Mike Linnig's

Went to Mike Linnig's last evening to see family members I hadn't seen in at least a decade or longer and celebrate the memory and life of my favorite aunt, who recently passed away down in Florida. This is a place we have frequented for at least 50 of the 56 years of my life. It is kind of funny though, when you haven't seen or talked with your aunts/uncles/cousins in such a long time, you kind of expect them to look like they did the last time you saw them, even if they were 10-20 years younger. Well, everyone is getting older, and I don't like it!! I thought we were all supposed to live forever!

I will always go to Linnig's, it's about so much more than food, but I was not particularly pleased with what I ate yesterday. The fish was rock solid, but everything else was meh. AND, they were out of rye bread at 6pm on a Friday night. WTF?!

They might need an intervention!!

I cannot afford Mike Linnig's!

[Robin Garr]

I think Linnig's will always get the fish right, and it's worth the trip just for the scene. But yeah, I've noticed over the years that the food side, overall, has gotten more corporate-style in the past, uh, 20 years? Since the turn of the millennium? I've suspected, with absolutely no real evidence, that a younger family generation has taken over and brought their MBAs to the party. I've seen that happen at quite a few local traditions.

I cannot afford Mike Linnig's!

$40 for a fish sammie, 1 order of onion rings and hush puppies and 2 sodas is quite rich, no doubt. The fish sandwich still holds value, as you can easily make 3 sandwiches out of it, but $18 on its face does seem quite spicy.

I think Robin's assessment is spot on. Perhaps they forgot that their forefathers, no doubt, started the restaurant as a way to contribute to the community by bringing quality fish and food to their friends and neighbors and support themselves along the way. It seems the focus has shifted to making as much as possible by building a profit making business format and forgetting about what the area can reasonably support. ( I agree with Bryan and Jerry - who can afford a $40 fish sandwich? Even if it does feed 3.) Still, you gotta admit, the whole atmosphere has been skillfully modified and built so it can be replicated anywhere. I look for the family to sell it out to a larger corporation and then see the "concept" ( family suitable, riverside fish hut) franchised into a powerchain the same way Tumbleweed did years and years ago. My question is, are those still sustainable sorts of restaurants or has the whole dining out notion morphed into something else?

[Robin Garr]

My question is, are those still sustainable sorts of restaurants or has the whole dining out notion morphed into something else?

I could be wrong, but things are feeling kind of shaky these days. I think Covid might have changed dining out in ways that are still evolving and not quite certain yet. Lots of closings, though, and it seems like so many of the new high-end places are associated with new hotels and other well-capitalized ventures. And too pricey for me!

I think Linnig's will always get the fish right, and it's worth the trip just for the scene. But yeah, I've noticed over the years that the food side, overall, has gotten more corporate-style in the past, uh, 20 years? Since the turn of the millennium? I've suspected, with absolutely no real evidence, that a younger family generation has taken over and brought their MBAs to the party. I've seen that happen at quite a few local traditions.

The pandemic impacted facets of our lives in many ways, even in ways that we don't think it has. But it certainly had an effect on dining (and entertainment). How and to what extent? Who knows. I also think that technology has played a role on how we entertain ourselves--and dining is part of entertainment in my books. Many folks just sit in their house behind a screen where they seek their entertainment and often their delivered food. Some of the political talking heads on TV seem to never leave their house. They just do telepunditry!

Costs may be the biggest factor. Things have inflated generally speaking and at a pace that is rather subtle, but steady. Its not until one looks back at food prices, for example, that it becomes glearingly evident. I have always had a problem with high priced restaurants that are, with some exceptions, not worth it to me.

And finally, on the corporatization of the food industry, yep, its for real just like anything else. Once a smaller franchise, or ma and pa operation, either goes under or struggles, its often in the best personal interest of that party to sell off to the bigger money interests. It touches about everything that offers any kind of culture or individuality/uniqueness. Its sad, but very real.

[Robin Garr]

Sad but real indeed.

I do think the in-family corporatization of Linnig's preceded the pandemic by a number of years, though.