv/prod/content/mens-club

Ok, where is the best Fishfry in the 'burbs.......many thanks...

suburbs are a big place, Tinley Park or Waukegan or Sugar Grove

You are correct, I'am sorry about that....something out west, St. Charles area - then go North... I'm willing to travel as far North as Lake Geneva Wisconsin. Does anyone know of a local "gin" joint that serves up a great fry????....Thanks everyone

redhdbest wrote:I really like BallyDoyle Irish Pub in Downers Grove for Fish n Chips. They have the traditional beer battered fish and also serve it with malt vinegar. There is great Guiness on tap as well. Another item to try are their PEI Mussells appetizer! I am absolutely addicted to these! Not sure what all of the ingredients are in the sauce besides Harp, cream, garlic and some herbs but they are wonderful!

Ballydoyle Irish Pub & Rstrnt
http://www.ballydoylepub.com

5157 Main St
Downers Grove, IL 60515
(630) 969-0600

Ballydoyle just opened a second location last weekend on Galena at the Fox River in Downtown Aurora.

Looking forward to seeing if they have the fish and chips at that location, mentioned a few times in this thread.

The F&C options in the immediate area leave everything to be desired

My wife and I had a taste for fish and chips yesterday, so we headed off to Ballydoyle in Downers Grove based on some of the posts here. I don't know if they were having an off night or if they've changed since the others here posted, but it was absolutely awful.

When the plate arrived, it contained three fried "balls" that had no resemblence to fish filets. Literally, they were somewhat spherical and the size of baseballs. The batter was crispy on the outside, but thick and goopy on the inside. The ratio of fish to batter was about 50%. It was impossible to actually taste the fish because of the amount of batter. The fish itself, when separated from the batter, had no taste. My wife and I concluded that we would have had better fish at Long John Silver's.

The fries were fine.

I still hope to find a good fish and chips place in the western 'burbs. Any thoughts?

John


Ballydoyle Irish Pub
http://www.ballydoylepub.com

5157 Main St
Downers Grove, IL 60515
(630) 969-0600

John Danza wrote:My wife and I had a taste for fish and chips yesterday, so we headed off to Ballydoyle in Downers Grove based on some of the posts here. I don't know if they were having an off night or if they've changed since the others here posted, but it was absolutely awful.

I have had a couple bad meals @ Ballydoyles, their corned beef was worse than their fish if that is possible.

You might try Fitz's Pub in Elmhurst. A friend and I ate lunch there yesterday and it was decent bar food. My friend thought the fried chicken (Monday's special) looked very good. I had a grilled chicken club and she had a burger. Both of us enjoyed our sandwiches and agreed the fries were very good. Most likely food service fries, but prepared well -- crispy on the outside, tender on the inside. Staff seemed nice and the overall vibe was of good, neighborhood bar. AYCE fish fry on Fridays for $7.95.

Fitz's Pub
172 N Addison Ave
Elmhurst, IL 60126
(630) 530-0777
www.fitzspub.com

I think this was mentioned upthread but the Towne Tap in Warrenville has an excellent Friday fish fry. Perch, catfish and cod. If the kids want pizza you can get it at Al's next door and bring it in.

Towne Tap
28W247 Warrenville Rd
Warrenville, IL 60555
(630) 393-1633

I'll second WindyCity's recommendation of the fish and chips at The Gage on Michigan just north of Monroe. I've had them twice, and they are probably the best fish and chips I have had in the area. Not cheap and not a "fish fry" atmosphere, but really good food.

Now I'm thinking about running out to the Fish Keg on Howard west of Ridge -- the closest place for fish and chips in my area. All this reading about fish and chips has given me a hankering.

dukesdad wrote:I think this was mentioned upthread but the Towne Tap in Warrenville has an excellent Friday fish fry. Perch, catfish and cod. If the kids want pizza you can get it at Al's next door and bring it in.

Towne Tap
28W247 Warrenville Rd
Warrenville, IL 60555
(630) 393-1633

Thanks, I'll give them a try. I was hoping to find a place that had decent fish and chips on their regular menu and not just Friday. Sometimes, you just can't control when that feeling will hit you!

John Danza wrote:My wife and I had a taste for fish and chips yesterday, so we headed off to Ballydoyle in Downers Grove based on some of the posts here. I don't know if they were having an off night or if they've changed since the others here posted, but it was absolutely awful.

When the plate arrived, it contained three fried "balls" that had no resemblence to fish filets. Literally, they were somewhat spherical and the size of baseballs. The batter was crispy on the outside, but thick and goopy on the inside. The ratio of fish to batter was about 50%. It was impossible to actually taste the fish because of the amount of batter. The fish itself, when separated from the batter, had no taste. My wife and I concluded that we would have had better fish at Long John Silver's.

The fries were fine.

I still hope to find a good fish and chips place in the western 'burbs. Any thoughts?

John


Ballydoyle Irish Pub
http://www.ballydoylepub.com

5157 Main St
Downers Grove, IL 60515
(630) 969-0600

Oh Lord, really sorry to hear that....then something has definitely changed, as I'd swear by them before. I had about three meals there, two being the fish, and they were always excellent.

I hope the Gage remains true their Fish and Chips.

I can also recommend Club 81 Too ( http://centerstagechicago.com/restaurants/club-81.html ) in Hegewisch. I get the Hungry Man Walleye for about $16.00, and it is excellent. It's a very old school place, and I hope they keep it that way!

We went to the Towne Tap this past Friday night for their fish fry. Got there about 7:30 and the place was packed... no problem; we sat at the bar @ had a few. My husband ordered the perch dinner for himself, while I went next door to order a pizza from Al's (they walk it over to the bar). The fish dinner arrived... to our disappointment there was 2 small pieces of fish, one very overdone and both tasted very fishy. The cole slaw was good, the fries too much on the greasy side. The pizza then arrived... it was pretty good, especially in comparison to the fish.

All in all, I'd definitely go back to the Towne Tap for a few drinks & pizza, but would skip the fish fry from now on.

Oh, I forgot to mention that we did have a good fish fry (not AYCE) at the Claddaugh on Randall in Geneva. This was a few years ago, but I don't think the place has changed much.

wineaux wrote:Oh, I forgot to mention that we did have a good fish fry (not AYCE) at the Claddaugh on Randall in Geneva. This was a few years ago, but I don't think the place has changed much.

Claddagh closed last year.

jlawrence01 wrote:

wineaux wrote:Oh, I forgot to mention that we did have a good fish fry (not AYCE) at the Claddaugh on Randall in Geneva. This was a few years ago, but I don't think the place has changed much.

Claddagh closed last year.

The Geneva one is still open. The Algonquin one closed.

That's good news about the Geneva location.... we don't get out there often, but have always enjoyed it when we do!

The only fish and chips thread I saw out there was from 2005 so I thought it would be okay if I posted a new one.

Fish and Chips Friday has become a regular tradition for me and my wife. She loves fish and chips. I don't eat any seafood so I end up getting something else on the menu. Normally we go to Edgewater Lounge which is fine but I was hoping to try something new this evening. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

I'm no purist but I've enjoyed the F & C at the Gage, Shaws Crab House (In the Oyster Bar) and Duke's

I'll second the recommendation for Duke of Perth (2913 N Clark Street) as my favorite F n C in the city, a status certainly aided by a great British/Scottish beer selection, all-you-can-eat F n C Wednesdays & Fridays, and the fact that they default to having malt vinegar already on all of the tables. Crunchy battered strips of cod, nice dark seemingly hand-cut fries, and peas on the plate to give your arteries a brief respite from the fried fish fest.

Such_Luck wrote:The only fish and chips thread I saw out there was from 2005 so I thought it would be okay if I posted a new one.

Fish and Chips Friday has become a regular tradition for me and my wife. She loves fish and chips. I don't eat any seafood so I end up getting something else on the menu. Normally we go to Edgewater Lounge which is fine but I was hoping to try something new this evening. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

Wow. I saw the thread title and was all prepared to type 'Edgewater Lounge'. Well, when we wanted a different fish fry, we'd go south on Clark to Duke of Perth.

EDIT: ...and Duke's seems to be getting posted by others before I can finish typing it. Add me to the growing list.