I prefer to eat freshly caught brook trout, cleaned and dredged in unseasoned flour. Then pan fry in a couple in a couple inches of oil, until golden brown on both sides, and salt. Serve only with properly cooked, home made french fries (chips), and a bit of ketchip. I'm not crazy about heavy batters on my fish. I want the skin crispy and light, with the tails to be eaten like potato chips.
Most fish & chips that I've had were heavily battered, usually with a beer batter, and were sometimes soggy with grease. A good battered piece of fish is something I can enjoy. But I won't go out of my way to find it. I was spoiled living next to the greates lake of them all, Lake Superior. And my dad could fry trout like only his father before him could.
Now pasties, the ingredients are easier to come by, and are absolutely deliscious. I make them often enough. So for this dinner that you are making, if it were me, I'd be making pasties. Plus, some people just aren't crazy about fish. I've met a good number of people that don't like fish. I've never met anyone who doesn't like pasties. The pasties are a safer pick.
Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North