Catfish Lake Restaurant & Lounge

Being from the south, I am always leary of trying out local fish places that serve catfish but I was surprised. Though their bar could use some extra training on how to make some drinks the food was really good even the bread made in the flower pots. The servings are huge so if you don’t eat much be prepared to take the rest home. The atmosphere was that of a hole in the wall lakeside restaurant with lots of interesting décor.

The food was very plain but what was bad was the milk they served my son. They served us a kids milk that was curdled and disgusting making us very upset to that we will never go back. They didn’t even try to make things right.

Stopped in on an early Sunday afternoon. The weather was beautiful and I always get that panicked feeling in the fall in anticipation of my least favorite season… winter, so I begin to do as many things outdoors as I can. Knowing they had a 3 tier outdoor deck that overlooks a small lake is what drew us in. Being my 3^rd trip there, I knew the food wasn’t my main attraction… so decided to have an appetizer with my drink.
We seated ourselves on the deck. The first time we visited we sat indoors and enjoyed the gawdy but yet amusing décor of the bar. The next time we were there it was early spring so we took advantage of the weather and seated ourselves on the deck. The deck was a bit of a mess. I wrote that off to the fact that perhaps they hadn’t yet prepared the deck for summer. On this visit in September it was clear that they just don’t maintain the deck. It was dusty, a bit dirty, and «junk» piled everywere… including snowblowers and other tools. There is so much potential to that deck. A simple power washing and a coat of paint would do wonders! I understand spiders are always a problem outdoors, but when you see MANY of them everywhere… including spider nests on the ceiling and railings, it is apparent nobody maintains this deck to make it presentable to customers. Again… it could be a great deck… I imagine having a band out there but doubt anyone would want to hang out there in those conditions. So sad to see so many possibilities go to waste.
I ordered a cup of chicken noodle soup, and my dining partner ordered chicken strips. The soup was okay but had an off flavor. The worst though was the fact that I found 2 bones in my soup, and I only ate half of the cup. My dining partner’s chicken strips were pretty bad. Didn’t think one could mess something like that up, but they were absolutely soggy. They had a hint of fish flavor which I expected since I assumed they fry the fish and chicken in the same oil, but the chicken meat itself was odd in taste and smell.
Again…not surprised on the food. Having tried it before… we go for the outdoors and scenery. Or should I say, we «went» for the outdoors and scenery. After experiencing the neglected dirty and buggy deck… doubtful we will stop back. Plenty of other options with good outdoor scenery AND good food.

It’s been almost 18 years since I’ve been in this place and it seemed like nothing has changed (well…almost). It’s hard to recall what my previous experience was, but I’m gonna go out on a limb and say it’s probably the same one we had last night.
I ordered the Full Walleye dinner and was just OK for my taste. My wife ordered the Philly Cheese steak sandwich and was a little salty for her taste.
One of the saving grace was the service we received was really great.
It’s definitely a different dining experience.

One of my favorite restaurants to go to. I love walleye and their walleye sandwich is very delicious. Always cooked perfect and tastes even better. All their sides like fried cauliflower or French fries are amazing and even better with their ranch. I don’t know what it is but their ranch is FANTASTIC! It is a little out of the way as its on a dirt road but definitely worth the trip. Never once had an issue with service. They are always friendly and very good at their jobs.

Went there with a group of 8, was seated in the bar. This was a huge mistake. Horrible food customer service, however the pitchers of beer kept coming. Took 2 hours to get our food, included with attitude from the waitress because I wanted the check right away. Did have some great walleye and I’m sure the customer service must be better in the restaurant area because the place is quite busy.

This is one of my favorites. I always have the walleye. It’s amazing. My spouse had stuffed summer squash grown in the garden out back & says it was great. It’s a very divey hole in the wall behind Offutt, & it definitely smells fishy. Servers are laid-​back & friendly. My family’s gone there for years. Some love the chicken, some catfish, & also their steaks are good.

Very down home atmosphere. I like the wide variety of food on the menu. My wife and son both had fried chicken which they both said was great. I had the rainbow trout deep fried, and it was perfect. The staff was friendly and helpful. The prices are very reasonable.

It’s a rare occasion in life to get exactly what you wished for. I ordered the blackened rainbow trout and this meal fell nothing short of spectacular. I was pleasantly surprised when the pot bread arrived at our table, the pot bread remained true to its name arriving in a flower pot. The bread has great consistency, and when paired with butter melts in your mouth. It was a hard choice to make between the fried catfish and blackened rainbow trout. I decided to go with the rainbow trout despite my doubts. When the server brought the dish the first thing I noticed was the beautiful garnish of lettuce and oranges, which complimented the white meat quite well. The fish was cooked to perfection and the seasoning was superb, it’s almost impossible to describe the range of flavors found on this dish. The crunch of the fries when paired with the flakiness of the fish was irresistible. I throughly enjoyed my dinner at Catfish Lake and will continue to rave about this restaurant for years to come.

Made it in for dinner a couple nights ago, not a complaint at all! Awesome fish as always! Char-​broiled salmon was awesome! Walleye fabulous! Great service! Going to miss this place when we go back home to Arizona!

Hadn’t been there in a couple of years and it was a beautiful Sunday early evening so why not! That’s just about the worst restaurant meal I’ve had in ages and won’t happen again. Ordered a Filet and the waitress brought a New York Strip instead. No sear on it and the only seasoning was about a full ounce of plain salt. Basically inedible. My wife ordered catfish nuggets. Now remember, this place is named after Catfish. She was brought this way over salted and obviously not fresh form of catfish that was also inedible. I asked the waitress about why everything was so over salted (even the fries were over salted) and she said «We get our catfish pre-​breaded so there isn’t anything we can do about that.» Honest answer at least… but why in the world is a place named Catfish Lake selling mediocre frozen pre-​breaded catfish ?? The waitress said the lake is now used to raise carp, by the way. In the end, there was just no pride or care in anything, the service, the quality of the food, the preparation of the food… nothing.

I’m writing this review mainly to remind myself not to revisit this place. The food was very bland and greasy. Décor was outdated and overall dirty inside. I walked in and was told the wait would be over 20 minutes. A group behind me asked the hostess if the ‘other side’ was open and she said yes. I asked her if one could order food on the ‘other side’ and she replied yes. I went to check it out and there were all kinds of tables open. I guess I’m wondering why she did not offer to tell me that there was another area with available seating instead of telling me the wait on her side was 20 olus minutes long. And believe me the food is not even worthy of a 5 minute wait!
Server on the ‘other side’ was pretty friendly and attentive.

Born and raised–
Never disappointed when i come here to eat!!!
Had the mushroom burger and it was very tasty. Mushrooms were sauteed just right. The portion of the burger really made my mouth water when i saw it was hand pattied. Service was slighty slower, probably because i choose to sit outside with the rest of my group. Only one server in the bar area.
The fried mushrooms are a MUST when eating here!!! The cheese sauce that goes with them is very tasty! Thanks
Very inexpensive!!!

Catfish Lake has great views and even better fried food.
You definitely don’t come to this place looking to eat diet food. They are experts at frying just about anything. My favorites on my visits here have been the fried cauliflower (ranch is a must), fried walleye (half order is a lot, full order is ridiculously large) and french fries. They will gladly bring out some malt vinegar if you ask, and I highly suggest asking. The catfish was good, but the walleye for me was much better, great beer breading, flaky tender fish and a serving that is more than enough to share with someone else (or the whole table if you get a full order).
Service is Ok, but sometimes when they are busy you might find yourself waiting a bit longer then normal, about what you would expect at a smaller, family owned restaurant
The atmosphere is a bit divy, but that just adds to the experience.

I usually make it here to eat about once a year on average. It’s just not convenient to where I live or work, but my father use to bring me here and so I return for a nostalgic lunch on occasion.
I ordered the Combination. It’s a $ 15.99 plate of fried chicken, fried walleye, fried catfish nuggets, fried shrimp, and fried carp (which they call their Famous Fish). It also comes with two sides. I opted for French fries and their Ham & Bean Soup.
The Walleye is very good. It’s probably my favorite fish of theirs. The catfish nuggets were good, but I didn’t care much for the batter/​breading on them as it was too thick and didn’t cling well to the fish. The Famous Fish was good. Not great. Some people hate carp and I’m not a huge fan myself, but they do a good job with theirs. The fried shrimp I ignored completely and gave to my brother to eat as I am «over-​shrimped» in Nebraska restaurants. Fried chicken was good and very moist. Fries were okay, but I had so much other food that I barely touched them. The Ham & Bean soup was excellent.
The fish was all cooked well and was not over or under-​cooked. Likewise, it was all of acceptable freshness too. I do think their breadings and batters could use a little more salt (and perhaps some heat), but I cannot complain too much as it is certainly easier to add salt to a dish that doesn’t have enough than it is to remove it from a dish that has too much.
Next time I’ll stick with the best of the best and order a half-​Walleye with Ham & Bean soup. :)
Service was friendly and the kitchen was quick to get our food out to us (you can expect freshly-​fried seafood and chicken to take up to 20 mins).
Restaurant is a bit of a dive and built next to a fish farm (hence the name). Some of the supporting pillars in the bar have sunk and so you may end up eating at a table that sits at a 15 angle. It’s quite amusing actually and adds to the charm.
Probably not a classy place to bring a date or to take your wife on date night, but solid fried fish in an unpretentious atmosphere.
This place used to be a real favorite with the military lunch crowd from Offutt AFB. But, reduced funding resulting in the base closing its back gate and construction in the area has really reduced the USAF lunch crowd.

Not the nicest looking place but it’s got a great atmosphere, friendly service and amazing food!
The portions are huge, fresh and the prices are very reasonable. The fried catfish was delicious as well as the blackened catfish. The stuffed mushrooms were AMAZING.
Would definitely go back there again.

We went here around 4:30 so there weren’t many people. The food that others got smelled great, we just had a drink. The drinks were super reasonably priced! I think this place would be great in the summer! The bartender said it gets really packed. It would be awesome if they had live entertainment with the huge deck they have overlooking the lake. It could use a good cleaning, that was the only bad part.

Fried walleye dinner is the BOMB! Keep trying to order the half-​order and my husband keeps talking me into the full order and then even HE can’t help me finish it. Certainly nothing fancy but you know the fish is fresh! Some people recommend this over Joe Tess’ but having never eaten at Joe Tess’ I can’t make that determination.

Well you won’t be blown away by the décor but thats not what most people go for anyway. I had the sampler which comes with popcorn shrimp, catfish nuggets, walleye, chickenwhole catfish and fries. That was around $ 15. WAY more food than this guy needed, but I wanted to try several things from their menu. Bring your appetite and some help because this is a meal to be shared. We”ll be back. The service was above average and all of our food was very good. Popcorn shrimp was the only thing I would say was average. Worth the drive. See yas soon!

You want a big ass portion of tasty fried walleye? Come here. Catfish Lake kills it on fried fish. This place is not for dieters. They do offer not seafood… steaks and such but I’ve never had anything but catfish or walleye (and gizzards!).
Not a fancy place, at all. Seating in lounge or restaurant side.
Fair prices.
Good service.
Catfish Lake is worth checking out!