Gone Fish'n Chipping 

Just a vinegar bottle's throw from the waterfront in Eureka, Gallagher's Irish Pub in the old Victorian Eagle House (139 Second St.) is frying up old-fashioned, beer-battered slabs of firm cod or salmon ($13-$14). Wash it down with a cold Harp and stroll the boardwalk after.

Mad River Brewing Company (101 Taylor Way, Blue Lake) opened its kitchen a year ago and has been thronged for fish and chips ever since ($11). The fish, dipped in the house beer batter, changes depending on the day, but the dilly tartar sauce flecked with pickled red onion is a mainstay.

Sit out back at the Lighthouse Grill (355 Main St., Trinidad) and take in actual sea air while you eat golden-fried local fish and hand-cut fries ($9). It's coming out nice and hot — sip some homemade iced tea from a mason jar while you wait.