Getting fishy: Lenten dinners heat up Fridays at Calabash VFW

Fried fish is already a buzzword in the seafood capital.

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Former Post commander Jack Goin fries fresh haddock for Lenten dinners at Calabash VFW Post 7288.

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During Lent, it takes on renewed meaning at Calabash VFW Post 7288.

The Post has once again fired up its annual Friday-night Lenten fish fries.

Dinners consisting of fried and breaded fresh haddock with all the trimmings will be served 5-7 p.m. Fridays through Good Friday, March 29.

Dinners this year are still $9 per plate. An extra cup of clam chowder is just $1.

Preparation for the dinners is a “madhouse,” VFW Post and auxiliary good-naturedly joke as they toil in the kitchen.

Preparation begins days ahead of time when fresh fish is delivered to the Post at 900 Carter Drive in Calabash.

VFW volunteer Trish McCormick came up with the idea to launch the Lenten fish fries eight years ago. In addition to preparing the fish, she stirred up fish breading, coleslaw and clam chowder.

Her husband, VFW quartermaster Bill McCormick, stayed busy cooking fish and fries in hot oil alongside former post commander Jack Goin, who joked the secret for cooking Lenten fish is all in the wrist.

Other VFW volunteers dish up plates of food and ladle clam chowder into cups for hungry customers during the intense two-hour kitchen assembly-line operation.

Customers among the roomful of hungry diners say they enjoy the dinners and that it’s better than trying to cook it themselves at home.

As the VFW volunteers toil back in the kitchen, they get their just rewards with happy customers, underscored by a woman from a previous year who came to the counter to compliment the chefs.

“The fish was excellent!” she called.

For more information about this year’s Lenten dinners, call Calabash VFW at 579-3577.

IF YOU GO

What: Calabash VFW Post 7288 Lenten fish fry dinners

When: 5-7 p.m. Fridays through March 29

Where: 900 Carter Drive, Calabash

How much: $9 per dinner; $1 for homemade clam chowder

For more information, call the VFW at 579-3577