Cluck & Catch is a newly opened restaurant in State College that specializes in fried chicken and fish. Located at 536 Westerly Parkway, the former home of My My Chicken, it serves crispy seafood, classic chicken dishes, and quick family meals for diverse cravings.
Interior
Although they did adorn the walls with fish and chicken themed decor, the interior is fairly bare and industrial feeling. There are four orange, metal tables with metal chairs and bottles of ketchup and malt vinegar sit on each table.
I’m glad I chose to take my food home because the temperature outside during my visit was 20 degrees Fahrenheit and the inside of the restaurant did nothing to warm me up. It was chilly in the restaurant and the metal chairs were very cold to sit on.
One idea that I think would be good for the interior is to add some signage or a mural to the counter. Currently, there’s nothing on it and I think add a fun graphic there would be a nice detail that customers will see immediately upon entering the restaurant.
Menu
Cluck & Catch’s menu offers appetizers, drinks, desserts, sides, and chicken and fish entrees.
Appetizers include Onion Rings, Mozzarella Sticks, and Loaded Fries priced $5–$10. Desserts feature Cookies, Fried Cheesecake, and White Chocalate Raspberry Cheesecake ranging from $3-$7. Drinks include Water, Soda, Jarritos, and Aguas Frescas in Mango, Pineapple, and Strawberry flavors, priced $2-$4.
Their chicken offerings include fried or roasted whole or half chickens, chicken wings, legs, breast, and thighs with prices starting at $9.95 and up to $47.50 depending on how many pieces you want. Boneless options include chicken tenders starting at $9.95, with an option to add fries and soda for $4. Spice levels range from Country (not spicy) to Extra Hot.
The Fish menu includes Flounder, Haddock, Cod, and Tilapia, starting at $14.95, and up to $27.95 for a Whole Snapper. Family Packs and customizable meals like Fish & Shrimp Tacos or Shrimp prepared Battered, Tempura, or Grilled are available.
Sides such as rice, beans, fries, coleslaw, guacamole, and pico de gallo are available a la carte from $2.50-$4.
Food
I ordered the fried calamari appetizer, shrimp po’ boy sandwich and one piece cod fish n’ chips.
When ordering fried calamari, you know how the crust can get soggy and sometimes fall off when you start handling a piece and biting into it? Well, not with this calamari. I was impressed with how, after a 10-minute car ride in a closed styrofoam container, the crust on the calamari maintained its crispiness and did not get the least bit soggy. Every piece had solid a crust to calamari ratio.
The Cod fish n’ chips was similarly impressive. The fish was not overly greasy and the meal maintained it’s crispiness from the store to my house. The piece of fish was large and had a good degree of flakiness. Honestly, I thought the one piece meal was a sizable amount of food due to the size of the fish, but I wanted to try one other item on the menu for the purposes of this review.
Lastly, I had the shrimp po’ boy sandwich. While not bad, it was probably my least favorite of meal. It started off well, but the mayo and remoulade sauce got to be a bit much the more bites I took. It got very heavy and I debated skipping the second half of the sandwich, but I powered through.
It seemed like the fried shrimp was tossed in the sauce which made the crust on the shrimp very soggy. And then I felt like it was too much sauce, in general. If they spread the sauce on the bread and the shrimp stayed crispy, I probably would’ve enjoyed it more.
Wrapping Up
Overall, Cluck & Catch is a refreshing addition to the restaurants in State College. The quality of their fried seafood impressed me, particularly the calamari and cod fish n’ chips, which held up well even after the journey home. While the shrimp po’ boy wasn’t quite to my taste due to the heavy use of sauce, I’m eager to return and explore their chicken offerings and other menu items. If you’re in the mood for comfort food with crispy perfection, Cluck & Catch is well worth a visit.
Have you tried Cluck & Catch yet?