Jake Hawkins
Catfish Heaven is located off of 21st Street in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The building Catfish Heaven calls home is mostly kitchen, but that’s where the magic happens. I had been hearing great things about the place all semester so finally decided to give it a try. The only thing I regret is not checking it out sooner. My roommate, one of our buddies and I got there about an hour before close, the latest they stay open is 7pm on Fridays and Saturdays, so it was peak dinner time. Luckily, a table cleared up right as we all finished ordering so we secured it damn near immediately. The entirety of our visit, the dining/waiting area was packed, all while the kitchen was still receiving to-go orders. The food was worth every minute we waited.
After no more than 15 to 20ish minutes, all of our orders had been called out and given to us. We went up to the counter to retrieve our food and drinks, taking the goods back to our table. As soon as I lifted the top of the styrofoam container, my gaze was met with glorious, golden, flaky pieces of catfish, accompanied with two slices of bread and some fries. The fried catfish begged to be pulled apart, hardly staying together between the tray and its destination, my mouth. Steam erupted from the fish as I pulled the bigger pieces apart, showing off the white juicy meat in a grand reveal. On the table, there was some hot sauce in a squirt bottle, so I decided to use some on one of my pieces, it was not bad at all but also did not enhance the catfish enough for me to want to keep using it. I did however make a fried catfish sandwich with the provided pieces of bread. Always a great move whether it is with chicken tenders or fried fish.
Aside from catfish, Catfish Heaven also serves white fish and wings. While neither I nor anybody in my party got them, a friend of ours, Big Mike, gets the white fish regularly and the wings sometimes, he told us both are great. I think the next time I go back I will get the wings with a couple pieces of catfish.
Catfish Heaven also makes their own Kool-Aid buckets. There are about eight flavors to choose from, and while I don’t remember them all I do want to go back and try more of them. This trip, I had gotten their Blue Lagoon. It tasted very “blue” and was incredibly sweet, which was amazing. I had to get a refill on the way out, which my pancreas was a little mad about, but I was happy so it is alright. The next time I go, which will be sometime this week, I plan on trying their Tornado drink. It is a purple drink that I assume to be grape, one of my favorite artificial flavors.
All in all, Catfish Heaven was a great experience. Next time when I go I will plan around their rush hour so I can spend more time exploring the menu (really just trying their different wings and kool aid flavors until I feel sick) without needing to feel rushed. I would recommend this spot to anybody who enjoys some great fried food for a reasonable price and portion.
