Susan's Fish-n-Chips

Listen: 2 for $3 fish sandwiches on Mondays. That's it. That's all you need to know! Let me repeat that: TWO fish sandwiches for $3 on Mondays. Yes, they're on the smaller side -- as expected -- but they're so damn delicious. Add a pint of fries, and you have a whole meal, including two sandwiches, for $6. You just can't go wrong with it!

I will be honest: these fish sandwich specials brought us to Susan's Fish & Chips, and I'm so glad it introduced us to this restaurant. This is a no-frills spot. It feels like a hole in the wall. It's the antithesis of the Old Port seafood spots but that's what makes it special. It's a place where you'll get your food and maybe a smile (if you're lucky) from the person operating the counter-walk-up area. But you'll also get soulful food, hearty portions, and a taste of a Portland that few tourists see. Go without expectations and discover why the place has been around since 1989.

TLDR: Top 3 Faves were (1) Onion Rings, (2) Fish n Chips, and (3) Clam Chowder

WOW!!! This is a MUST when visiting Portland!! It's definitely a hole in the wall with an unassuming storefront, but inside, you can find eclectic decorations and an extensive menu. We saw many locals come in and we knew we were in the right place. Pricing was super reasonable as well (spent ~$80 for all our food, and it left our family of five with full, happy bellies :) ). The breading on literally everything we ordered was crispy and not too oily, and served piping hot and fresh. You can see all the ingredients in the kitchen behind the counter, and they cook everything fresh and on demand. Surprisingly, I'd say everything except the lobster and crab rolls exceeded our expectations. PLEASE get the Onion Rings and Fish n Chips!!

We ordered (starred favorites):

1. Lobster Roll: The lobster was plain, but tender. In my opinion, the size of the sandwich was kind of small for the price, and unseasoned :( I wanted some kind of butter sauce on the lobster!
2. Crab Roll: This was better than the lobster roll, but imitation crab seemed to be used and was just mediocre. There was more flavor in the crab though.
3. Crab Cake: This was crunchy and flavorful, and full of crab! Yum!
4. *Clam Chowder: This was very creamy and there wasn't a ton of clams but it was still delectable and savory.
5. ***Onion Rings: I'm still dreaming about these onion rings. These are the BEST onion rings I've EVER had!!! The breading is insanely crispy, and the onions aren't stringy, but you just bite into them and you have a perfect ratio of breading to onion in every bite. They are mouthwateringly good.
6. **Fish and Chips: You get a huge slab of fish laid on a bed of fries, and the fish is tender and flaky. The fries are pretty good too, but the fish is unbeatable. Surprisingly, the batter has no salt, but you don't need it.

They also have a hot sauce that they make in-house and also sell by the bottle -- it's unique and more smoky/sweet than spicy, but paired very well with everything. The tartar sauce was also fresh and tangy.

You might feel like you're walking into a health and safety nightmare (maybe you are, who the hell knows), but Susan's is not pretending to be anything other that what it is. A no-frills dive next to an auto garage that dishes up deep fried goodness.

It would be unfair to give it three stars because the food isn't some fancy pants stuff that tourists might expect to get in the Old Port, but the price reflects that. Cheap eats, but it is satisfying enough. Lots of blue-collar workers and born and bred Portlanders appear to be the main clientele.

I have been a handful of times, though I rarely will go out of my way to come here... except for Mon & Tues, when they offer TWO fish burgers for the absurdly low price of $2.50. For two. Not each. And they are damn good!

We passed on the upscale restaurants in downtown Portland to try the Maine lobster roll and some fresh seafood. Susan's is no frills but serves great seafood at a great price. The warehouse-like walls are decorated with news articles and awards as well as nautical themed grungy deco.

Service was fast and everything is brought out on paper plates and plastic cutlery. Our favorites were the fish and chips, onion rings, and chowder! The fish was deliciously flaky and the onion rings were crispy without being too oily. The lobster and crab rolls were very fresh but we preferred the fried seafood over the rolls. Don't skimp on the sauces either - their tartar sauce and hot sauce were delicious and went well with everything.

If you're looking for some fresh delicious seafood without breaking the bank, definitely stop by!

The place is full of goodness. Love the seafood platter. We get the fish sandwich also. Always fun and friendly people here

This was one of my favorite meals in Portland when I visited! The woman who took my order was very nice and helped us choose some menu items. We went with the fish and chips, lobster roll, fried clams, crab cake, and clam chowder. My favorite was the crab cake (it was very well seasoned and had flavors I've never tasted before) and the lobster roll. The roll was incredibly fresh and toasted beautifully. My least favorite were the fries - they're on the thicker side and you need to salt them yourself.

The restaurant is super cool because you can bring in your own catches and they'll cook it for you. The interior has very high ceilings and looks like a warehouse from the inside. It is very spacious and the tables are like public picnic tables. Overall a good time.

You can't judge this place by the name or the exterior. It's far more than fish n chips. And the food is so much fresher than the location, a former auto repair shop sharing a wall with a radiator repair shop.
This place is a dive, in a proud way.
You order at the counter from a large menu board, hanging under the kitschy nets, buoys and nautical knick knacks displayed throughout the cavernous space. My wife was craving fried clam strips, served as either a pint or quart, al la carte. I went with a Connecticut style lobster roll; toasted bun loaded with quality fresh lobster pieces and served with warm melted butter. A side of fries accompanied. My wife added a small order of onion rings.
So, by FAR the BEST fried clams we have enjoyed. EVER. They were fresh and far better than commercial, feeble, overly breaded strips.
The clams were very lightly breaded- this allowed the clam to be the center of attention. Ditto for the onion rings, prepped onion lightly 'coated' and fried just beyond the counter in a wide open kitchen.
My lobster roll was outstanding and so reasonably priced. In fact, price and food quality have earned this spot local 'Best Of" awards and a proud write up in 2004 in Gourmet Magazine. Yep. It's right up there on the wall.
The three women running this popular local spot were friendly and delivered our lunches to one of the several indoor picnic tables.
Track this place down if you're within a 25 mile radius. You won't go wrong.

So, came to get a few meals to take home. This used to be such a great place to get a seafood meal, however after today I must say that I will NOT be coming back.
I couldn't wait to get home to enjoy my haddock sandwich and seafood chowder, and was SO disappointed.
What I got was so bad, it wasn't even edible.
The sandwich was so gross, the bottom of the bun was full of grease and had an inch sized piece of lettuce on it. The chowder only had fish-not "seafood"; so it was fish chowder even though I wanted & paid for "seafood" chowder.
There was another man who came in and the staff was so busy bullshitting that he finally left because they were ignoring him. I should have followed him! What used to be a great place to get seafood, is gone. I spent $32 and had to throw away almost $30 worth. The dog wouldn't even eat it. What a disappointment.
One star for this review, only because Yelp made me to post, but if I could do minus stars, I would.

I came after hearing this place made it to food network . I hate to leave bad reviews but this was the worst seafood place I've been too. I had a fried dinner. I could not taste the food over the dirty / rancid oil flavor / taste . The potato salad and coleslaw equally as bad . Tarter sauce in a squeeze bottle . On table. If I had seen that prior to ordering I would have left. The place was DIRTY. The Bathroom was the worst I've ever seen in a restaurant ever . No soap to wash hands . I found this out because I had to visit bathroom immediately after I ate . This rest room had not been cleaned in months at least . How do the employees wash their hands . Food network needs to come and revoke the sign .

We have eaten at Susan's Fish n Chips 2 times in the last couple of weeks and have had both good and average-at-best here.

The good: fried seafood. It is super fresh with a great coating and fried to perfection. They hand coat it right before it goes into the fryer. The portion size was not huge, but enough to leave you satisfied. The chowder is thick and homemade. The onion rings are lightly battered and are nice big rings - not from Sysco, but made in house. I am a fan of the deep fried ice cream as well.

The meh: lobster roll. This was on a small hot dog bun that was very lightly toasted, but not buttered. There was not a huge quantity of meat on it, no mayo, and a few bits of shredded lettuce. I actually melted a little butter when I got home to drizzle over the top after trying a couple bites and wanting some sort of butter flavor that I was missing in the roll. Very un-memorable. Next time I'll go to Hannaford and buy a pound of lobster meat and make 4-5 of these for same price I paid here for 2 that will be more to my liking. The fries are thick cut and just fries - nothing to write home about. The pasta salad was ok, but not my cup of tea.

Susan's fish n chips is an iconic local spot. Stick to the fried seafood and chowder and leave the lobster roll for another day.