American Slovak Club
 Cleveland, Ohio        Date of Visit  11/20/15        http://www.americanslovakclub.com  

We had seen the American Slovak Club on TV a couple years ago and wanted to give their decades long fish fry a try. We had an offer for some Lutheran Chili but the episode just re-aired, our memories refreshed, and we are in Lorain and walking through the Slovak bowling alley/bar/rentable rooms and into the crowded fish fry for some Catholic fish. Sorry Martin (Luther, not Lawrence or Short or Mull). They open at 11:00 a.m. and serve til 8:00. We thought we would be ahead of the rush and most of the tables were already full.
 

Soda & Beer Available At The Internal Bar
 

The place looks like it has been serving fish for 59 years, it’s shows some wear. The servers are not pro’s but the service shows decades of efficiency. Sit, order, get a beverage (carbonated or adult at the bar/water or tea from your attendant) and food is already arriving. We ordered the fish (duh) and stuffed cabbage rolls. The fish comes with fries and slaw (as traditional as the setting), the rolls with a salad and mash. We added perogi (how its spelled on the menu) and cabbage and noodles. 

A basket hits the table almost instantly. It has sandwich baggies with two slices of bread inside, one pasty white, the other plastic bag wheatish. Beneath the bread are cups of butter. I imagine someone at some point suggested using a cheaper “spread”. I also imagine they are no longer in the club. The cold and fresh salad arrived with a cup of vinaigrette. Never really thought I would say this…it might have been a bit much. It was balanced alright but the intensity was out of control, so much bite I liked it and hated it at the same time.
 

When it comes to portioning, you are not going to leave hungry. We saw a sign that said they had pie while we were eating…I don’t imagine they sell much of it…couldn’t even think about bringing it home, we were so full. I was hoping for more from the fish. Fresh perch, well fried, but the coating didn’t really help bring out the sweetness of the prized little Erie fish. Good, wanted extraordinary. The fries were pretty standard. I found the same “too-safe-for-me” seasoning in the cabbage rolls but the mash was stupendous. The cabbage rolls were full of meat, tender, fine. The mash was almost without texture it was so smooth and light. It had just enough seasoning to make it taste even more tatery. I haven’t had mash like that for a long time, since our old secret location. The noodles and cabbage didn't seem to be seasoned at all, could have gone without that addition. The perogi were reclining in a bath of butter and seemed to have a thicker exterior noodle resulting in more texture than you would find in something out of the freezer case.
 

Plates are Loaded
 

Functional Fries Are Completely Slain By...
 

Rolls Galore Need Seasoning As Well...
 

 Lutheran chili, Catholic fish. Might be oversold but still good folks churning out good food for what I assume are good causes. More power to them.