little weird/OK, it's wierd

[Lee Borgersen]

BENA, Minn. -- Minnesota is a little weird. OK, it’s a lot weird -- but in that quirky great aunt sort of way.

  ....
From a museum dedicated to an infamous canned mystery meat to an enlarged replica of the jolly green guy found in your grocery freezer aisle, this wonderful weirdness is responsible for the offbeat emblems that encompass a still-enduring dose of Americana on roadsides throughout the state.

And in the Northwoods along U.S. Highway 2 in Bena, the Big Fish lives -- a testament to the rise and fall and rise again of the ubiquitous roadside attraction.

Its red eyes, contrasted against an olive green paint job, stare at nothing in particular but watch over its neighboring Big Fish Supper Club only a few feet away. Its walk-in mouth, filled with wooden stake fangs, hangs in a seemingly comical gape, awaiting visitors to step inside and snap a photo.

The 65-foot-long,15-foot-wide muskie replica is far larger than any day’s catch on nearby Lake Winnibigoshish, and 60 years ago it was the talk of the Leech Lake Indian Reservation and the tourists of northern Minnesota.


The Big Fish Supper Club in Bena offers nightly specials ranging from broasted chicken to prime rib. (Bria Barton | Bemidji Pioneer)


A rustic cabin interior welcomed my arrival as did the aroma of beer and fried fare accompanied by the bartender’s encouraging call to sit anywhere I liked. My gracious server -- who I later discovered was the owner -- quickly explained that it was broasted chicken night, which came with two or four pieces plus a side.

As a native of a state where any word before chicken is ‘fried’, I was intrigued. So, I ordered the special and was absolutely thrilled when I took my first bite of the broasted thigh. It was crunchy and seasoned on the outside and juicy on the inside -- the secret to a good piece of chicken -- and I realized I had unintentionally discovered a place to satisfy my homesick cravings.

https://www.bemidjipioneer.com/lifestyle/travel/4728697-TRIP-ON-A-TANKFUL-Landing-the-Big-Fish-Bena-roadside-attraction-supper-club-a-slice-of-Americana

[Rebel SS]

Don't forget Garrison! 

[Gunner55]

BENA, Minn. -- Minnesota is a little weird. OK, it’s a lot weird -- but in that quirky great aunt sort of way.

  ....
From a museum dedicated to an infamous canned mystery meat to an enlarged replica of the jolly green guy found in your grocery freezer aisle, this wonderful weirdness is responsible for the offbeat emblems that encompass a still-enduring dose of Americana on roadsides throughout the state.

And in the Northwoods along U.S. Highway 2 in Bena, the Big Fish lives -- a testament to the rise and fall and rise again of the ubiquitous roadside attraction.

Its red eyes, contrasted against an olive green paint job, stare at nothing in particular but watch over its neighboring Big Fish Supper Club only a few feet away. Its walk-in mouth, filled with wooden stake fangs, hangs in a seemingly comical gape, awaiting visitors to step inside and snap a photo.

The 65-foot-long,15-foot-wide muskie replica is far larger than any day’s catch on nearby Lake Winnibigoshish, and 60 years ago it was the talk of the Leech Lake Indian Reservation and the tourists of northern Minnesota.


The Big Fish Supper Club in Bena offers nightly specials ranging from broasted chicken to prime rib. (Bria Barton | Bemidji Pioneer)


A rustic cabin interior welcomed my arrival as did the aroma of beer and fried fare accompanied by the bartender’s encouraging call to sit anywhere I liked. My gracious server -- who I later discovered was the owner -- quickly explained that it was broasted chicken night, which came with two or four pieces plus a side.

As a native of a state where any word before chicken is ‘fried’, I was intrigued. So, I ordered the special and was absolutely thrilled when I took my first bite of the broasted thigh. It was crunchy and seasoned on the outside and juicy on the inside -- the secret to a good piece of chicken -- and I realized I had unintentionally discovered a place to satisfy my homesick cravings.

That's only ~ 20 miles from us & we go right by it on our way to Bemidji.

[LPS]

One of my best friends owns it.  Grew up with him in Luverne.  Great guy.  Knows his food.  LOL