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Read More about this safari issue.We adore fried catfish in these parts. And whether it is a small town, big city, or anywhere in-between, great fried catfish can be found all over Arkansas. Below are my eight favorite spots, followed by 20 reader suggestions collected from my personal blog, The Mighty Rib.
Do yourself a favor and head to Des Arc on a Saturday evening to partake in Dondie’s buffet. The centerpiece is the never-ending fried catfish. The bins on a busy night are refilled every 10 minutes for the insanely popular, golden, crispy fried catfish. Just being in the restaurant is a memorable experience.
At The Whippet, pleasantly under-seasoned, lightly cornmeal-coated fried strips pair well with accompanying sides, known collectively as “The Set-Up.” This includes tomato relish, slaw, hush puppies, and some wildly addictive beans.
Yes, at JoJo’s the popular hush puppies are complimentary and the fried okra is crazy good, but it is probably the fried catfish that has brought you through the door. It will not disappoint.
I have written extensively about Crazee’s Café’s fried catfish over the past few years, and for good reason. It is amazing. Thick, generously breaded and well-seasoned pieces of the fish pair well with sweet slaw and hush puppies.
Like many joints in Arkansas, Smokin’ Buns focuses its menu around barbecue and fried catfish, the latter of which has a clean taste and super crispy texture.
If possible, go to Hurley House Café for both the fried catfish and cheeseburger. The restaurant has Fish Friday, with a buffet filled with farm-raised, hand-breaded catfish steaks, fillets, and all the trimmings. A drink and dessert are included for the reasonable price of $11.99.
The brunch service at Café Rue Orleans offers the most creative entry on this list with its Catfish Tchoupitoulas, a dish that includes an enormous piece of crab-stuffed, fried catfish covered in a seafood cream sauce with a side of cheesy potatoes.
Jefferson Regional in Pine Bluff is the ultimate unexpected inclusion here, but it absolutely belongs. The hospital does a “Fancy Friday” menu that includes, you guessed it, fried catfish. The sizable pieces of fried catfish are the real deal and go wonderfully with a side of greens.
Lassis Inn (Little Rock)
Catfish Hole (Fayetteville)
Bull Pen Restaurant (DeWitt)
Red’s Restaurant (Fordyce)
Woods Place (Camden)
Bubba’s Catfish & Seafood (Hot Springs)
Crossroads Café and Catering (Cabot)
Nick’s Bar-B-Q & Catfish (Carlisle)
BJ’s Market Café (North Little Rock)
Fred’s Fish House (Mountain Home)
Brewster’s 2 Café (Little Rock)
The Hook Catfish Restaurant (Jacksonville)
Abe’s Ole Feed House (Lawson)
Ron’s Catfish (Jonesboro)
Seaton’s Scott Place (Scott)
Mr. Whiskers (Hot Springs)
Hog Pen BBQ (Conway)
Molly’s Dinner (Warren)
Southern Girls BBQ (Pangburn)
Bobby’s Café (North Little Rock)
KJ’s (Judsonia)
Lindsey’s BBQ & Hospitality House (North Little Rock)
Emma Lee’s (Hot Springs)
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You missed the best catfish in the state of Arkansas – Eat My Catfish!
Glenn’s Smokehouse in Searcy has AMAZING catfish!!!
Black Angus in Little Rock has great catfish, but only on Friday and Saturday.
I cant believe no mention of Catfish John in Roger’s. My favorite by far.
Cecil store in Cecil Arkansas is the best in Franklin county
Brown’s Catfish in Russellville AR is a awesome buffet and has some the best food in AR for sure… Should have been a top ten on this list…
Claire’s in Tyronza, Ar is the best fried catfish I have ever had. Only served on Friday nights and it is usually packed. People from Marion, West Memphis come to eat here. I usually don’t like hush puppies but these are the best
Where’s Huckleberry’s in Searcy y’all?
Pruitt’s of Lonoke Arkansas should be on that list they have the most amazing fish.
Wards in Hotsprings has some amazing fried cat fish. They also have crawfish, crab legs. Its called wards the crawfish hole
The catfish at Rays in Monticello is really good.
thanks to all for making Brewsters 2 cafe one of Little Rock top spots for catfish we are so thankful
We ate at the catfish hole today. The best catfish I have ever had and the hush puppies were perfect. will definitely go back soon
Huckleberry’s in Searcy is amazing. There are you can eat and they also have crab legs for an additional price. Where my daddy comes to town he always wants to go there. He eats there at least twice in the 3 days that he’s here. That’s says a lot because he’s very picky when it comes to fish. As well as there’s a very good fish market in Des Arc call White & Son Fishmarket.
Big Creek Catfish Pangburn, AR
Murray’s
Hazen
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Murray’s
Hazen
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MARY WHERE IS EAT MY CATFISH?
Rebecca, they have one in Little Rock and in Benton.
Eat My Catfish in Benton and Conway is the very BEST. Locations in Little Rock and North Little Rock also. We also love the Catfish Hole in NW Arkansas!
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