Long have we enjoyed the hefty sandwiches and stacked, house-ground burgers at Arcata Pizza and Deli. They’re almost enough to hinder exploring the rest of chalkboard menu. And, OK, maybe rolling in late at night, a little worse for wear, you weren’t in the mood to experiment with the seafood.

Let your gaze drop to the “Hook & Line” board with the big fish on top. The owners of APD are also the captains of a pair of fishing boats, the Scrimshaw and the Markit 8, the fruits of which arrive weekly on the board and in fried fillets via little red, paper-lined baskets from the kitchen.

The local lingcod fish and chips ($16) came courtesy of the Scrimshaw this week. The delicately panko-crusted fillets break open to steamy, tender, white fish that is lovely with just a squeeze of lemon or one of the two accompanying sauces: a sweet, tangy citrus aioli or a traditional tartar sauce. U.K. natives will sigh over the lack of batter and wedge-cut potatoes, but given our refusal to follow your spelling conventions, isn’t this rather a small thing? Let yourself enjoy a haystack of skinny fries that are as close as you can get to fast food (in the best way) without that one friend making you watch a documentary on factory farming again. Trust us, this is better.
If you still have room in your boat, the clam chowder ($3.80 cup, $7 bowl) will make you forget about the goopy business you can stand a spoon in. Instead, it’s none-too salty and full of skin-on potatoes and decidedly un-canny clams with a little white wine whisked into the cream.