J’s Fish and Chips

my son and I went to LC for a day trip. looking for some food to go on our way out of town, my son wanted clams/​shrimp and I wanted fish tacos. (my son is a vegetarian that does eat seafood, so we are pretty selective)
J’s was the perfect choice. I’m giving 5 stars for the food alone. the place is not fancy but the food is so worth the stop. while it’s not fancy I did think it was clean for an older/​basic interior. it is close quarters if you do dine in. I would say perfect food to grab and hit the beach with.
Clam basket with curly fries (8.50 $) and added a side of 7 shrimp (1 $ each or 7 for 5 $) (we made our own combo). light batter, not greasy, you could taste the tender clams and the shrimps were perfect and at least the size of my thumb. I didn’t try his fries but my son said they were soo good for curly fries.
I almost didn’t get the fish tacos because the fish was battered. but I thankfully I did .
the fish (battered lightly with the perfect crunch), sauce and slaw all balanced each other so well. best (battered) fish tacos I’ve had at a restaurant in a long time. and the corn chips were nice light and fresh. perfect complement to the tacos. (5 $)
I really liked the slaw on the tacos with the sauce, but neither of us had room for the slaw as a side so can’t really rate it as a stand alone. the cocktail sauce for the shrimp was really good, has to be house made. the clams were so good as is he ate those plain, so the tarter went untouched (so for you picky tarter fans, we just can’t comment on the tarter)
who ever was working that night was cooking spot on. steady line of orders going and lots of pick ups from call ins, we possibly waited about 10 min for the food. I can’t even call that a wait to get freshly cooked food :)
with an ice tea and a water — we spent 19.50 $ and were very pleased

For the fish, the fries, the clam chowder, this is worth an hour drive.
There is nothing fancy about this place. Eat fast because there will likely be other guests hovering near your table — even if you get there right when they open.
I totally agree with a previous poster. The reason this place is always crowded is because they offer the most delicious fish at reasonable fish prices.
This is not a leftover place. You will eat everything. And you will feel good about it afterwards because you ate healthy delicious fish instead of another burger.
It’s worth driving an hour. Maybe even worth 90 minutes to get to this place.

Awesome! Fresh tasty A friend just turned me on this place I had the halibut cod shrimp basket incredible! Done perfect! The Batter is the best! The prices are more than fair!! will go back for sure!

great lunch special 6 $. remember the Seinfeld episode «soup Nazi»? This is the fish Nazi. signs all over telling you what you cant do, what isn’t cool, what doesn’t fly, but the food is the best fried fish in town ! I hope the owner isn’t in there giving you the evil eye like he did us on many occasions, although I do remember see him kinda crack half a smile once. FOOD IS WORTH IT !!! I almost forgot the slaw is the worst ever, and don’t eat inside because the lack of ventilation will make you dizzy. If you read all the reviews on this place, as I did one rainy night in L.C., the word NAZI keeps coming up. If this owner was bright he’d make this a take out only place, and utilize the cramped interior for more deep fryers so that he might turn out more product quicker, instead of having to deal with the public that he and his grumpy sister obviously hate dealing with on the inside.

Good eats clams were good chowder was the bomb good service clean it was small
Place desent prices for seafood do urself a favore and give it a shot

This is our favorite local fish and chips joint. Good portions. Good tasting fried foods. The only negative would be the size of the location. It gets busy and there is not a lot of seating. Worth the wait in line. You must try it.

J’s Fish and Chips. The breading on the deep fried cod fish is light and crunchy, not at all greasy, and the cod itself is fresh, white, flakey and moist — definitely a Home Run!
I avoid the combinations, which come with so-​so fries, cole slaw, and tarter sauce, and order just the yummy delicious fried cod ($ 2.50 per piece).
In the four years I have been coming here, there has been no improvements to the store, and what I used the think of delightfully dive-​ey now strikes me as greasy and dirty. I always take my orders to go. Three Stars.

Probably one of the better Fish & Chips joint we’ve had in this area. The fried goodness that awaits but keep in mind it’ll take anywhere from 20 — 45 mins to get your food so if you’re in a hurry go elsewhere. The coleslaw could use a little more seasoning but the rest of the meal was good. Most people complain about it feeling dirty or all the rules you need to follow, I felt like it gives the place a unique character. People usually feel entitled when at a restaurant and this place totally puts you in your place and reminds you of what you should do or not do such as «Please order at the counter prior to sitting down. Next available table will be yours» or «Please don’t move tables» or «Please don’t throw baskets & cups in the trash.» Because everyone does it. We enjoyed the crudeness of this place. The red-​head working the register was actually really funny. Overall we had a great experience and the food was good. If you’re looking for cleanliness, less rules and less rude people, this ain’t for you.

First, the food. This was definitely worthy of 4 stars. The halibut fish and chips were great. The batter had a nice crunch and the house made tarter sauce was nice and tangy. The fries were a little soggy, but they’re basically just a vehicle for malt vinegar anyways.
Where this place really falters is the service. The place is filthy. There is grease on all of the tables and no one seems to be in a hurry to clean it up. This is probably due to the fact that they don’t have enough employees. One employee is in charge of taking orders at the counter, cleaning the tables, and busing orders. Really all they need to do is hire one more person. Since this is a popular place, it’s hard for the cashier to get around to cleaning the tables. Also, do not drink the water out of the water cooler. I got two glasses, and there was a very visible film on the water. I’m usually okay with questionable food, but water should be clean.
This didn’t affect me, but there’s a sign that says if you take it to go you can’t bring the trash back to the restaurant. How does that make sense? I will probably never be back. If you’re looking for good food in Lincoln City, do yourself a favor and head to Hwy 101 Burgers.

Halibut Fish and Chips with Coleslaw and Tartar Sauce
Halibut Fish ~ Very fresh fish and light flakey batter
rapped around the fish oh so gently.
Get This
Freedom fries ~ Lacked seasoning and texture
(Cooking oil not hot enough)
Coleslaw ~ Lacked flavor, not enough black pepper
Tartar sauce ~ Not sure if it’s contracted out or made
in house, but it needed garlic and seasoning.
All and All Fish was great ! Everything else I tasted was mediocre.

Definitely one of the most memorably fish and chip meals I’ve ever had, and I come from a coastal town that has seafood joints left and right.
They have a nice deal of lunch specials from I forget when but till 1:30 where fish and chips with a drink are $ 6. I opted out of it because I specifically wanted to try their halibut fish, and most of the specials are cod. Either way I’m sure you can’t go wrong.
We waited about 30 min and my husband and I split the 3 pc halibut which came with fries (you can get regular, curly fries or salt and pepper chips), with a side of coleslaw. And we also had a bowl of clam chowder. The fried halibut was so flaky and just perfect. The crispy panko style batter was just the right ratio to the fish. With most fried fish I feel there’s more batter than fish, but here no bite I had was without fish. Amazing.
Yes, there’s a long wait but you can’t fault them given the space with one cook in the back, one cashier, and one table busser. It’s a hole in the wall and frankly some establishments are better that way. But you should see the employees bust their butt. They can only go so fast. They are multi tasking like crazy, and do a fairly good with organization hence the term «soup nazi» when referring to them. But better them telling the customers what to do verses allowing cranky customers who can easily cause a ruckus.

The fish (we had cod) are fresh and are of very good quality. The clam chowder I found to be very mundane and would not order it again though.
It took over 35 minutes to get three lunch specials with 2 pc Cod and Chowder. It was not like an obscure order. Point being, is be prepared to wait if going during lunch hour. They make the fish fresh and it tastes as such, so I can’t really knock it other then I would think being so popular they would have their operation more streamlined.
The 25 cent fee for any credit card purchase is strictly bush league. I don’t mind places that are cash only and will gladly pay cash as needed for the right place. I also can understand a minimum charge for using credit cards. But to charge a 25 cent fee on a $ 20 – 30 purchase is lame.
Overall great fish though. I would come back, just not between 11:45 — 12:45.

Gotta grade the whole experience
Everything about this place is five star, except the experience. I know that the metaphor has been overused, but these guys are comparable to the Soup guy from Seinfeld. They are masters of their craft, but the space does not lend itself. However if they didn’t run it the way they do, I could definitely see chaos. And nobody wants that.
The downer is that the space is so small you can’t really go in and sit and enjoy. No table has more than four seats and there are only 7 tables. You have to order, then wait to sit. There are lots of rules posted, and for the most part they make sense.
Love the homemade salt and pepper chips. Like real potato chips. Some times you just don’t want fries. You can also have curly fries. Nothing special, but it’s nice to have the choice.
I love the fish and chips. Perfectly cooked and coated. It’s crispy and not greasy, and not heavy. It’s a panko style batter, but has a lot of crisp to it. All of the cuts taste fresh too. Halibut, cod, all great.
The chowder is a winner too. it’s not as chunky as many chowders I’ve had, but it’s loaded with flavor.
All and all a pretty good value. My advice would be call ahead and get it to go and enjoy it on the beach.

When visiting the coast I like to call in an order to go. It saves waiting in line and (for 45 minutes) I take my food to my room or the beach. I’ve been multiple times and am never disappointed. Fish is always excellently cooked and the breading is crunchy and tasty. I usually get halibut fish and chips.
Today we tried the coconut shrimp too and it was also cooked to perfection. Yum!
I would recommend the halibut fish and chips, coconut shrimp and curly fries as well.
Thanks J’s for making a meal I can count on! I will be back again soon.

This is great food, IF you can follow all the rules.
We call this place the Fish Nazi after eating here one time while on vacation last weekend. There are rules posted everywhere, and we dared violate because my husband went and sat at a table while I ordered (that’s right – we sometimes jaywalk too). I held my breath while I waited for the owner to see my hubby sitting down (gasp!) and I was sure she was going to yell across the restaurant, «No fish for you!»
We did manage to get our fish, and we enjoyed it very much. Very good food. My husband had the curly fries and I had the salt & pepper chips are both were yummy along with our halibut and cod.
I’m sure we’ll return when we’re in town, and maybe I’ll empty my car garbage into their trash can and see if I still get served. I managed to get pics of some of the rules (oh, and the lack of a closing time… apparently they close whenever the heck they feel like it. My guess that is probably at 5pm some nights and they don’t care how hungry you are or how much your puppy-​dog eyes tear up.
I missed a pic of the rule about pouring your extra drink into a bucket on top of the trash can, and the other sign about not throwing away the baskets. But I think I got the rest.
So I recommend eating here, if they’ll let you. Today may not be your day. NO FISH FOR YOU!

Boy is this tiny… The old Top of Hill restaurant sits vacant next door and would be a much bigger location.
When you enter there are handwritten signs on the doors, never really a great sign of what is to come. The biggest sign was telling you to order first then the tables are first come first serve. Seems they have trouble with people taking tables then ordering, the shame…
The room is tiny, with maybe 8 tables of various shapes and sizes. For a seafood place it really seems small. The place has seen it’s better days and really needs a full overhaul. With the constant flow of traffic they clearly are making money, time to re-​invest.
The order taker was covered in tattoo’s, not scary, but not what you expect either.
I paid the extra and got the Halibut fish and chips. Portions were just the right size. The breading was thin, to the point of falling off, but hey, they gave me a fork so no problem. It was very tasty. I would recommend this order.

The service and atmosphere get a 2, the food a 4.
There are signs everywhere, «don’t move the tables» and «to-​go means to-​go» and «if you order to-​go don’t bring your trash back in here» and «absolutely no substitutions» and «order inside and wait, then you can have a table when one is available.» It gives the strong impression is that my presence is a burden to the people here.
The food, fresh and pretty good. But I won’t come back because I’m not sure they like people in general.

Run here! Thanks to Unilocalers, we discovered this hole-​in-​the-​wall and I’m still craving more days after having it! I’m not a huge fried foods fan, but this place IS IT! This place isn’t fancy, there are rules about take out and not reserving a table, but that’s why I like it. Simply amazing fish with a nice crunch batter.
Unfortunately, I made a horrible mistake the day after. Please cry with me. I was craving craving craving more J’s Fish & Chips, but I was with a party and didn’t want to suggest the same place for lunch although I really wanted to. Please learn from my mistake and just speak up! So we ended up at Pig n’ Pancakes and I ordered fish & chips. Ugh. Please forgive me J!!! I am NOT making that mistake again. Save me some fresh fry… I’m coming again soon!

Beachside perfection, I definitely recommend this place when at Lincoln City beach.
My father and I each went with the three piece cod while my mother ordered the fish tacos. We all also ordered a bowl of clam chowder. If you’re looking for a quick meal, do not come here as there will be a long wait due to the high volume of customers this place draws in. Excellently battered fish and chips, with delicious clam chowder, my meal here was definitely worth the wait. Clam chowder could have been thicker, but that’s all up to perosnal preference. Overall it was delicious and I enjoyed every bit of it. My mother really enjoyed her fish tacos as well.
If you like seafood and excellently battered fish, this place is the spot.

First the good: The batter on the Cod was light and crispy and the fish was fresh, moist and flaky… not at all greasy. The fries were also quite good and had a crispy outer texture and tender interior. The coleslaw was also good and not overpowered with mayo. The Salt and Pepper chips were just okay and included some chips that were chewy from not being fried long enough (I would just order the fries instead next time).
The bad: What’s with all the signs everywhere instructing patrons about what they cannot do? If there is a problem with people moving the tables then take that as a clue that perhaps you should have at least some seating for more than four people. If a family needs to push two tables together to eat together try being accommodating, smile and offer a hand. Is there a problem with people bringing their trash back inside after being forced to eat outside due to a lack of seating inside? They have paid to eat your food… deal with it and empty the garbage if necessary (it’s better than forcing your guests to take it home to dispose of it… or worse). Try smiling and asking how they liked your food unless you care more about forcing people to conform to arbitrary rules… It just makes the business look bad, not friendly and customer centric.
While the food is good, the less than friendly staff and the warning signs everywhere are indications that the folks that run this establishment do not like people and perhaps don’t even enjoy what they are doing. I heard the staff comment about how glad they were that «tourist season» was over and how they were looking forward to slower business… to me that is just insanity when you are running a business.
4 stars for the fish, fries and coleslaw… but 1 star for the non-​customer friendly signs and staff attitude.