LEDGEVIEW, Wis. (NBC 26) -- Fridays for many Wisconsinites means fish frys, but a perch shortage could impact what's on people's plates this year.
The crowd started filling the Redwood Inn when the doors opened at 11 a.m. Friday.
"We'll wait an hour and a half just to eat here on a Friday night just because you can't beat the fish," said Brian Hutchison who was having lunch at the Redwood Inn.
For many, a fish fry on Friday is a tradition, especially during Lent. John Smits, the owner of the Redwood Inn, said he's been working at his family's restaurant since he was 10-years-old, so he's had a lot of experience serving up plates of fish for customers.
For some places, though, fish frys this year could be a little different with the perch shortage.
"There's only a few of us that have real yellow perch," said Smits.
He said they have a good supplier of perch and isn't too concerned of running out, but he said they haven't been serving perch for to-go orders to make sure they have enough for people dining in.
He added that the suppliers have increased their prices of perch, so the restaurant had to do the same, increasing the price by about $2.50 a plate. That's not stopping customers, though. The restaurant was filled with customers Friday evening, with many other customers waiting.
