Long John Silver's Best Meal On The Menu Isn't The Fried Cod

Long John Silver's may not have ranked as our favorite seafood chain, but that doesn't mean that you can't find delicious meals to fulfill your seafood cravings. Plus, at a bargain price, you can fill up on your favorite fish and shellfish no matter how tight your budget. We tried numerous Long John Silver meals, each featuring a main protein with two sides. We ranked each meal according to overall flavor, seafood quality, and cohesion of each dish.

While the fish and chips-adjacent fried cod meal was delicious, it came in second to Long John Silver's coconut shrimp meal, which comes with multiple deep-fried shrimp coated in coconut-studded breading, two hush puppies, and two sides of your choice. While the fried cod had a crispy batter and flaky interior, the shrimp outperformed the cod on both the textural and flavor fronts. The breading was crispy, crumbly, and bursting with tropical flavors. Where the cod was mild with a salty, oily punch from the batter, the coconut shrimp hit us with a nice balance of sweet nuttiness that you'd expect from coconut, which paired nicely with the umami-rich, briney shrimp. The shrimp were fried and cooked through perfectly, providing a bouncy chew.

You can take the flavor to even more complex heights by dipping the shrimp in cocktail sauce for a tangy, slightly spicy complement to the sweet, salty, and savory shrimp. Plus, since the meal comes with two hush puppies, it's as if you get three sides instead of two.

Long John Silver's customers took to social media to express their love for the coconut shrimp. A glowing TikTok review described the shrimp as "bursting with tropical coconut flavor," proclaiming, "From the first bite, the rich coconut taste shines through, making each shrimp an irresistible delight." A YouTube review sensed the coconut shrimp before he even took a bite. "When you open the box you can smell the coconut," said the reviewer. They also compared the batter's taste to "a funnel cake," with a "hint of sweetness" that pairs well with the nuttiness of the coconut and salty brininess of the shrimp. Furthermore, when the reviewer bit into each shrimp, you could hear an audible crunch, owing to the ultra-crispy, perfectly fried batter. Yet another YouTube reviewer was pleasantly "surprised at how good these are." While they could taste the coconut flavor loud and clear, they also complemented the balance of flavors. According to the review, the coconut flavor is "not so overwhelming that you don't taste the shrimp."

Long John Silver's is one of various chains that sells hush puppies, and the sweet and savory balls of goodness work especially well with the sweet and savory profile of the coconut shrimp. If you want a more refreshing side dish pairing to balance all the fried food, coleslaw or green beans might fit the bill.