Fin Inn

Unique, but not impressed! Little kids would love eating and watching the fish, so if you have little kids take them one time for the experience. I was a little dissappointed in the fish. I was expecting to see pretty fish, but they had big ugly river fish and the décor was just brown and dark, and it was a little wierd eating my catfish with the fish swimming around me looking at me. Lol. The waitress was friendly. I wanted something different for tonight and I guess that is a good word for this place. If you are looking for different, this is it.

Everything is fried! We each ordered a fish sandwich and all it had on it was fish… no condiments or veggies. How boring to get a plain fish sandwich. The fish were cool to watch, until one of them had an ugly bowel movement which was explosive… wasn’t very hungry after that! Save your money and time, by dining elsewhere.

The Fin Inn is pretty much a fish restaurant… and that’s cool if you like fish but I don’t. Actually they have several other items to chose from. I like the chicken strips. They give you large portions and if you leave hungry its your fault! I always bring left overs home. The service is good but sometimes you have to wait awhile for a table but its worth the wait. The tables are long with a fish tank at the end so you can look at fish while you eat fish!!! Fish tanks is what makes eating here really different and unique a really fun place for children and adults too! I always enjoy the times we have been here.

The experience is a lot of fun. Had a blast watching the fish while waiting on the meal. I had the buffalo fillet and didn’t care for it much. My husband had the catfish fillet and liked it.

If you are in this area (between Grafton and Pere Marquette State Park) this is the place to stop… not many others. Lots of fried choices. Fish tanks at every table/​booth. Service was good.

This place was great. Huge portions. I ordered the Buffalo plate and my brother ordered the Catfish plate. We each got 2 full fish fillets. It was entertaining watching the fish in the tank next to us.
Only reason this place didn’t get 5 stars was because of the bottled tartar sauce and packets of mayo. They should make their own tartar sauce

This place is fun. You sit at long tables with aquarium at the end.
Kind of queer to sit and eat a fish sandwich with large fishes watching.
No clear soda.
Good place for families with kids.
We like the buffalo fish. The hush puppies are great.
This is very casual. Not fancy.
Be sure to check on the possible detours for water on the river road.

My Aunt and i had a wonderful experience at Fin Inn. The food was great and fresh. The atmosphere was warm and friendly. The staff and management was so friendly they even sat with us and visited because we were in the area to look up some family history. Everyone was wonderful! They even had sugar free pie and sugar free ice cream for dessert. We will be back and looking forward to it!

Food ok, not really a seafood restaurant mostly only have fish on menu. They need to make there own tauter sauce instead of bottle as many fish selections they have on menu. House dressing is very good. Alaska filet wasn’t very good 3 pieces inch wide and foot long thin. I was expecting one or two nice looking pieces wider and thicker.

A place you can take your kid to see the fish in the aquariums or great for a date. Place has very good food at a reasonable price with an amazing view. The whole area is very awesom

I have fond memories of this place as a kid. It’s one of those things that I would like my kids to experience, so I took them by here this weekend. When we got inside we were waiting behind a metal chain… The host told us he would be right with us… Only then did he dare to unhook the chain and let us through. He was not friendly to say the least. Our server was okay. The food was mediocre… About the same quality you might receive from a ballgame or convention center but with higher prices. The aquariums are what the kids enjoyed most. The one at our table had a gigantic snapping turtle… Hardly. Any room to move in his small aquarium. Once we paid and were walking to our car, my little girl tugged my arm and said «GROSSSS!!! Look inside their window daddy!!!» Sure enough… Tons of flies on the inside! (Picture). If I had seen this ahead of time there is no way I would have gone in the place. Now I keep wondering what their kitchen is like and how our food was handled. In any case, this place is really showing its age and in need of major work as soon as possible. Could be so much better!

Good food… cool experience. A must-​do when in the area.

can’t beat the buffalo and catfish fritters. ’nuff said

We used to go here when I was a kid, and it was a lot of fun. Unfortunately the last time I went it was much different. The food was overpriced for distasteful servings. Sure the fish tanks were still pretty cool & I have to wonder how long some of those fish have been swimming around in there… some were huge! Honestly for them price you pay for yucky food I’d rather cook at home and look at my own goldfish.

Bad experience, food from ok to bad, place needs renovation ASAP… and very price for the quality of food.

It seems in the last year or so The fin inn has loosened its grip on serving good fish. The turtle soup is not always cooked well. I got the Atlantic whitefish, and it was a big disappointment. It really upset me and I don’t know why but they crammed seven large adults into one of the booths and it was not a busy time about 230 in the afternoon I know we would not have all been together but the booths are not that far apart, we all would’ve been more comfortable instead of trying to make it work. I come to this place only a couple of times every year, but now I really don’t think I want to go back, it’s just kind of a disappointment to eat there. And the fishtanks are rather empty just two carp and one pike. they used to be very full and that’s just very sad. The fin innseems to be dying a very slow and sad death.

Im a long time Fin-Inn’er. my parents started taking me here when I was wee girl, and I’ve had a long time love affair with the catfish nuggets… they melt in your mouth… literally.
If you’re looking for fancy, look elsewhere, but the atmosphere and fish tanks are what makes this place what it is… Great for families, and everyone of all ages.
I’ll always return to the Fin Inn, time and time again—

If I was a kid (or had kids), this would be a top pick. You get to view real, live river creatures straight out of the Mississippi River. At least that’s what the staff said — that all the fish and turtles in the aquariums circling the dining rooms are from the river. We had river piranhas swimming by us. Who knew they are vegetarians? No scary teeth on those suckers!
The food is mostly fried. I had a grilled version of fish that was tasty but the side salad was drenched in dressing and the apple sauce was overly sweet. Like I opened with, take the kids but food-​lovers won’t have too much to love here.

I’m sorry for those of you who had a bad experience, didn’t like the food, or were bothered by the fish in the aquariums. I can only speak to my family’s experience and we really enjoy this place.
Why? As someone else mentioned, it is a great slice of Americana. Very unique. Where else can you sit next to a live aquarium besides Epcot Center? Very quaint and quirky place. Unique to the Nth degree.
Only 2 – 3 stars for the food. It is OK, not great, and most of it is fried. There are a few bright spots: The blooming onion (Eagle’s nest?) is huge and plenty for 4, you can get turtle (aka. mulligan) soup, and you can get frog legs. Not many places where those items are available.
So I give them a 4 for being unique — kind of like Lamberts. I don’t think too many people go there for the gourmet offerings… there are none.
Have fun!!!

Finn Inn is said to be «a must go to place» if you are driving from MO to IL. It’s supposed to be an extraordinary adventure for kids, too.
The food: Nothing healthy. Everything Fried. This is their trademark. Catfish right off Mississippi, local fish. Seafood: usually crawfish, catfish, occasional halibut (from Alaska), and Tilapia. They are very popular for fried food, I didn’t expect that. It was a surprising– disappointment.
This REVIEW isn’t for food but their «Ambiance and Inhumanity»:
What really made me sad and almost mad was their Aquarium displays. They have huge ancient turtles, bigger than life catfish and many other lake fish, in tiny little spaces, it’s INHUMANE AND INSANE. Observing these otherwise wild living creatures suffer in the tanks made me want to cry. I couldn’t enjoy my food. A lot of other patrons were having fun showing their kids and grandkids turtles who looked half dead. The turtles looked grotesque, slow moving, barely breathing, and extremely sad.
It’s not really okay to display gigantic catfish in small tanks either. These creatures need bigger place to swim and be free. I wonder if they catch the fish right off their own aquarium and serve us!
IF you want to enjoy your meal without feeling emotionally disturbed, please don’t eat here. Cruel and inhumane eatery.