Morse Fish

Take your diet elsewhere! Morse could deep fry a shoe and I’d eat it, they are that good. Honestly does not matter what you order, you can’t go wrong. The clams are quite popular though. I must say these happen to be my favorite French fries in and around Boston, they don’t get the credit they deserve. Perhaps it is because they are not fresh cut, but in this case, who cares!
Fun fact: Aside from serving amazing food, this happens to be the oldest fish market in the city

the fried oyster ($ 13) is so good! we also got fried clam strip, clam chowder and lobster roll. the clam chowder is just normal. But the lobster roll is very tasty and have so many lobster meet in it.

You guys give people what they pay for, most places will charge the same for much less food. I’ve been here twice and will be returning without a doubt. I would’ve given it 5 stars if the closing hours were later, 8pm-​9pm is too early in my opinion.

Overrated.
Everything was underseasoned, and not exactly fresh tasting.
Portions are huge, sure, but it didn’t matter. My scallops were the best thing I had, and they were just OK. Much more to choose from in North End and Downtown. Trust me.

This place is the thing I miss the most about living in Boston.
They mostly sell fresh fish but they also have a large fried fish mini-​restaurant as well. It is the haddock dinners that I habitually got over the 4 years I knew of the place. They were so good, melt-​in-​your mouth good. The side dishes of cole slaw, french fries and onion rings were excellent too. But it was the lightly-​breaded haddock that was the main attraction. And so affordable, too. For the portion you got you’d have to pay twice as much at ritzier places.
The ambiance was very casual. The staff were all very decent, down-​to-​earth folks. The fry cook I knew the best was Joe Cobb and he was a real pleasure to order food from.
Of course they served a variety of sea foods and you could have them baked instead of fried if you preferred. You could even select a piece of fish from their fresh fish display and have that cooked if you wanted.
The only quibble I would have is that the bathroom was a little hard to get to. As an overweight older person it was a kind of difficult.

A staple in the South End for over a century, Morse Fish Company is a popular neighborhood dual-​destination for fish and casual dining. Come to buy the catch of the day or stay for a fish fry. Every neighborhood should be lucky enough to have a place like this.
Lunch and dinner portions are available all day, with the main difference of size and cole slaw served with the french fries and fish. Fish can also be broiled and served with rice and vegetables for a $ 1.00 more. The menu is comprehensive with daily specials. The bluefish special is meaty and served fried in a light and crispy batter. Dip into the homemade relish-​packed tartar sauce or maybe some hot sauce.
Fried clams are of course a standard in the region and these do not disappoint. Note there is a $ 2.00 surcharge to include clam belly (worth the upgrade). The batter is crispy and slightly sweet to compliment the rich clam. The dinner portion is very large, so come hungry.

This place is actually open until 9 Fridays, at least in May when we visited. Dropped $ 24.50 from the enthusiastic and friendly staff for a very reasonably sized lobster roll aka lobster salad sandwich *with fries* and a shrimp cocktail (yeah, I know… wasn’t me).

A friend came to town and said she wanted seafood, so I did some research and we came here.
On walking in, I stared at the many menus for a while until I was called a «noobie» in an endearing sort of way. Then I was told that lunch portions were available for dinner, and vice versa, which was exciting. At that point all I had to do was pick what I wanted.
I ordered the clam belly roll, and fish cakes. I didn’t have the issue with the tartar sauce that everyone else on Unilocal seems to have had, but I’m not especially discerning either. This was just some solid fried seafood! I haven’t had this excellent quality of fried food in such a long time, it was great to indulge. The atmosphere was also wonderful, and somewhat industrial, in the best of ways. This place isn’t pretentious. It is what it is, and it is fried and delicious. I liked the french fries too, for the record; not sure what the bad rap is.
My only reason for docking a star is that I really do wish they had some sort of greens to go with what they serve. Since their whole menu is currently fried, I know this would potentially be tough. However, I don’t especially love feeling like a greaseball after eating, and I would definitely come here more if there was a green side option.
That said, feeling like a greaseball _​sometimes_​is a revelatory experience, and Morse Fish Company is a great place for that to happen.

This place has really quick service. I ordered a lobster roll and my boyfriend got the trout special.
The lobster till comes with fries (cooked in perfection). Not too hot and had a little crunch. The trout special came with rice.
Side note: there is a restroom for costumers. It’s on the left, down the steps.

Omg so much fried food.
Came with some friends and tried the combos. We had the fried calamari and clams special and the popcorn shrimp and swai combo. The calamari wasn’t bad but needed more seasoning. The shrimp wasn’t worth the calories, nor the clams.
I did really like the fish and wish I had just gotten two fish types. It was crunchy on the outside and still soft and moist on the inside.
Overall felt so gross after because of the oil and they don’t have a good way to give you water. Wouldn’t recommend getting the combo and stopping at single servings.

I cannot say enough good things about Morse Fish Co. I have been living in the South End for 3 years as of August 2015 and I have been going here consistently. Their tilapia is the cheapest around (2 dollars a piece) but also of the highest quality. Their shrimp cocktail, lobster tails, and more expensive fish are all great, too. I always insist the skin and bones be out of all pieces and they either do it themselves or guarantee it is.
I have become close with their man fish guy (forget his name) that I even connected with his girlfriend regarding her application to graduate school where I went. All because the Fish Monger and I chat it up all the time.
They do to go cajun catfish which is awesome as well which comes with rice. Lemons are often tossed in for free (even though technically 1 dollar) and they often give the cocktail sauce too, without any charge.
I love this place and plan to still come here even when the Whole Foods opens in January 2015 on Harrison Ave.

Morse is a no-​frills kind of establishment, with easy counter-​ordering and self-​seated tables. It’s a casual place to grab a quick bite, but I was a little underwhelmed after walking over half an hour on my last day in Boston here. Service was efficient albeit impersonal.
Fried clam strips, mussels, and fries:
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I was so intrigued when I saw that they had clam strips here! I really like shellfish in general, but clams have always been one of those «I’ll eat it if there’s nothing else I like more, but I do really like it» kind of foods, and in my head, I’ve always thought that fried clams would be amazing. I did want to try the fried mussels as well, and the clam strips and mussels combination seemed like the best choice for me at the time. I probably should have considered that more carefully, as clam strips are just the edges of clams minus the juicy belly portion where most of the meat is, and that didn’t quite stand up to the deep frying as well as the whole clam would have. The breading was a little thicker than I would have liked, and while the clam strips did indeed come fresh out of the fryer, I felt that they were overfried. What little clam I did taste was quite fresh, which I appreciated, but I would definitely recommend the whole clams over just the clam strips. The mussels weren’t as fresh as the clams, although they had more meat on them. The fries were rather limp and unmemorable.
Catfish filets and fries:
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I thought the catfish filets were well-​fried and fresh, with the meat flaking off in translucently white chunks. The fries were the same as in the previous combination, and they taste like the out of the freezer kind. I did like the tartar sauce, although it veered towards the sweeter side and the containers were tiny.
I feel like there should be a «Fried» somewhere in the name, since almost everything on the menu is pretty much that. It’s not a bad thing, since who doesn’t like fried seafood? I would stop by again for some fried clams (not clam strips).

During a recent trip to Boston, I decided to try lobster rolls from a few places around town. The third of three stops and representing the South End was Morse Fish Co, the oldest fish market in Boston (since 1903!). I went the furthest to get to this one, but it was definitely worth it! Just like the others, you order/​pay at the counter and wait for your order.
Don’t call it a lobster roll here, or even a lobstah roll. Theirs is a LOBSTER SALAD SANDWICH. One size only. The lobster is shredded with just a few small chunks here and there and mixed with mayo (more than the other ones I tried) and minced celery. It’s good, but what they excel at is the roll. It was the best of the three I had. They toast it much more and you can taste the butter with every bite. The sandwich comes with piping hot fries.
Again there were no losers in this tasting!
Make sure to check out all of their menus. There’s a blackboard, whiteboard, a paper menu and specials.

Great dinner plates. Their lobster roll is really really good, but their other plates are pretty awesome too. Get their seafood broiled instead of fried, and ask for vegetables instead of fries.
They also sell really fresh seafood, I use their tuna for sushi and sashimi.
The guys there are also super friendly and helpful. The other day they had chilean sea bass, so I wanted to try cooking it for the first time and they gave me an excellent recipe! They also have live maine lobsters.

Yummy lobster rolls!
I’ve stumbled upon a «best lobster rolls to get in the US» and Morse Fish Co was on top of the list! So of course I had to try it!
Morse Fish Co is a bit of a hole-​in-​the-​wall fish market… pretty interesting! I loved how fresh everything tasted, and even the fries were piping hot! The guy working there was super friendly and funny, too… very entertaining.
Be sure to get a whole one for yourself and not share one… you’ll definitely want more after each bite. Mmm…

This is really more like 4.5 stars, but since we can’t do half stars, I’ll give them 5! All I can say is that you don’t need the tarter sauce for any of the fried seafood here because every single morsel is battered lightly and fried just right. Each piece had a savory seafood taste to it. It was so tasty that I had to really force myself to NOT use the tartar sauce and hot sauce because you really didn’t need it. It’s THAT good!
My friend made her annual summer trip to Boston, and after learning that Morse is Boston’s oldest fish market, we decided to come here. We ordered, the 4 way seafood platter, with haddock, squid, oysters, and clams, and a clam chowder to share. Sadly, the platter came with frozen fries that the restaurant purchases from a supplier. It’s too bad they don’t go the extra mile of making hand cut fries because the fries were not tasty. The chowder was good but not as good and creamy as Legal Seafood’s. I would definitely return though.
One other thing that I noticed about the place is just how clean it is. As I walked over to get my sodas from the fridges, I caught a glimpse of their kitchen. It was very bare bones and clean looking.

One of the many pleasures of summer is soft shell crab season, so when I spotted the sign at Morse Fish Co advertising their Fresh Soft Shell Crab Sandwich for $ 11.95, I immediately zoned in on it. And right above it, a sign touting their sweet potato fries which could be added to any order for a single buck.
The sweet potato fries were nicely crisp, yet they sadly lacked that natural sweetness I was expecting. The dollar was an upgrade charge for the fries that normally come with the sandwich. Speaking of which, the soft shell crab sandwich was simple yet meaty crispy satisfying.
I preferred the upgraded onion rings over the sweet potato fries and their rice pilaf. The closest thing they had to something green was the little tub of cole slaw that came in the 2 choice combo lunch. It was creamy, crisp, and fine for what it was though I still prefer the sweeter version at KFC.
For seafood, there was the white board special 2 way combo calamari and clam strips $ 13.95, the haddock lunch $ 8.95, and sea scallops (as a side $ 13.95, $ 15.95 as lunch, 11 pieces to our order). Each was fried well and quite fresh, but the winner was the scallops, while the clam strips were mostly fried batter with very little meat within. I could have done without the strips, but enjoyed the few legs which came with the rings of calamari.
Their lunches are fried and tend to be served with either fries or rice pilaf, and tartar sauce. While dinners can be ordered either fried (with cole slaw, tartar sauce, fries) or broiled (with rice, vegetable and cole slaw) for an extra $ 1. No idea though as to the portion difference between lunch and dinner orders.
We considered their crabcakes which was offered as a pair in their 2 way combo special, but when I eyed it in the glass case, I didn’t find the crumbed rounded patties to be too appetizing looking.
Plastic utensils and napkins are self-​serve. Ketchup was available in prefilled sauce containers by the counter, while lemon wedges were available wrapped in pairs by request. City water was served in soup bowls I held up with two hands. This is a casual type of spot where you order and pay at the counter (they do take credit cards) and pick up your styrofoam containers as they call them out.
Facilities are available though invisible from their dining area — just ask!
I think next time I’d like to try their fried swai and popcorn shrimp combo $ 13.95 and the clam chowder $ 4.75.

LOVED THIS PLACE
Lobster roll was phenomenal — good amount of fresh lobster served on a flavorful roll with a bite to it. The coleslaw was tasty as well — medium vinegar. Homemade tarter sauce was the right amount of tarte/​sweet taste. Fried clams, chowder was all yummy. Nice employees, friendly neighborhood joint. Can’t wait to come back next time in Boston.

Those fried oysters – ! They were so plump and juicy. Worth the food coma.
Lobster roll was coated with too much mayo, though. I would not order it again when there are other options. On the upside, the fries was so crispy and seemed to have a double layer of batter. They reminded me of the fries I used to eat in high school.

Great Seafood Market.
Fresh catch is out on display. Pick what you want and take it home or ask them to cook it. Full menu of options make for some great lunch and dinner options. This is a market and as such you will not be getting a lot of ambiance but for the people.
I enjoyed the New England style clam chowder and clam strip lunch. I would have both again.