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An open taco with a piece of fried fish.
A tempura-breaded fish taco from Forastero.
Forastero

Chicago’s Most Unique Pieces of Fried Fish

Find crispy pieces of seafood to spice up your lives

by Ashok Selvam
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A tempura-breaded fish taco from Forastero.
| Forastero
by Ashok Selvam

Why, yesm it’s the season for fried fish specials, with fast-food restaurants bombarding TV with ads featuring their annual offerings. Of course, Chicago can do better than that for Lent or just because its residents enjoy the taste of a perfectly fried piece of fish. Traditional fish and chips are great, but sometimes folks have a craving for something a little spicier. To remedy this, here are a few unique pieces of fried fish. Many of them feature international flavor and go beyond salt, vinegar, and tartar sauce.

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Crispy Town

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Inside Seafood City, the Filipino-based pan Asian grocer, the food court features a palace of fried food called Crispy Town. There’s tons of crispy goodness to pick from, but for fish lovers the fried smelt is the go to.

5033 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60630
Sarah Joyce/Eater Chicago

Hermosa Restaurant

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For Lent, sandwich maestro Ethan Lim has experimented with fish cakes to give Chicago a Korean version of the McDonald’s Filet O’ Fish. Be on the lookout for when this special item is available.

4356 W Armitage Ave, Chicago, IL 60639
(872) 802-4920
(872) 802-4920

Also featured in:

Basant Modern Indian Restaurant

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This North Center upstart serves Indian food with a modern twist. Even after the end of the colonial era, India retains a British influence, and that’s given the country a legacy of English-style fried fish, something even useful due to the Catholic population within the subcontinent. Basant is spinning the Friday fish fry with a masala chaat batter and hand-cut chips.

1939 W Byron St, Chicago, IL 60613
(773) 770-3616
(773) 770-3616

Also featured in:

Wazwan

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Wazwan features both South Asian and Filipino flavors, with the latter courtesy of chef de cuisine Chris de La Cueva. A new menu item is the inaloban, a crispy fish strew served with a light broth, vegetables, and rice noodles. This is a symphony of textures and spices with all the ingredients harmonizing for a delicious bite.

1742 W Division St, Chicago, IL 60622
(708) 369-9564
(708) 369-9564

Also featured in:

El Barco Mariscos

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This Mexican seafood specialist serves the traditional whole red snapper fried. Many Mexican restaurant in town service this delicacy, but El Barco is among the best.

1035 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 486-6850
(773) 486-6850

Also featured in:

The Mukase African Restaurant

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This North Side African restaurant has a standout seafood dish available with fried snapper: Fried Fish With Kenkey. Kenkey is a Ghanaian dish made of fermented corn and is served like a dumpling. This price dish comes with onions and tomatoes.

1363 W Wilson Ave, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 754-7121
(773) 754-7121

In-On Thai

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This stellar North Side Thai restaurant will never disappoint. There are a few fried fish options, but it’s always a good choice to explore anything bearing the “salad” descriptor. In that case, the choice is simple and elegant crispy fish salad with lime dressing, shallot, scallion and green apple. There’s also the spicier jungle salad variant.

4641 N Broadway, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 944-0114
(773) 944-0114

Also featured in:

Hai Yen Restaurant

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This iconic restaurant in Uptown in the Asia on Argyle area features a homestyle DIY whole fried catfish spring roll that requires two hours of advance preparation. It’s called Cá Cuốn Bánh Tráng and is rarely seen on Vietnamese restaurant menus in Chicago.

1055 W Argyle St # 1, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 561-4077
(773) 561-4077

Also featured in:

Antique Taco Bridgeport

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There are two locations of this modern taqueria. In Wicker Park and Bridgeport, customers can find the signature fried fish taco — tempura battered cod with smoked cabbage and a spicy tartar sauce.

1000 W 35th St, Chicago, IL 60609
(773) 823-9410
(773) 823-9410

Also featured in:

Forastero Restaurant

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This Old Town fast-casual fusion restaurant blends Mexican and Korean flavors in tacos and chicken wings. One of the strongest items is the fish taco. It’s tempura fried and topped with a Korean-style aioli.

449 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 265-0322
(312) 265-0322
An open taco with a piece of fried fish. Forestero

Wentworth Seafood House

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This Chinatown staple serves one of the best renditions of a classic Cantonese dish: Salt & Pepper fish.

2229 S Wentworth Ave, Chicago, IL 60616
(312) 808-0899
(312) 808-0899

Also featured in:

Lure Fishbar - Chicago

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This NY sushi favorite is known for crowd-pleasing whole-fish dishes. That includes the Crispy Asian Snapper, which comes with spicy ginger, fried rice, and stir-fried vegetables.

616 N Rush St, Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 660-6180
(312) 660-6180
Crispy red snapper
Lure Fish Bar

Also featured in:

Chant Restaurant In Hyde Park

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In Hyde Park, Chant serves an international menu that includes wok-prepared stir fries with Asian flavors. Chief among them includes a crispy catfish with sambal. It’s then slathered with remoulade and served with... macaroni and cheese. Don't knock it before trying it.

1509 E 53rd St, Chicago, IL 60615
(773) 324-1999
(773) 324-1999

Also featured in:

Ashok Selvam is the regional editor for Eater Midwest and in charge of coverage in Chicago, Detroit, and the Twin Cities. He's a native Chicagoan and has been with Eater since 2014.

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Crispy Town

5033 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60630

Inside Seafood City, the Filipino-based pan Asian grocer, the food court features a palace of fried food called Crispy Town. There’s tons of crispy goodness to pick from, but for fish lovers the fried smelt is the go to.

5033 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60630
Sarah Joyce/Eater Chicago

Hermosa Restaurant

4356 W Armitage Ave, Chicago, IL 60639

For Lent, sandwich maestro Ethan Lim has experimented with fish cakes to give Chicago a Korean version of the McDonald’s Filet O’ Fish. Be on the lookout for when this special item is available.

4356 W Armitage Ave, Chicago, IL 60639
(872) 802-4920
(872) 802-4920

Basant Modern Indian Restaurant

1939 W Byron St, Chicago, IL 60613

This North Center upstart serves Indian food with a modern twist. Even after the end of the colonial era, India retains a British influence, and that’s given the country a legacy of English-style fried fish, something even useful due to the Catholic population within the subcontinent. Basant is spinning the Friday fish fry with a masala chaat batter and hand-cut chips.

1939 W Byron St, Chicago, IL 60613
(773) 770-3616
(773) 770-3616

Wazwan

1742 W Division St, Chicago, IL 60622

Wazwan features both South Asian and Filipino flavors, with the latter courtesy of chef de cuisine Chris de La Cueva. A new menu item is the inaloban, a crispy fish strew served with a light broth, vegetables, and rice noodles. This is a symphony of textures and spices with all the ingredients harmonizing for a delicious bite.

1742 W Division St, Chicago, IL 60622
(708) 369-9564
(708) 369-9564

El Barco Mariscos

1035 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60622

This Mexican seafood specialist serves the traditional whole red snapper fried. Many Mexican restaurant in town service this delicacy, but El Barco is among the best.

1035 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 486-6850
(773) 486-6850

The Mukase African Restaurant

1363 W Wilson Ave, Chicago, IL 60640

This North Side African restaurant has a standout seafood dish available with fried snapper: Fried Fish With Kenkey. Kenkey is a Ghanaian dish made of fermented corn and is served like a dumpling. This price dish comes with onions and tomatoes.

1363 W Wilson Ave, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 754-7121
(773) 754-7121

In-On Thai

4641 N Broadway, Chicago, IL 60640

This stellar North Side Thai restaurant will never disappoint. There are a few fried fish options, but it’s always a good choice to explore anything bearing the “salad” descriptor. In that case, the choice is simple and elegant crispy fish salad with lime dressing, shallot, scallion and green apple. There’s also the spicier jungle salad variant.

4641 N Broadway, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 944-0114
(773) 944-0114

Hai Yen Restaurant

1055 W Argyle St # 1, Chicago, IL 60640

This iconic restaurant in Uptown in the Asia on Argyle area features a homestyle DIY whole fried catfish spring roll that requires two hours of advance preparation. It’s called Cá Cuốn Bánh Tráng and is rarely seen on Vietnamese restaurant menus in Chicago.

1055 W Argyle St # 1, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 561-4077
(773) 561-4077

Antique Taco Bridgeport

1000 W 35th St, Chicago, IL 60609

There are two locations of this modern taqueria. In Wicker Park and Bridgeport, customers can find the signature fried fish taco — tempura battered cod with smoked cabbage and a spicy tartar sauce.

1000 W 35th St, Chicago, IL 60609
(773) 823-9410
(773) 823-9410

Forastero Restaurant

449 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60610

This Old Town fast-casual fusion restaurant blends Mexican and Korean flavors in tacos and chicken wings. One of the strongest items is the fish taco. It’s tempura fried and topped with a Korean-style aioli.

449 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 265-0322
(312) 265-0322
An open taco with a piece of fried fish. Forestero

Wentworth Seafood House

2229 S Wentworth Ave, Chicago, IL 60616

This Chinatown staple serves one of the best renditions of a classic Cantonese dish: Salt & Pepper fish.

2229 S Wentworth Ave, Chicago, IL 60616
(312) 808-0899
(312) 808-0899

Lure Fishbar - Chicago

616 N Rush St, Chicago, IL 60611

This NY sushi favorite is known for crowd-pleasing whole-fish dishes. That includes the Crispy Asian Snapper, which comes with spicy ginger, fried rice, and stir-fried vegetables.

616 N Rush St, Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 660-6180
(312) 660-6180
Crispy red snapper
Lure Fish Bar

Chant Restaurant In Hyde Park

1509 E 53rd St, Chicago, IL 60615

In Hyde Park, Chant serves an international menu that includes wok-prepared stir fries with Asian flavors. Chief among them includes a crispy catfish with sambal. It’s then slathered with remoulade and served with... macaroni and cheese. Don't knock it before trying it.

1509 E 53rd St, Chicago, IL 60615
(773) 324-1999
(773) 324-1999

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