Enjoy a classic shore lunch on your next Ontario fishing trip

Fishing lodges that offer a shore lunch

These northern Ontario fishing lodges offer guided fishing excursions that include an exceptional shore lunch experience for guests.

Northwest Ontario

Anderson’s Lodge

Experience walleye, smallmouth bass, northern pike, lake trout and musky fishing at its finest. In addition to quality meals at the lodge, the “Anderson’s Own” gourmet shore lunch is an outdoor feast featuring pan-fried potatoes and onions, baked beans, hot vegetables and of course, fresh fish cooked on the open fire.

Location: 2385 Highway 72, Sioux Lookout

Delaney Lake Lodge

Delaney Lake Lodge offers full-service, fly-in fishing on the English River north in the Kenora District. A typically day out on the water would include a fully equipped boat, a seasoned guide, all fishing essentials and a classic Canadian shore lunch mid-day.

Location: 841 Carlton Branch Road, Kenora

Wiley Point Wilderness Lodge

Experience an authentic fishing adventure at this wilderness lodge in the heart of Lake of the Woods, complete with a legendary Totem Resorts shore lunch. Savour freshly battered and fried fish on a private island oasis. Enjoy a similar upscale all-inclusive fishing experience at the sister property, Yellowbird Lodge Resort in Northeastern Ontario.

Location: Lake of The Woods, Sioux Narrows

Halley’s Camps

Fly in from Kenora or boat in from Caribou Falls Landing and enjoy an all-inclusive fishing adventure on the English River, north of Minaki. Walleye, pike or smallmouth bass could be the catch of the day for the shore lunch menu.

Location: 5 ON-525, Minaki

Wilderness North

Ultimate fishing adventure for thrilling walleye, northern pike and brook trout awaits in the boreal forest region of Northwest Ontario. All-inclusive packages feature a shore lunch prepared fresh on the lake.

Location: 531 Shipyard Road, Thunder Bay

Guardian Eagle Resort

Experience the trip of a lifetime at this remote fly-in fishing camp. Packages include cozy accommodations, all meals, fully guided days out fishing and gourmet shore lunches. The lodge boasts a traditional fried walleye with homemade tartar sauce and a variety of side dishes.

Location: DeLesseps, Thunder Bay

Crawford’s Camp

Find great walleye and pike fishing plus comfortable housekeeping resort accommodations in Lake of the Woods. Hire a guide to help maximize your fishing success and to experience the ultimate fireside fish fry shore lunch on one of the many islands.

Location: 5821 ON-71, Sioux Narrows

Esnagami Wilderness Lodge

Book your next walleye, pike or trout fishing vacation at this fly-in fishing lodge north of Nakina. On guided fishing trips, your guide will show you tips for preparing your freshly caught walleye on a shore lunch.

Location: Thunder Bay

Sault Ste. Marie and Algoma

Errington’s Wilderness Island Lodge

Fly-in to the secluded wilderness of Algoma for incredible walleye fishing on Lake Wabatongushi. There’s nothing quite like an Errington’s shore lunch prepared by an experienced shore lunch chef. The fish and sides of seasoned potato wedges, sautéed onions, corn fritters and homemade baked beans soak in the smoked flavour of the open fire.

Location: Wilderness Island, Wabatongushi Lake

Lodge Eighty Eight

Eco-friendly, modern and luxurious lodge offering world-class fishing on Esnagi Lake.

Fishing packages include top-of-the-line equipment and an experience guide to help navigate to the best fishing spots and prepare a delicious shore lunch over an open fire.

Location: Mile 88, CPR West of Chapleau, White River

MarMac Lodge

Head to the remote and beautiful shore of Esnagi Lake for an unforgettable wilderness and fishing adventure.

In addition to comfortable accommodation and lodge meals, the Discover Fishing Package for beginners also includes guided fishing instruction with all necessary gear and a traditional shore lunch cooked on the lake.

Location: Esnagi Lake, Algoma, North Part

Northeastern Ontario

Bear's Den Lodge

Family-run fishing lodge in the heart of French River Provincial Park delivers freshwater fishing at its finest. Experienced guides make a great fishing trip even better with knowledge of prime fishing areas. Plus, they’ll clean, fillet and cook your gourmet shore lunch.

Location: 2870 J Hartley Bay Road, Alban

Crane's Lochaven & Wilderness Resort

Located on an island on the French River, Crane’s Lochaven delivers an unforgettable fishing experience, especially if you book a fully guided fishing excursion complete with a delicious shore lunch.

Location: Noelville, French River

Hartley Bay Marina

This family-run marina serves as the perfect access point to the French River Delta and French River Provincial Park. Reserve a French River fishing guide for a stress-free, all-inclusive fishing experience with a shore lunch.

Location: 2870 Hartley Bay Road, French River

Kesagami Wilderness Lodge

Journey to Ontario’s pristine wilderness north of Cochrane for some of the best northern pike and walleye fishing in Canada. A highlight of the Kesagami experience is the shore lunch menu of freshly caught walleye, potatoes and beans.

Location:  188 6th Avenue #130, Cochrane

Shore lunch recipes

The traditional shore lunch began with fishing guides preparing freshly caught fish for their guests after a morning of casting on the lake. However, this much-anticipated meal can also be prepared by the anglers themselves, using a simple do-it-yourself (DIY) shore lunch kit provided by the lodge. Windy Point Lodge on Kabinakagami Lake and Pine Portage Lodge near Wawa supply shore lunch kits with everything you need to make the traditional fried fish meal.

Here are simple and tasty recipes to prepare your own shore lunch.

Classic shore lunch fish fry

Many Ontario lakes have shore lunch sites with fire pits and grills. Cooking over an open fire is a skill that comes with practice. Maintaining a consistent temperature means establishing a bed of coals and adding small pieces of wood as required.

Shore lunch fish fry recipes vary, but here are the basic steps and ingredients to feed four people:

Ingredients:

• 8 walleye fillets
• 1 litre of cooking oil
• 1 cup of flour
• 1 teaspoon each of salt and black pepper

Directions:

• Fillet four 38 to 40-centimetre walleye. Walleye is the fish of choice for shore lunch, but pike, bass, perch and whitefish work equally well.
• Rinse fillets with cold water.
• Build a fire and heat a deep metal frying pan with cooking oil.
• Mix flour, salt and pepper in a bag. Add fillets and shake till evenly coated. Salt, pepper and flour are a traditional and simple mix, but various seasonings can be added, and many guides, lodges or anglers have their own custom coating mix. There are also numerous commercial coating mixes available.
• Heat oil to 180–190°C. A hand-held infrared thermometer is handy for this, but heating oil to when it just starts to smoke and then letting it cool slightly before adding fish is a good guide in a pinch.
• Slide fish into hot oil. Have enough wood ready to stoke the fire to maintain the temperature. Any hotter and the fish will burn, any cooler and the fish will absorb too much oil.
• Turn the fillets with tongs after a few minutes to ensure even cooking. Fish does not take long to cook. Fillets are done when they turn golden brown and reach an internal temperature of 62 °C. This will only take three to five minutes, depending on the fillet thickness.
• Remove from oil and let drain on paper towel, newspaper or cedar boughs.
• The pan of oil can now be used to make fried potatoes. Other traditional accompaniments include cans of beans or creamed corn opened and set on the grill to heat, as well as bread, pickles, coleslaw and tartar sauce.

Spicy pan fry

Once you’ve enjoyed a fresh fish fry on the shoreline of a beautiful lake, you know how good food can taste outdoors. It’s remarkable how the privilege and pleasure of a morning spent fishing for your meal can build up an appetite, but not everyone is on board with deep-frying.

Here’s a crunchy and spicy pan-fried alternative.

Ingredients:

• 8 walleye fillets
• 1/3 cup Frank’s Hot Sauce or similar cayenne-based hot sauce
• 1 cup cornmeal
• ½ cup cooking oil

Directions:

• Place walleye fillets in the bowl and pour in hot sauce and mix so the fillets are covered. Let sit for 10 minutes.
• Put cornmeal in a bag. Shake off excess hot sauce from fillets and add them to the bag. Shake the fillets to evenly coat them with cornmeal.
• Add oil to a frying pan and heat over medium-high heat.
• Add fillets and pan fry for six to eight minutes per side until the cornmeal coating is a deep golden brown.

Pine portage walleye

Another alternative to deep frying. This method of cooking over a fire steams the fish within an envelope of tinfoil.

Ingredients:

• 3 pieces of tinfoil about 50 centimetres long by 30 centimetres wide
• ¼ cup of butter, softened
• 8 walleye fillets
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1 lemon sliced with peel removed
• 1 cup of fresh or canned tomato
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

Double up two pieces of foil and place them on a flat surface. Spread the butter evenly to within an inch of the foil’s edge.

• Lay sliced onions evenly on top of the buttered surface.
• Place the fish fillets on top of the onions in a single layer and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Place one or two lemon slices on top of each fillet.
• Place one or two fresh tomato slices or pieces of canned tomato on top of each fillet.
• Put the third piece of foil on top of the fish and carefully make two quarter-inch folds along each edge to create a sealed envelope of foil.
• With the tip of a knife, make six small incisions in the top of the foil to allow steam to escape.
• Carefully slide the foil envelope onto a grill over a hot fire. A flat board is handy for moving the envelope to and from the grill.
• Cook over a hot fire for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Remove the envelope and place it on a flat surface. Slowly slice open the top of the foil pouch, being careful not to get burned by escaping steam.

Elevate your next Ontario fishing trip with a relaxing and delicious shore lunch prepared by a fishing guide or make your own shore lunch using these tried and true recipes.