Tried to go to Penn Ave. Fish Co. during the busy pre-Christmas week and it was absolutely packed to the rafters. Rather than face an epic wait I opted for Benkovitz. It's one of my grandma's and mom's favorites and a Pittsburgh institution.
Creature comforts? None. Slick ambiance? Irrelevant. I've only ever gone for the classic fish sandwich, not because I lack imagination but because I've only been here every now and then and it's so reliably good that I can't help myself. This time around I also opted for the fried zucchini and they were really good as well. For both the sandwich and zucchini they're crispy, not overly greasy and not breaded beyond recognition. Healthy? Doubtful, but I promise you won't feel like crap the rest of the day, and that's not a given with these kinds of things.
I don't automatically assume that a place that has been open forever is great. Sometimes classic joints simply have a blind following of regulars that don't know any better. This isn't one of those places. My grandma and I don't share many culinary preferences but the Benkovitz fish sandwich is one to agree on.