We left St.
John’s for a 12 hour drive to the Port Aux Basques ferry, and I began to feel
desperate. Desperate but not hopeless, because when is some of the worst food
eaten? Road trips! I was certainly not disappointed by our first lunch stop, a
few hours outside of St. John’s, at Mary Browns Chicken. There was pretty much nothing on the road
between St. John’s and this stop, and our driver was starting to get a little
hangry (anger that arises from excessive hunger). Mary Browns seemed cheap,
easy and fast so we pulled over, stomachs growling. There were three of us, so
we got the family bucket- 6 pieces of chicken, a plate of taters and a side
salad for just over for just under $25. According to their own signage, they
were very famous for their taters, so this seemed like a great plan.
Let’s begin
with the taters. Mostly, they tasted like salt. I’m not the kind of gal to shy
away from a bit of extra salt on my fries, but this was excessive, like can
already feel my blood pressure rising kind of excessive. The
chicken was no better, it tasted like it was coated in salt and butter- moreso
than your average fried chicken joint, which I did not think was possible. Between
the three of us we couldn’t even make it half way through the taters, and we
had to pick away some of the breading off the chicken to get it down. I left
feeling physically unsatisfied but mentally satiated. Finally, a meal worthy of
those old Newfoundland fisherman!
As much as
I delighted at finally finding a nice artery clogging meal, it felt like a bit
of a cop out to have a fried chicken chain win. The world already knows fried
chicken is much too greasy and salty for any sane human. I had one last chance for
a traditional meal, all my hopes and dreams rested on one last dinner.
We pulled
up at the Harbourside restaurant, right at the beginnings of downtown Port Aux
Basques, and next to the ferry terminal. As I read the menu, things were already
looking up- they had cod tongues! For once I didn’t have a hard time deciding,
so this was already a win. They came out lightly battered and fried and served
with mashed potatoes. I have been told that cod tongues are quite the delicacy,
and locals rush to the markets at 6am, to get a bag of cod tongues for the
week. Surely these had to be tasty as well as salty and fatty, right? I took my
first bite to the delightful feeling of hot oil rushing into my mouth and down
my chin. They were a little chewy and more firm than your average fish part,
but over all they were edible. I was even able to finish almost all of my
plate! On the ferry later that night, I felt a little bit like throwing up. Some
may say it could have been sea sickness, but I like to think that my body was
rejecting all of the fats and salts in had consumed on this lovely day, my last
day in Newfoundland, and my search complete.
Next time
you find yourself wandering around the wilderness of Newfoundland, don’t be
afraid to taste a cod tongue, or cheek, or a seal flipper pie- and you’ll truly
begin to question how anyone survived here pre-confederation.
Gluten Free: no
Dairy Free: yes
The Harbour Restaurant can be found at 1 Main, Port Aux Basques, NFLD
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