Last year, five local restaurants got together with the Louisiana Hospitality Foundation to offer curbside fish frys during Lent. Not only did the Friday fry-ups benefit the restaurants, but a portion of the proceeds was donated to help hospitality workers all over the GNO who were furloughed due to the pandemic. In a short time, with only those few participating restaurants, they were able to raise over $12,000 for those in need.
This year, they’re doing it again on a much larger scale with 39 participating restaurants donating $1 of every fish fry entrée sold to Hospitality Cares, a partnership between Louisiana Hospitality Foundation and United Way of Southeast Louisiana. Hospitality Cares offers varying resources to individuals working in the industry, from free civil legal aid and counseling to emergency financial assistance. The emergency grants award up to $2,500 to eligible employees at hospitality businesses running active United Way workplace campaigns in Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes.
“The pandemic has hit the hospitality sector the hardest,” said Michael Williamson, UWSELA President and CEO. “Our community always comes together to help those in need, and this campaign is no different. The restaurants themselves are stepping up to keep the industry alive while providing a safety net for its employees through Hospitality Cares.”
Though all of the dishes offered in the Fish Fry Fridays campaign sound both delicious and affordable, there were a few that evoked an almost-Pavlovian response in me (including Pêche’s Whole Fish Fry Friday I wrote about on Wednesday):
The Avenue Pub
Beer Battered Fish & Chips featuring flash fried catfish, house made fries, and cucumber salad $13
Broussard’s
Bronzed Redfish with Louisiana lump crab, seasonal vegetables and lemon beurre blanc $30
Brown Butter Southern Kitchen & Bar
Mustard Fried Fish with hand cut fries, green chili hushpuppies, black-eyed pea salad and pecan cane slaw $16
Effervescence Bubbles & Bites
Grilled Oyster Dinner – Murder Point oysters with espelette butter and lemon, vegetable remoulade salad, garlic bread, pommes frites and seasonal aioli $36
Grand Isle
Pecan Crusted Catfish with Creole meuniere and jalapeno corn grits $18
Rosedale
Fried Oyster Linguine served with artichokes, chilis and lemon garlic butter $20
Toups’ Meatery
Beer battered fried fish sandwich with carrot and cabbage slaw, crawfish hushpuppies and a local brew $23
Tsunami
Sapporo Tempura Catch of the Day with house-made nori chips and wasabi tartar sauce $12
