There has been no shortage of locals craving fried fish and seafood in Jacksonville, and Jax Fish Fry is a testament to it.
In just three years, the quick service restaurant has decided to expand with more locations across North Florida. Most recently, the concept will debut in north St. Johns County at the Fountains in January of 2023, said Roger Alexanian in an email to What Now Jacksonville.
The restaurant was a passion project created by both Alexanian and his wife, Dori Blockberger-Alexanian, who decided they “wanted to bring a little bit of the North to the South,” according to an interview by the Florida-Times Union after their first restaurant debuted.
Jax Fish Fry features Upstate New York seafood entrees, including lobster rolls, shrimp baskets, crab cakes, and clam rolls. And its house specialty made-to-order fried cod sandwiches are sourced from the same vendor that many Massachusetts restaurants use.
“What sets us apart is there’s really nowhere here that you can get a fried cod sandwich like ours,” Blockberger-Alexanian said in the interview.
While the couple has worked in the service industry for over 25 years before opening the first location in 2020, Jax Fish Fry was a long-time dream of the first-time business owners. Now that the dream has become a reality, it has taken off, with plenty of community support for the thriving restaurant.
The second location will be located at 170 Fountains Way, Unit 7 in Building 3.
The future locations have yet to be announced, but the couple told the Florida-Times Union that plans are underway for expansion, with up to four more Fish Frys coming soon.
