On Friday at noon, you might choose to enjoy Farinon, Gilbert’s or perhaps Marquis’ weekly wings. For those observing Lent, unless you wish to chow down on a bowl of vegetables or the mysterious shamrock-shaped tempeh, options are rather limited.

Enter Scully’s. Just steps away from Wawa on the 200 block of Cattell Street, this compact seafood joint offers a takeout menu matching its small stature. The place is old school—cash-only and website-less—so if you’re in the mood for seafood, be prepared to call half an hour in advance. 

When we, along with Arts & Culture editor Shirley Liu ‘23, entered Scully’s on Wednesday afternoon to grab lunch, we were greeted by a display case full of fresh fish. After a brief discussion with the owner, who manned the cash register, we decided on some of the shop’s best-sellers: a crab cake, fish and chips and a blackened salmon sandwich. 

We started with the classic crab cake. A common pitfall of crab cakes is their breading-to-crab ratio. If there is too much bread for the amount of crab, the cake loses its luster. Scully’s crab cake featured the perfect combination of breading and crab. If anything, the cake could have used more breading to up the crunch factor, but we’re not complaining. 

Then, we moved on to the blackened salmon sandwich. The seasoning was concentrated mostly on the skin of the fish, not permeating through to the meat. While this would be an issue in barbecue, the relative lack of seasoning elevated the fishy flavors. The heavily seasoned fish came on a soft potato roll, but the roll quickly deflated, leading us to the conclusion that the salmon is better served as dinner than a sandwich. The salmon was flaky and flavorful, with a proper crunch on the outside and a juicy softness on the inside. 

Finally, we wrapped up with the eatery’s most popular item: fish and chips. We saved what we thought would be the best for last, but unfortunately, despite the excellent crunch factor (we wish you could hear it), this was the group’s least favorite of the three. The breading and fish, while good independently, didn’t work as well together as the rest of the items did. The steak fries were not salted, requiring ketchup and a squeeze of the included lemon wedge, and they lost their appeal quite quickly after sharing a container with the fish. 

Gallery • 3 Photos

Photo by Trebor Maitin

The honorable mention goes to the coleslaw included with the fish and chips. While Trebor and Shirley cowered at the sight of it, Maddie, an avid coleslaw fan, was impressed with its sweetness and ratio of the ingredients. 

A few points to note about Scully’s: the trio received our food quite quickly, within fifteen minutes of ordering. This makes it doable for students trying to squeeze in something quick during the lunch hour. Scully’s offers fresh fish options as well, a great opportunity for students in apartments or off-campus housing to add some new dishes to their rotation of home-cooked meals. 

Overall, we found the experience enjoyable, a nice change from the typical dining options on the hill. Scully’s is closed on Sundays and Mondays, but stop in Tuesday through Saturday for an array of fishy options to break up the monotony of Lafayette lunches.