Fin Inn, Grafton, Illinois

A catfish glides along the side of its aquarium, peering at a nearby table where hungry customers are dining on its aquatic fellows.

For some customers, the tableside aquariums at The Fin Inn in Grafton, Ill., accent the atmosphere. But for others, the nearby creatures limit dining choices.

“They had turtle pie on the menu, and I’m like, ‘Hmm, eat turtle pie next to the turtle?’” Linda Laws said.

Laws and her friends ate next to a tableside aquarium containing a large blue-fin dolphin catfish.

“[My friend] literally was going to order catfish,” Laws said. “That catfish just kept, like, staring at her, and she thought, ‘I can’t do it. I can’t order catfish. He’s looking at me,’ so she ordered shrimp.”

The restaurant’s four 2,000-gallon wall aquariums, which are divided to separate their inhabitants, feature an array of fish, including tilapia, catfish, cod and suckerfish. The white-and-yellow speckled devil fish draws attention with a huge bubble-like bump on top of its head while carp with their ever-gaping jaws swim in another tank.