Catfish. Shrimp. Gumbo. Poboys. The Flying Fish Restaurant offers the seafood fare that you crave while visiting the South.
This place is so popular, I was shocked that there was a line out the door when I was hoping to beat the crowds with an early bird dinner at 4PM! The line moves pretty quickly though, and the food was enjoyable so it is worth wait. You order up at the counter, there is ample opportunity to grab a menu outside or see it displayed inside to know exactly what you want by the time you are next. Upon payment you’ll receive a buzzer, when it goes off you grab your meal and head back to your table. There is plenty of seating, even with the crowd. Jazz up your meal with complimentary tarter sauce, cocktail sauce, ketchup, onions, and lemons. While your food is being cooked up hot and fresh, check out the fun atmosphere. The ‘Billy Bass Adoption Center’ is what drew me to this restaurant in the first place.
The walls are covered with bass both singing and taxidermied catches!
There must be hundreds of them, some are even bedazzled.
If you have a Billy Bass at home that you want to donate, you’ll get a free basket of catfish. Don’t worry, the restaurant promises to house, shelter, love, and protect each adopted bass. You can also participate in the “Liars Wall” by brining in a photo with your big catch, and maybe lying about its size!
Come for the whacky decor, stay for great the food.
And on to the food! The fried catfish and shrimp combo was incredible – made it ‘snappy’ for an extra flare. The breading was superbly crunch and stayed on the fresh fish with each bite.
The meal came with French fries and hush puppies to solidify the fried food extravaganza. The whole fried snapper vera cruz was a tasty and unique meal with a nice presentation.
Get a side of vera cruz sauce, great to dip the catfish in, pour over the snapper, and generally eat as a soup as well.
Extremely flavorful and nourishing with its huge hunks of vegetables. A great note is that the restaurant tells you where your seafood is coming from. Oysters and shrimp are from the Gulf of Mexico and the catfish is farm raised in Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. There are multiple Flying Fish locations in Arkansas, Texas, and one in Tennessee.
Good to know:
+Parking in downtown Little Rock is free after 6PM and on weekends