Of all the church fish fries in town, there's probably been more media coverage of St. Cecilia's than anywhere else. The parish, at the north edge of the Carondelet neighborhood, covers an area that's contained St. Louisans of Mexican descent for several generations, and still offers Spanish masses several times a week. This influence happily extends to the fish fry, where the chiles relleno are so popular they sometimes run out of them.
Popular is an understatement. This is a big, busy operation that's well organized. Besides the gym, they use two other classrooms for dining, and they're a little quieter, if offering less opportunity for people-watching, our second favorite thing about fish fries. There's a long line, but it moves surprisingly quickly, considering.
Yes, if you have any tolerance for spicy, you do want the chips and pico de gallo available to tide you over between ordering and getting your fish. Even at this time of year with its wan tomatoes, this freshly chopped relish of tomato, onion and pepper, sings. It's not incendiary, but it's definitely hot. One of my dining companions could have eaten it like a cold soup.
The chiles are stuffed with cheese, lightly battered and sit in a thin, spicy sauce that also has a bit of a kick to it. The chiles have clearly been cleaned out to remove much of the seeds and membrane that carry the heat-causing capsaicin, so it's relatively mild. Jack salmon, that old St. Louis standby (newcomers: it's actually whiting), is seasoned and dredged in cornmeal, a tad soggy from the sauce under the chile relleno, unfortunately, but more interesting than many other versions. Cod is in square filets, pretty unremarkable, but a bean tostada was fresh, crisp, and too tasty to be so healthy. Alongside came a little cup of fresh salsa that wasn't quite as spicy as the pico. Slaw is clearly made that day, a mayo-type dressing that's slightly sweet and sour. Macaroni and cheese is good but much like the guys from Kraft.
Dessert appears in the gym on a cart, but it's also sold in one of the small dining/classrooms, the proceeds benefiting the school's athletics. $2 and worth it for the best tres leches cake I've ever had. It's white cake, rather than the more common yellow, and very tender. My dining pals, who had never even heard of the milk-soaked dessert were blown away, too. There are other options, brownies, flan, and various sweet rolls, the latter, I suspect, from one of the Cherokee Street bakeries.
Domestic beer in the gym, Mexican beer in the room with the desserts. And, yes, there are Mexican dancers, including some of the cutest toddlers you've ever seen. Also t-shirts and caps for sale!
St. Cecilia Catholic Church
906 Eichelberger
314-351-1318