Restaurant Review Grand Marais Edition: Dockside Fish Market

Looking tired and waiting for our food at Dockside Fish Market

One of the many reasons Mark and I were excited to be going to Grand Marais was for some fish. We figured that since the town was on the shore they had to have some good fish and TripAdvisor confirmed our hunch with some pleasant reviews about a couple restaurants. Since we were only going to be in Grand Marais a few days we knew we wouldn't be able to try all the seafood restaurants, so we narrowed it down to two and make sure to try at least one.

As soon as we arrived at the lodge I was feigning for some fish so we checked in, threw our bags into the room, and headed into town for some grub. We quickly located all of the restaurants we planned to try, but I was still in the mood for fish. So we headed over to Dockside Fish Market to get me my fix.

The place itself is pretty small with a lot of stuff in it. They have a large cooler with fish for purchase, a small island of spices, sauces, and mixes, a "gift shop" in the corner, some seating, and a counter for ordering your food. They also have a patio overlooking the dock, which was pretty cool. It made Mark and I feel like we were in Collinport, MA straight out of one of our favorite TV shows, Dark Shadows.

View from patio

As we glanced over the menu we noticed that they had 5 kinds of fish available on their "fish and chips" section. This was perfect because that was exactly what we were both in the mood for. After deciding on the type of fish we were each going to get we noticed that we could either get a fish and chips basket or a fish burger basket. Not really thinking they would be much different (other than the sandwich having bread) we both went with the burger basket.

Mark had been wanting some walleye, he ordered the walleye burger basket while I got the cod burger basket. The fish was beer battered and deep fried to crispy deliciousness. They came on a hot dog bun with a piece of lettuce and a side of tartar sauce. Both of us really enjoyed our fish and thought the tartar sauce was phenomenal. The batter was perfectly flavored and tasted exactly how I had drummed it up in my head. I can't stress enough that the fish did not disappoint.

Mark's walleye burger basket

Digging in

Another item that both Mark and I thought was exceptional were the fries. They were deep fried in the same beer batter as the fish. I am a huge fry girl, but hardly ever get the chance to eat any, so when I do have them I want them to be really good and these hit. the. spot.

However, one thing we were rather disappointed in was our decision to go with the burger basket instead of straight up fish and chips. This is nobody's fault but our own but definitely something we regret. You see when you order the fish and chips it comes with 4 pieces of amazingly tasty fish, but when you order the burger basket it only comes with 2 pieces of fish, a nothing-special bun, and a piece of lettuce. So as a word to the wise and a note to self: DON'T STRAY FROM THE FISH AND CHIPS; DISAPPOINTMENT WILL ENSUE.

Other than that unfortunate decision, we thought that Dockside was fun, scenic, and a mighty good stomach pleaser.