In cod we trust

Try finding cod cakes in Boston. Years ago, "the land of the bean and the cod" became yet another captive of the crab cake, replacing a New England original with one of America's fastest-growing (yet often least-appetizing) appetizers. We scoured clam shacks and upscale seafood restaurants, yankee stalwarts and ethnic eateries and came up almost empty handed. So we decided to think outside the cake and discovered the shape of things to come: Yes, the venerable cod cake has morphed into the cod fritter.

At Eastern Standard in Kenmore Square, five golf-ball-sized salt cod fritters arrive in a small wooden crate, plated with (not so) spicy ketchup, tartar sauce, and lemon wedges. Watch the steam rise as you pierce the shells and release a stream of scorching puree - molten chocolate cake for the savory set. Across the river at the much-celebrated foodie dive Garden at the Cellar, three slightly smaller fritters are covered in a remoulade with citrus (a.k.a. lemon slices) accompanied by lightly dressed greens.

As fritters go, Eastern sets the standard with a classically crunchy exterior. Extra points for presentation and generosity, making the competition look a little meager by comparison. But the fritters overwhelm their contents, which tastes as strongly of potato and cream as it does of cod. The lightly piquant fritters at Garden, on the other hand, are packed with moist, mellow fish, leaving a stronger seafood impression.

Advantage, Garden at the Cellar.

TRY IT TONIGHT

Cod fritters (left), $9

Garden at the Cellar, 991 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. 617-230-5880. www.garden atthecellar.com

JUST TRY IT, ALREADY Salt cod fritters, $10

Eastern Standard, 528 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston. 617-532-9100. www.eastern standardboston.com