Popes, Kings and Fish Fridays at Farmer’s Corner Cafe

On Fridays at 4053 State Highway E in Oak Ridge, you can partake of an all-you-can-eat Fish Friday buffet at Farmer’s Corner Cafe. I visited to try said fish, which I will talk about in detail later, but as I walked in, I wondered how Fish Fridays came about. I thought I knew the answer was rooted in Lent, and the alliteration with all the “F”s seemed pretty cool, but did I know the whole story? I really didn’t, and I’d like to share the high points with you, even though my timing doesn’t coincide with the Lenten season. I got most of my information from an article on www.npr.com titled “Lust, lies and empire: The fishy tale behind eating fish on Friday,” which is a great title and made me a little jealous.

I am not Catholic, so I missed this particular tale in childhood, but apparently it has been said that in the past, a pope made a secret pact with the fishmongers to sell more fish. He proclaimed that all Catholics should no longer eat the flesh of warm-blooded animals on Friday, the day that Jesus died. This has never been proven to be true, by the way, and the Vatican has never found any evidence to corroborate this story. What is true is that for centuries, various peoples have fasted on Fridays throughout Lent, swearing off eating warm-blooded animals out of a deep respect for the sacrifice that Jesus made for everybody. Fish, being cold-blooded animals, could still be on the menu, as well as reptiles and amphibians, if you’re so inclined. I had iguana this year for the first time, and while it was delicious, I don’t think McDonald’s will be offering Iguana Sticks any time soon for Lent. More the pity.

In 1 A.D., the "Teaching of the Twelve Apostles" established fish-fasting. People’s taste for fish increased, both for religious reasons and because they are tasty and easily preserved, but here comes Henry VIII to mess things up. In 1534, Henry was married to Catherine of Aragon, but he wanted to be married to Anne Boleyn instead. When the Roman Catholic Church refused to annul his marriage with Catherine, he left the Catholic Church and made himself the head of the Church of England, which promptly granted him a divorce, freeing him up for Anne. It was then that eating fish became seen as a political statement, probably dangerous at this time in history in England. If you ate fish on Friday, were you silently protesting the king’s split from the Roman Catholic Church? Best to play it safe and stop eating fish, the populace thought. English folks did this so thoroughly that fishermen’s businesses were greatly impacted. They were thrown into so much chaos in fact, that in 1547 when Henry’s son Edward VI took the throne, a law was passed to reintroduce fast days, thus saving a whole industry.

Fishing has been tightly tied to religious fasting for millenia, and still is. In 1966, when Pope Paul VI recommended that Catholics voluntarily fast as the economic times permitted, thus loosening strict fasting rules, the price of fish plummeted in the United States.

And all that brings us to Farmer’s Corner Cafe, a very dinerly diner in a small town that has a Fish Friday. Like I said, the alliteration works, and fish is tasty. Farmer’s Corner has a comfy vibe, very homey and down-to-earth, with mismatched tables and chairs, which I’ve always loved. I had my fish with beans and potato salad because I’m a traditionalist with my fish plates. I was surprised by the quality of the fish. Very crispy outside, with a good flavor of spices that is essential to successful fried fish, the breading base was cornmeal. Inside, the fish was steamy, flaky and blazing hot from the fryer. This fish doesn’t have much of a chance to get cold, because it is in high demand. The tartar sauce was good, too, which can be an enjoyment maker/breaker for me. The all-you-can eat buffet is from 5 to 7 p.m. on Fridays until the staff decides to switch it up.

I’ve also had a very good Rodeo Burger here, topped with an onion ring, BBQ sauce and pepperjack cheese. I’ve had it several times, and it is always good. Farmers and my husband flock to the place for breakfast. If you haven’t tried it yet, please do.

Rebecca LaClair travels to a new place every week to try food from a trendy restaurant or one she hasn’t been to yet.