By the Dashing Dialog Diner
Your Dashing Diner was a tad confused as he wandered into the social hall at St. Joseph’s Church on French Street one recent Friday.
DDD is accustomed to fish dinners on Fridays in Lent, but not at 11:30 in the morning.
It turns out, St. Joseph’s has a unique twist, providing its fish fry dinner between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Fridays in Lent. It’s brilliant, especially considering the church is nestled among the office complexes of downtown Wilmington.
For $12, diners get two crispy fried pieces of whiting, a choice of two sides and a drink. For dainty diners, a simple fish sandwich can be had for $7.
The fish, coated and fried on site with Deacon Bob Cousar’s special seasoning, is a big hit, and the side dishes are remarkable. On this visit, the Diner dug into some green beans and an order of cole slaw. The beans were tasty and had some crunch to them and the slaw was … well, the Diner has long been known as a cole slaw fiend and this offering did the trick. The potato salad was also tantalizing.
DDD’s sidekick was convinced to try something different, ordering the mac-and-cheese along with collard greens with the fish. The feedback was strong. “Although the whiting was great and the collard greens were superb, the highlight of the meal was the homemade mac-and-cheese. I have never had better. Made fresh each Thursday night by a parishioner using five types of cheese, it was absolutely delicious.”
It made me jealous, but there is always next week.
The social hall at St. Joseph’s is warm and welcoming and the church is just a few steps away from the hall. We were very fortunate to be finished in time for 12:10 p.m. Mass with Father Glenn Evers, church pastor.
Put St. Joseph’s on your calendar for lunch or an early dinner for Fridays in Lent.
