The last supper

Blessed Sacrament
2233 Diamond, N.E.
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
north of Knapp, between Fuller and Plainfield

Click here for a map

Date of visit: March 21

Parking: school parking lot, street parking, fairly easy despite the snow

Cost: $7.50

Wait: About 15 minutes

Tables: banquet tables with chairs

No gambling opportunities!

Highlights:

• very efficient operation
• entertainment
• both baked and fried fish about equally tasty
• stylish aprons

Sweet Home Alabama? Not quite—it was definitely Michigan as we arrived at Blessed Sacrament School on Good Friday for the last fish fry of the season. However, the nasty winter weather on the second day of spring wasn’t much of a deterrent for faithful fish eaters. When we arrived close to 6 p.m., there was a line, but the wait was made more pleasant by friendly people and a guitar duo who serenaded us with the well-known Lynyrd Skynyrd tune and others.

BS has a very streamlined operation. When you purchase your meal, you’re asked: baked or fried fish (cod), baked potato or French fries, applesauce or cole slaw. You’re then handed a slip of paper with your choices highlighted, and give that to the kitchen worker who quickly presents you with a tray holding a plate containing your choices. Then you enter the gym, where you pick up cutlery, a lettuce salad, roll, condiments, and beverage.

The gym was crowded, but we were able to find seating for the eight of us. In the taste department, the consensus was that the baked fish barely inched out the fried. Volunteers, including members of Boy Scout Troop 230, whisked away the trays as soon as we sat down, and made many attempts to top off our coffee cups which contained not coffee but Bell’s Amber Ale. Signs notified us that because it was Good Friday, there would be no seconds, but the amount of food was ample and I doubt if anyone went away hungry. The ubiquitous dessert table had a mix of home-made and store-bought treats.

As far as we know, BS was the only church-run fish fry held on Good Friday in Grand Rapids. Not only was it the last fish fry of the season, but it was also the last one to be held in the building as it has been known as Blessed Sacrament School. Sweatshirts were on sale for All Saints School, which Blessed Sacrament School will become next fall as the result of several Catholic grade schools closing.

Would we return? Perhaps ... it was a good, all-around fish fry, and having it on Good Friday was an added plus.

Area for improvement: allow diners the option of having some fried and some baked fish