Flying Fish — Restaurant in Bentonville

When we travel, rarely do we eat at a restaurant more than once. With all the options out there we want to experience it all!

That rule has been broken for Flying Fish. Located in the heart of Bentonville adjacent from the city square, we happened upon this treasure the day before yesterday for the first time.

Ran had the fried catfish jambalya while I partook in the fried catfish, jumbo shrimp, with french fries basket. Omg words can't describe the flavor. I know the fish was fried damned hot, like right on the verge before burning, because the food was amazingly crispy and crunchy but not oily. Folks this is not a simple feat.

Ran's jambalya was a jam packed stew chocked full of andouille sausage, okra, gulf shrimp, and long grain rice melded in a filé gumbo gravy. It's a flavor profile that tells a story, of a chef trained master in cajun cuisine.

I took it all in the food, the mint green walls, simple checkered plastic table cloths atop the 1950's art deco tables. While bluesy cajun music played over the sound system I ate my chicken strips and shrimp dipped in cocktail sauce. All the while imagining a future air boat ride on the bayou where the kids would dispatch gators with an AR-15. "Shoot em kids!"

After her first bites, Ran said, "we have to come back here." So the next day we brought the kids. Dew planted his face in his Jambalaya while Willow was enamored with the hundreds of adopted Big Mouth Billy Bass' on the wall.

The older I get the more I'm attracted to simplicity. I enjoy the diamonds in the rough. Meaning I seek out the hole in the wall. For example awhile back, Tarah Tomczak, and I were talking about, if you're in Kenosha, Racine, Lake Geneva and you want the best pizza, don't look for the glitz and the glam of a pizzeria with a brightly-colored paint job. No, look for the rundown joint where half the neon lights in the PBR sign aren't functioning and the stucco is peeling. Because, the owners don't care what the restaurant looks like or whether you eat at their establishment. Everyone knows they've got the goods.

Flying Fish is no different. Its situated in the heart of a business district where a commercial lot would literally retails for millions of dollars if any were available. The building looks like an upgraded pole shed, with white painted tin siding, and a red lettered unlit sign that simply reads "Flying Fish". Yet, inside there must be 50 tables. What does that tell ya?

It tells me, this esyablishment has the demand and ability to feed a large number of hungry guests. Let me just say, Bentonville is not lacking for fine dining establishments. So when my wife says, "maybe we should eat here again," and I'm thinking the same thing after we've already eaten here twice.... yeah Flying Fish is the real deal and I'm betting we'll be back for...

A great place to get fish, oysters, shrimp, and whatever else you can think of from a fish camp. All of it great tasting, prepared well and fast! By enthusiastic people too!

UPDATE: We went back, more than a year later. We haven't been out much since COVID. The food was not nearly as good! I would give it 2 stars now. It may have been a bad night, or old oil... The Calamari was terrible, tasted bad and was over cooked. I sent it back (and they refunded without contrition). Fried Pickles crumbled like dust, needless to say they tasted terrible! Fried Oysters were ok. Fried Catfish was delicious, tender and tasty. If I had to find fault it would be that they undercooked it by a few seconds, a few spots were a bit too wet. However, when compared with the rest of the food, it was an oasis and very good. The French Fries were good as well. A friend's Margarita was good, but I did not taste it. Not a great meal, off my "dependable" list. Overall, I would No Longer Recommend this restaurant, unless you were only seeking good Fried Catfish, that can still be recommended. But one item does not make a meal, I left unsatiated and very disappointed in what used to be a reliably good kitchen. The last insult was the apathy of the staff. They didn't seem to care about our experience. It should have been obvious, if not from our faces, than from the food left on our plates! Their reaction was monotone. Unbeknownst to them, a death kneel...

Update 12/2024: my dad loves their catfish, and my mom enjoys their fish tacos. Unfortunately on our last visit though, every veggie we ordered besides squash was incredibly bland and watery. The corn was weirdly flavored but didn't seem to have any butter or salt, and was sitting in water. The potatoes were also very lackluster boiled with barely any flavor. The green beans were okay, and cole slaw was somewhat okay. The hush puppies are good, although my dad thinks they're too spicy. The squash and zucchini were at least grilled so they had flavor. Very disappointing experience and very bland food, it was also incredibly empty for a Saturday night. Also frozen margaritas were very sad this time around.

Great restaurant, would highly recommend coming here if you love southern fare. I didn't know if I'd be a huge fan since I don't love eating meat, but I got all veggie dishes and love everything I tried. It's also really easy to share a meal with someone else.

The only note I have is that the line was super long, and it did take awhile to...