Home-Cooked Friday Fish Fry - Sammie Sandwich - The Grape Report
Masonic Fried Fish Ritual
Food Review by Gary Gardiner
Remember this for next year: the Masonic Lodge’s all-you-can-eat fish fry may be the best bargain in town.
Get there early. The line runs out the door, and the cooks can barely keep up as diners return for seconds.
That demand starts well before the first plate is served. Frozen pollock arrives several days ahead of the event and is thawed in a cooler before members gather for a battering party, coating each piece in a mixture of cornmeal, flour and secret seasonings.
Outside, the cooking crew works over propane-fueled fryers, checking the oil with a laser thermometer and keeping it at 375 degrees before the next order goes in. Fish comes out steaming and golden, ready for trays and dinner plates, almost as quickly as the line moves.
The fries get the same attention. Workers hand-cut 200 pounds of russet potatoes, soak them in a salt brine, then run them through a two-fryer process that leaves them crisp on the outside and hot inside. A final shake of seasoned salt finishes each batch.
Inside, families fill the tables with plates piled high with fried fish, hand-cut fries, and sides. The crowd, the pace in the kitchen, and the steady return trips for seconds all point to the same conclusion: this is more than a meal. It is one of the town’s most popular traditions.
Sheetz Fish Stick Sandwich
Food Review by Gary Gardiner
Sheetz’s Friday fish sandwich with curly fries may be the best simple choice of the season.
It comes on a standard toasted bun with lettuce, American cheese and three fried fish wedges. The tartar sauce, Ken’s Steak House brand, is served on the side.
The fish is crispy, with a coating that looks like panko breadcrumbs, and the fillets are firm. The menu does not specify either the type of coating or the variety of fish.
The sandwich cost $4.99, and the fries were $4.49. A 40-ounce Arnold Palmer, half tea and half lemonade, was $1.99.
Next year, when the Lenten ritual returns, I would choose this over the other fast-food fish offerings from McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Burger King.
The Green Grape Report
Food Review by Gary Gardiner
Kroger - Schrock Road
Price – $1.88 a pound with digital coupon.
PLU Code – 4022 and 3491
The Review
The search for great grapes at great prices typically results in buying just one variety. This Sunday was slightly different. I bought two types of grapes at Kroger on Schrock Road.
The grapes with PLU 4022 are the ordinary Peruvian and Chilean grapes found at this time of year. They are sweet and crisp, and a single grape makes a nice serving at 29 by 24 millimeters.
The 3491 Greentree Sweeties ARRA FIFTEEN grapes from Chile weigh 13 grams each and are almost twice as large as the 4022 grapes, measuring 55 by 22 millimeters.
I took my own advice from last week and did not measure the sugar density of this purchase. Both varieties were sweet and crisp.
A quick bit of research showed that ARRA FIFTEEN grapes are crisp, seedless table grapes with a non-slip-skin texture, bred for good storage and shipping.
I enjoyed them after refrigerating them when I got home. Now I am wondering what unusual grape will arrive next week.
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