Meatless Mahomet (Part 1)

Many fish lovers and vegetarians look forward to the Lenten season each year, with the Catholic Church (and other denominations) observing “meatless Fridays.”  As a result, community fish fries and meatless specials at restaurants come out of the woodwork.  If you are looking for meatless options, there is no need to  leave Mahomet.   We asked local residents where we can find the best meatless meals in town.  Here is what we learned:

Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church has got you covered with a fish fry every Friday through March 27, serving from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The menu includes baked or beer battered fried fish, baked potato, fries, vegetable, macaroni and cheese, dessert and a beverage. The cost is $13 with children under 5 free. Carry-outs are available. (Need not be Catholic to attend)

Filippo’s of Mahomet shared that they are offering two Lenten specials.  Specifically, they said:

To honor this special time, we’re offering delicious Lent specials made with love and the freshest ingredients:

Shrimp Pasta at Filippo's Mahomet

• Homemade Ricotta Balls in Basil Sauce: light, flavorful, and crafted from scratch

• Shrimp Pasta: perfectly seasoned and cooked to perfection for a satisfying, meatless meal

All of the Mexican restaurants in town offer several meatless options.  Both Breaking Taco and Los Zarapes were specifically mentioned for their fish tacos.

We haven’t found any fish pizza (beyond traditional anchovies), but all of our local pizza places offer the ability to customize your pizza with or without meat.  One resident pointed out “Margherita Pizza at Brik’s Pizzeria” as a particular favorite.

Several residents mentioned The Poke Shack as their go-to place for meatless options, with many choices.

We found a LOT of raves from around the area about the fish dinner at It’ll Do Bar and Grill on Lake of the Woods road.  Just a few of the comments shared were

·       “best anywhere,”

·       “It'll Do Bar & Grill Mahomet hand batters fish every Friday!!! Come on!”

·       “Friday night catfish at It'll Do Bar & Grill Mahomet is hard to beat.”

·       “the fish on Fridays at It'll Do Bar & Grill Mahomet is AMAZING.”

·       “It'll Do Bar & Grill Mahomet fish dinner on Friday nights. The best fish you will ever have. Tony is the man!! Check it out, you won't be sorry.”

It was great to see It’ll Do, a local place that is not as well known as it deserves, getting so much love.  And they do fish every Friday, not just during Lent.

You might be surprised to find a BBQ place on the list, but one reader shared that Project 47 Smokehouse has “an impossible burger that's outstanding. Also grown up grilled cheese, grown up Mac n cheese. All tasty!”

A few other places/dishes mentioned by readers included:

·       Fish dinners at Culvers

·       The Impossible Burger at Patty Daddy’s

·       SouthPaw Social with a “delicious fish sandwich”

·       Mahomet Family Restaurant, and even

·       The salad bar at Schnucks.

You can see that observing meatless Fridays, or just finding a delicious meatless meal, is easy to do without leaving Mahomet. 

Did we miss some of your favorites?   I titled this article “Part 1” because I am sure that I missed some great specials or favorites.  Do you have a favorite place or dish that should have been included?  Send us an email at EverythingMahomet@gmail.com and if we get enough additional suggestions, we will do a follow-up next Friday.