The winner of the Saginaw, Midland, Bay City poll for Michigan’s Best Fish Fry, Heck’s Bar in Saginaw, offers fish fry year round. The humble owner isn’t quite sure how he won, but he’s happy to serve up great food and cold beers at his neighborhood spot.
“It’s not rocket science or anything,” Heck’s Bar owner Jeff Wenzell said. He owns the bar with his wife, Abbey. “We just try to cater to our customers. People want to see you, so we try to be here quite a bit. Customer service is number one for us, and then the food we put out is quality.”
Wenzell bought the bar about a year ago, and it underwent some major renovations and upgrades inside. He considers Heck’s both a sports bar and a neighborhood hangout. “We always try to have a game on,” he said. “But we also have a lot of locals, too.” Heck’s is located in a little triangle of watering holes in the Carrollton neighborhood in Saginaw. Right up the street is Merl’s Tavern and Big Bill’s Bar. All three places have really rallied together over the last year, helping each other out any way they can.
“The support of the area means a lot, not just for me, but for every bar owner,” Wenzell said. “Every bar owner is thankful that locals do that.”
They were open for only a month before the first shut down occurred. The Heck’s quickly switched to take-out. “We had just opened, and wanted to stay relevant,” Wenzell said. “We ran specials every day, and the fish fry on Fridays, which we do year round.”
Wenzell said that it is his talented kitchen crew who should be recognized for not just their hard work over the last year, but also the level of professionalism they brought to the kitchen. “I can’t take credit for everything,” Wenzell said. “I just own the place, and these guys do all the hard work.”
The bar typically goes through well over 100 pounds of fish on a Friday night. When asked what sets his fish fry apart, Wenzell chuckled. “To be honest, I don’t know, he said. “I was humbled to see our votes.” The bar buys high quality fish, and offers both perch and cod, that get a dry dredge. “I think the secret is our cleanliness. We use clean oil.”
The fish dinners come with jalapeno hush puppies, cole slaw, and crispy fries. “It’s a pretty standard meal,” said Wenzell. “But people love our fries, they like the jalapeno hush puppies. Sometimes people will come in in the middle of the week wanting to order.”
Wenzell said that he wasn’t so sure he was the best. “I can’t sit here and say I have the best,” he said. “There’s always someone who’s bigger and better than you. And I’m not one to brag, I’m extremely grateful for our customers who voted for us.” Heck’s never even shared the regional poll on their Facebook page, all of their support came organically from their customers. Wenzell mentioned many of the other finalists in the poll as having great fish. You can check out the list below.
“People do like our food,” Wenzell said. “It helps tremendously, the support that they gave us, that community has. We are forever thankful for that.”
Saginaw, Midland and Bay City areas poll results:
1. Heck’s Bar, Carrollton
2. Oasis Lounge, Bay City
3. Log Cabin Bar and Grill, Freeland
4. Corpus Christi Parish, Bay City
5. Linwood Corners Cafe, Linwood
In addition to Friday fish fry, Heck's Bar in Saginaw has some other pretty great food, including pizza, cheesesteaks, and burgers.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
If you go:
Heck’s Bar Carrolton
555 Shattuck Road, Saginaw, MI 48604
More info: https://www.hecksbarcarrollton.com/ or https://www.facebook.com/hecksbar/
Nachos to-go from Heck's Bar Carrollton in Saginaw.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
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The Link LonkMarch 12, 2021 at 01:11AM
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Heck’s Bar is Saginaw area’s Best Fish Fry, even the owner can’t believe it - MLive.com
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