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I really have to agree with Raphael. There's something about the thought of McDonald's serving fish that has always, always, always creeped me out.

Yay! These were my mom's favorite at McDonald's, hence we ate many as children. Yeah, I agree, sometimes too much sauce, but we would just wipe off the excess :D

GROSS! It's bad enough to eat at McDonald's, but to eat fish there?!?! The thought makes me wrinkle my nose and pucker my lips in disgust, probably not too far off from what R was doing!

Anybody remember the McRib sandwich? How do we feel about that?

Yay!

I always get Filet-o-Fish when I go to Mcdonalds, that or junior chicken.

I've never seen a square fish.

Ohhhh, I used to LOVE Filet-O-Fish sandwiches. I'm totally with you. I haven't had one in a long time, but I bet I'd still love it. Yeah, they're a little weird, but they don't creep me out nearly as much as McDonald's beef does these days.

The fact that it is a cheesefish sandwich has always bothered me. I've always found dairy + seafood an odd combination.

I love them but on a calorie per dollar basis they aren't a good value.

These aren't horrible. They're not good, but they're not horrible. Apparently, they're a detainee favorite in the Guantanamo Bay detention center, which might say something (but what?). I'm kind of indifferent to them.

Oh My Gosh! I can't tell you how much I loved them as a kid. LOVED!!! I haven't had one in, like, a hundred years, but you know what? I can still taste it. And it still tastes awesome. And this remembrance has entirely decided what I'm having for lunch tomorrow.

Nay. Actually, nay to anything at McDOnalds, but especially the smelly generic fishwich with plastic cheese.

Loved them as a kid, forgot about them until now. Definitely would try it again.

having never tried a fillet of fish sandwich, i think the sandwich sounds mostly great save for one thing, ready for it (raphael), THE CHEESE! I'm all down with squishy bun, deep fried fish and tartar sauce. In fact, there are very few things in this world i am more down with than that.... but.... CHEESE?? fish and cheese is, in my opinion, a truly vile combination, though having never tried the sandwich in question and given that mcdonalds foodstuffs rarely interact with each other as they would in the real world-- i will withhold judgement. though please, mcdonalds employee taking my order--hold the cheese.

As long as it's freshly made, yea.

i wouldn't eat it but if i did i'd like it.
and, for the record, i'm generally opposed to cheese with fish.

Total fat 18 g (28%)
Saturated fat 4 g (20%)
Trans fat 1 g
Cholesterol 40 mg (13%)
Sodium 640 mg (26%)

They're awful but I love them. Total comfort food.

And for the person that asked earlier, I also enjoyed the McRib.

I have never had one of these. McDonalds is not the place I go to for quick food.

Definitely childhood comfort food for me! It was the only sandwich I'd eat at McDonald's growing up (and still is, actually). When I'm out of the country and homesick, nothing tastes better than fish and fries at the McDos.

Filet-o-fish is definitely a "nostalgic" food for me too. I think it's a Chinese thing, because we always thought that the burger meat was too tough (?) I never had an actual burger until junior high, and to this day I don't think I've ever tried a Big Mac. Right now McDonald's in Hong Kong is promoting its ebi (shrimp) burger, which looks like a shrimp pattie with a few actual shrimp so that you can "actually see" what you're eating. I haven't tried it yet, but my parents gives me this weird look every time the commercial comes on... I don't know why?

About 11 years ago, McD's was running a promotion for Big Mac's, two for $2 on Tuesdays. Every week my father would go on Tuesday thinking he was going to order a cheap big mac for lunch. When he'd get there, he'd look at the menu, change his mind and order a filet-o-fish instead. Until one day he decided to actually order the Big Mac. Three days later he had a massive heart attack. Given the choice, I'll always take the filet-o-fish.

I'm definitely a Filet o'Fish lover here. I probably wouldn't like cheese on fish normally, but the McDonald's concoction does me just fine. I LOVE the squishy texture of it. I could easily eat two for a meal.

Last time I had a Filet-O-Fish was many years ago, but I'm a fan. Or at least I was a fan then. I'm sure they will skip the cheese if you ask them to, but I have no problems with it. Kind of wish they were bigger though.

The last time I ate--ten years ago--at McD's I was sick in the parking lot.

well, i'm on a lifelong boycott of mcdonald's altogether, so i can't say as i'd even consider considering whether or not the filet is good OR bad.

I've always enjoyed the FoF @ Mickey D, though I'm not a big fan of the amount of tartar sauce they use. (And I'd rather have cocktail sauce anyway.) My big "beef" [pun intended] w/ the FoF is the fact that they've got hamburgers for $1, but a FoF costs 2 or 3 times as much!

In the name of truth, I also must admit that we only go to Mickey D or Burger King when my wife craves a Quarter-Pounder or a a Whopper. Given the choice, I'd much rather have the FoF (or its BK cousin). And the fries.

Love the squishy texture, pile on the tartar sauce and DO NOT FORGET the cheese! Loved it as a child, now a rare, guilty pleasure food!

"Total fat 18 g (28%)
Saturated fat 4 g (20%)
Trans fat 1 g
Cholesterol 40 mg (13%)
Sodium 640 mg (26%)"

@nhh2727, gee that's just too bad ... cuz most times I'll have two! ;-)

@roboppy, the thing that's annoying about fast food sammiches that come in boxes is that you need the wax paper wrapper to contain the drippings whilst driving. For that reason, I keep a box of 12x12 wrappers in the car.

NEA! While I LOVE fish in its many incantations, this just ain't one of them! Fish is not square or rectangular (ex: fish sticks)

Guess I don't like my fish pre-processed, breaded and frozen before cooking.

Now let me go to a little shack in MA or ME and you will see me all over a fresh fish sandwich there! Nice piece of haddock or cod, lightly breaded, quickly fried, served with tartar sauce, lemon or malt vinegar if you prefer. That is heaven!

I say yea! It's the best of their sandwiches! And I like lots of tartar sauce!

Filet-o-Fish sandwiches always make me think of Towing Jehovah by Joseph Morrow. It's basically a book about a crew of people who are given the task of towing God's corpse to its eventual hiding place, and what happens to people when the thing that they center their moral compass on no longer exists. At any rate, the cook for the crew is an gastronomic magician of sorts who can recreate any fast food dish. When the crew runs out of food, they start feasting on God's body...and aforementioned cook makes God's nipple into Filet-o-Fish sandwiches.

I'm with you--haven't had one in a long time, but I love 'em, cheese and all. McD's is no place for culinary snootiness.

www.EatCheapEatWellEatUp.com

For those who care, McDonald's fish is actually sourced from Marine Stewardship Council certified sustainable fisheries. I believe I read that on Serious Eats a while back.

I love the Filet O Fish. It's the only thing on the McDonald's menu I eat. (Asides from the breakfast when I'm up in time... guilty pleasure) I really don't understand why McDonald's fish freaks people out. I don't understand why it's any more troublesome than cow or chicken. Or hello, the McRib. It's delicious people! It's crispy and saucy and melty! And it tastes more like actual food to me than the burgers. But maybe that's just me. Maybe it's an Asian thing. I know growing up, all the Asian parents I knew preferred the Filet O Fish and I always thought it was the "grown up" sandwich. Whatever.

Definitely YEA!

My mom once asked the counter employee what kind of fish was in the Filet o'Fish sandwich.

"Square."

She got a regular hamburger instead.

Every now and then I get a Big Mac Attack...and sometimes I sneak a Filet O' Fish. I admit it. They are not gourmet, nor are they supposed to be. But for what they are -- FAST FOOD -- they are a guilty pleasure, and every now and then, ya just gotta.

Another YAY from me. That being said, I have not had McD's in about 12 years (since I was a senior in high school). When I did go to McD's that's the sandwich I would get. I started ordering it when I was little cuz my mom did-if she wasn't eating their salad. I'd also like to mention that going to McD's was a rare treat to me. My mom did not believe that I should grow up eating fast food.

Guess it rubbed off because fast food to me now is a sandwich or salad ordered from Wawa. :)

@bobcat: Don't know if you will see this, but I am sorry to hear/read about your chronic illness. I hope your days are filled with love and you are surrounded by family that cares about you. (((HUGS)))

I actually like the filet-o-fish quite a bit. They actually had/have a double version (2 fish patties) which I like better because that way you get a better fish to bread ratio.

@NYm-Catholic, here. I was never good at attending church regularly, but the fried fish portion of catholicism has stuck :)

While I respect the Filet-O-Fish love, I would have to say that the Big Mac in all its gluttonous glory is my guilty pleasure. A while back they ran a 2 for $3 special...lets just say it was an AWESOME week, but the week after, not so much...

What I love is people categorically hating the Filet-o-Fish because it comes from McDonald's. "Oh, I would NEVER eat anything from that MAC-DONALDS!!!" Thanks for letting us know. Your Certificate of Super-Specialness is in the mail.

My wife won't eat the Filet-o-Fish because she thinks combining dairy and seafood is weird. To which I respond, "OK, honey. Now how about a nice steaming bowl of CRAB BISQUE?"

@ tina_eats - I grew up in an Asian household too, but one of the dishes my dad would order was called "baked grouper with cheese" over rice. From CHINESE places... of course it was HK Cafe food (aka Chinese interpretations of classic "American"/western dishes... oh how I love thee!!!). And you know, I still order that sometimes, even though I can't tell you what kind of cheese it is (it comes in a creamy white sauce... I don't know?).

This was the special treat we got to eat on Good Friday every year, even though the idea of it being an indulgent treat kinda goes against the whole tenor of Good Friday.

LOVE it!!! It is not as great as 25 years ago, true, but still really good.

Sourness fishy chessy taste of soft bread yummm......

I LOVE the filet-o-fish! When I was a kid, my folks would order them and when they unwrapped those sky blue wrappers the smell would make me wretch and complain. But now I love them unapologetically. A pit-stop at the golden arches is my husband's and my road trip indulgence. In my fantasy world, I would happily order two or three of those piping hot babies.

I think my parents definitely thought it was the "healthier" choice. And I still tell myself it is the rare times I eat it. I don't care if it's breaded, fried, doused in tartar sauce and cheese.... Fish makes you smart. Yep.

Anyone try the Wendy's fish sandwich last summer? It only had a limited run but it was really tasty. And it had no cheese for those who are disturbed by the seafood + cheese combo.

Yummie! There have been a few times I've had it, and the fish was too salty...but those were few and far between.
Love them......I'm sure the fish @ McDonald's thing or the fish w/ cheese thing sounds creepy to some...but don't knock it till you tried it.

I've always been a fan of the filet o fish. I didn't have my first McDonald's cheeseburger until I was 23 because I always had the fish, but with no tartar sauce. It's only been in the last couple of years that I have embraced the sauce. I agree that they put too much sauce on, but the extra is good on fries.

Definitely nooooo. Granted I have purchased only one in my life in 1992, but it was terrible. The bun and sauce were fine, but the fillet looked and tasted like plastic. I tossed it outside to the feral cats. They sniffed it and then backed away.

I don't know that I've ever had one at McD's, but my mother-in-law and husband insist on serving this kind of breaded-fried-frozen-reheated-artificially geometric stuff as "fish" at home.

Usually it's Gorton's fish tenders, two of which about make up a F-o-F patty. I put them on a hamburger bun (or in a pinch, 2 slices of bread) and add a Kraft Single.

I hate this fish so much that the cheese (albeit artificial cheese) is what makes it edible.

Love em!

Yea! The filet o fish and fries are the only things I like from Mickey D's.

Now I want to go get one, never having had one before. I wasn't a fish eater when young and the smell of even something this processed would make me gag. I can appreciate it now.

filet of high fructose corn syrup, you mean.

There was an awesome urban legend when I was a kid that the Filet--o-fish was made out of sewer sharks - baby sharks kids had brought back from vacations in Florida or the Caribbean or bought at the exotic pet emporium and then got tired of them and flushed them down the toilets. According to legend, as a result, the sewers were filled with a mutant race of extremely hardy, vicious sharks that crafty McDonald's fishermen were harvesting and turning into F-O-Fs.

When my DH was stuck in Japan he made the mistake of eating four Filet-O- Fish during a pre dawn breakfast. He regretted it the entire 20 hour flight.

i feel really self-conscious and embarrassed when i order this burger. it's like i'm ordering something i know i shouldn't be ordering and shouldn't be on the menu in the first place, but it's on the menu just so people like me will order it, ultimately, being a joke for workers at mcdonald's.

I liked the McRib & I've ALWAYS been pro-Filet O'...
tho in recent years, it seems like the fish in the center has shrunk,
(while the exterior breading obviously is the same square inchage).
So now the batter just leaves me with a film-of-grease aftertaste,
and I've jilted Filet-O.
But back in the day, it rocked!
cheese+pickes+ tartar=genius at Hamburger U

I despise McDonald's. I absolutely hate it, but there's one thing I could eat everyday from that menu. The Filet O' Fish is almighty. It's weird because NO ONE I KNOW wants to go near it. The McRib is also a good'un. I'll have to go get a couple of both when the McRib is around so I don't have to take multiple trips to that wretched place.

I used to love the FOF. Now, however, it seems too salty and small to even bother. Still, though, there are times when I will stop by a McDonalds to buy a couple, for old time's sake, I suppose.

The FoF is the ultimate PMT food, gooey, cheesy and delightfully bland in a good way. I think that I must enjoy it for nostalgia reasons as every british kid from the eighties was brought up on fish finger sandwiches.
I could eat four at a time if I didn't look like such a piggy :)

Living By The Book - A Food Blog 365 Day Challenge

OK, as a follow up to my earlier post; I had my first FOF yesterday. Didn't change my life, but I enjoyed it for the innocuous offering it is. The FOF doesn't taste all that much different than their usually disappointing, overcooked, dried out chicken offerings. But it is in fact moister than said chicken. Result: I'd buy it again, and will tell myself it's better for me than red meat. More expensive in comparison to a cheap cheeseburger though, that's the one drawback. Next stop, the Wendy's version.

This is lochness, one of lochaven’s other personalities and I’m here to say that my high school years were spent eating filet-o-fish sandwiches….and still have one occasionally. Back then they used to be 65 cents, but not any more. Whenever I order one I always ask them to make me a fresh one and willing to wait for it. They always comply.

Now, I know that lochaven would never go public that he’s had them before, but I think he also likes them…. .

Btw, I saw this a few months ago….I always wondered how to pronounce it… now I know.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EeEDKErYJ4

@meg3j I really want to try these mcrib sandwich, when I get to a McDonalds.
As for a fillet o fish I have not had one in many many years, not since I was a little kid but i loved them and I bet I would love them now except that now I don't really eat much types of fish cause I have allergies to them. Otherwise I would love to have one again and yes with the cheese.

Many years ago when they first came out they were made of Haddock and they were very good. God only knows what's in them now. Forget the cheese. Many years ago the filet-o-fish sammy came with cole slaw and tartar sauce which was really very good. I haven't had one in decades...

I LOVE THEM ! Second to the Big-Mac.My first job was at the McDonalds 4 blocks from my house (I could ride my bike to work safely at any hour) in the summer of 1967 and again in the summer of 1968, my highschool summer job. The filet-a fish sandwich for only $.25 was great back then when all food was cooked on site and all ingredents were very wholesome, NOT the McDonalds of today as everything comes flash frozen pre-cooked in a microwave-bag, simply put horrible. The original used a fresh-baked slightly-sweet (naturally) bun with a tartar sauce that actually was very good (recipe developed by a real chef not a marketing group) the fish patty was, as pointed out earlier, of predomaintly Haddock or True Cod (now almost extinct thanks to the cod war waged by Canada attempting to preserve the fishery vs the European countries about fishing rights on the Grand Banks) and yes a full slice of real American cheese that had flavor and it was delicious.
I was working at McDonalds when the Big-Mac was introduced and it was also delicious and only about .45 or .50 cents some rediculious price along with .15 cent burgers, .17 cent cheeseburgers, .12 cent fries and so on. Everything was so much better when it was all cooked on site, we even washed, peeled, cut and blanched the fries from whole potatos numerous times a day. I still get a Filet-a-fish and a Big-mac on occassion when I cant control myself while passing a McDonalds.

once in a while I get a nostalgic craving for one, but then I think about the highly processed bits of white fish deep fried in heavy batter and slathered with cholesterol laden mayonnaise on a slightly stale bun, not to mention the processed cheese, and I remember why I don't eat filet o' fish anymore. But the pull of childhood is strong.... thinking Velveeta ...

Actually I was watching a show the other day that highlighted McDonald's own fishing vessels in which the COD are prepared and flash frozen right on the ship... employing many workers who work 12 hour shifts until the cargo is full and then back to port to offload... already prepared and packaged Filet 'O Fish.

cheap and delicious - it's a classic. during the mad-cow scare, this was the only sandwich my gf allowed me to eat from the mcd's and i learned to love it. and believe me people, you should worry more about where they get their dairy and poultry than worry about the fish. lastly, i love the tartar sauce overload, once i take it out of the box, i smear half of it on my box and use it as dipping sauce for my golden delicious potato stix. =)

They're tastey but they're like 700 calories each!!!!!!