How to Experience a Door County Fish Boil

A very dramatic presentation of a very simple food, the fish boil is a beloved summer tradition — and crowd-pleaser — in Door County, Wisconsin, a finger-shaped rural peninsula of small towns jutting into Lake Michigan, 40 miles north of Green Bay. The ritual is so popular that some restaurants offer it year-round. Whitefish, potatoes, and (sometimes) onions are boiled outdoors in a large metal cauldron over a wood fire. People jockey for good seats or places to stand, and clutch their phones to catch the moment when the fish boil master tosses kerosene on the fire, making the pot boil over and flames shoot into the sky. The fireball, which makes the fish oils spill out of the pot during the “boilover,” can be 25 feet or so high. 

The origin of the traditional Door County fish boil was feeding large groups of loggers well over a century ago in the strongly Scandinavian-influenced county. Later, churches served it, but it wasn’t until 1961 that restaurants began hosting fish boils, first The Viking Grill and Lounge (closed in 2022) and then White Gull Inn (still open). In the classic style, small red potatoes are first boiled in salted water in the pot, and onions are added (or not). Then, chunks of whitefish from Lake Michigan are added. When the fish is cooked, kerosene is thrown onto the fire. The boiled fish and potatoes are served simply with melted butter, a side of coleslaw or salad, and cherry pie for dessert.

In Top Chef Season 21, Episode 10, which aired on May 22, six chefs from around the United States were tasked with adding their own spins to the Door County fish boil. The contest, held on a beach in Milwaukee, 150 miles to the south, featured variations like a Cajun-spiced boil, plus fish in a red curry broth and a coconut slaw with peanuts from chef Dan Jacobs of Milwaukee. But if you hanker to taste tradition at its source, these restaurants in Door County are ideal. Reservations are needed, and you should arrive at least 30 minutes before your seating starts to watch the spectacle (some restaurants specify 45 minutes online).

White Gull Inn (Fish Creek)

The most elegant setting is the dining room of this 1896 white clapboard inn, where flower baskets hang from the porch and rooms are furnished in antiques. Fish boils are offered from May through October on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, with three seatings a night, plus year-round on Fridays, generally with one seating a night. Onions aren’t added because it “overpowers the flavor of the fish,” former fish boil expert Tom Christianson explains on travel series, Explore the Door. There’s an international wine list and Wisconsin-focused beer list. Candlelight dinners are also available.

Old Post Office Restaurant (Ephraim)

This former general store built in 1874 is named for a post office that was located in the back in the early 1900s. Today, Old Post Office Restaurant offers views of Eagle Harbor from its porch and patio, which are especially beautiful at sunset. Its longtime fish boil expert, Jeremy “Torch” Klaubauf, represented Door County in the Top Chef contest. (His nickname, from a fireworks accident when he was 11, was very prescient.) Fish boils are offered mid-May through the last Sunday of October every night except Sunday, with exceptions for Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Columbus Day weekends. Praised for his showmanship and storytelling during the fish boils, Klaubauf can go through 300 pounds of whitefish per night, he says in a fish boil video.

Waterfront Mary’s Bar & Grill (Sturgeon Bay)

Right on the shore of Sturgeon Bay, northwest of the town of that name (at under 10,000 people, it’s Door’s biggest town), this ultra-casual eatery has deck seating outdoors, a pool table, multiple TVs, and enough parrot replicas and art to make you think you’re in a Midwestern Margaritaville. Fish boils here deviate from tradition (cod and a mix of onions, carrots, and potatoes, boiled separately from the cod, are used) and are offered year-round. From June to October, there are two fish boil seatings a night Saturdays through Tuesdays and on Thursdays. In May, fish boils are three days a week with one seating, and after peak season the fish boils are on Saturdays only. The New Year’s Eve bash even includes a fish boil. The Door County Mojito here features (of course) cherry juice. Local bands play live music on weekends, and Beach Harbor Resort offers boat rentals on the bay. Waterfront Mary’s is next to Potawatomi State Park, a 1,200-acre park of rolling hills and cliffs.

Pelletier’s (Fish Creek)

Located in Founder’s Square, where a variety of specialty and gift shops are housed in 19th-century cottages, Pelletier’s adds corn on the cob to its fish boils, which are served nightly from mid-May to mid-October with three seatings a night.