ref=”https://thinktasty1.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Atlantic-Fish-Company.jpg”>Black Friday was an exciting day at our house but not because we were dashing to early morning (late night?) sales.  It was exciting because there were no sporting events, practices, or work meetings to attend.  As we knew all of this weeks in advance, we planned to take our kids to Boston for the day.  The plan was to visit a museum or two and browse the shops on Newbury Street.  While it was a wonderful day, our thirteen year old daughter and I never made it to the art museum.  The lure of visiting more shops was more appealing than studying watercolors.  How could I resist?  She’s a great shopper, and the weather was perfect for walking from store to store.

My husband and our fifteen year old son returned from their trip to the MIT Museum, which they enjoyed, and we browsed a few more shops together.  After six or seven hours of walking and talking, we were ready for dinner.  Hoping to appease both the vegetarian and wrestler in training, we decided to head to Atlantic Fish Company.  My husband and I have dined here several times and have always received fabulous service and great food.  This evening was no different.

As we arrived around 5:30, we were able to beat the dinner rush and were seated promptly.  We received menus and water promptly, followed shortly thereafter by our waitress.  She detailed the day’s specials and highlighted dishes on the menu and took our drink order before leaving us to decide.  It is a rather large and tasty menu, so we definitely needed a few minutes.

To give us more time to decide and to allow us to enjoy a little more of the menu, we started with one of that day’s specials, the Lobster and Crab Salad.  Layered with avocado and served with endive leaves for scooping, it was a delicious and not too heavy start to the meal.

Our daughter chose the fish and chips.  Although a fish-eating vegetarian, she is slowly expanding her range of fish, so the haddock was a perfect choice for her.  For sides she chose the mashed potatoes (a perennial favorite side of hers) and coleslaw.  The fish had a flaky coating that was neither greasy nor overpowering to the fish.  The serving of mashed potatoes was huge, but she made her best attempt to finish it.

Our son had a hard time deciding, as he enjoys almost all seafood items.  However, he also was debating what to eat with wrestling season under way.  He made a compromise with himself: he would order the bread bowl of their award-winning Clam Chowder, which was indulgent, but that would be his entire meal.  He thought the chowder was worthy of awards with its creamy consistency and hearty portion of clams.

I ordered the Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes, which is my default seafood order.  Although I enjoy many types of seafood, I have a weak spot for crab cakes that are made well.  As I guessed, these crab cakes were delightful; tender pieces of crab meat were the star of the cakes.  Served with green beans and corn pudding, it was a fabulous dinner.

My husband ordered only a Classic Caesar Salad.  At first I wondered if something were wrong, as that isn’t a filling meal for him.  Once our meals arrived, I realized the true intent of his plan.  Neither my daughter nor I would be finishing our meals, which meant that my husband was receiving three meals instead of one!  He not only enjoyed the salad but also coleslaw, fried haddock, a crab cake, and corn pudding.

After a dinner as big as this there was no room in any of our appetites for dessert.  Filled with great food and terrific memories from the day, we began our journey home.