The Deal: The Branding Iron Supper Club just south of Wisconsin Rapids offers haddock, walleye and lake perch for between $9.50 and $11.50 for its fish fry. Meals include baked beans, coleslaw and choice of potato (fries, baked potato or garlic mashed potatoes). You can add a salad bar for $3.50. A word of caution - the food is served family style, even if you don't all order the same thing. That's right - you get a plate of a mixed fish and another plate of mixed potatoes. It's weird.
The Food: Well, to put in bluntly, the Branding Iron was branded "shitty" by our party. The "fried" fish looked like frozen fish from the grocery store simply baked in the oven. The baked haddock, on the other hand, looked like something whipped up by the lunch ladies of St. Vincent de Paul grade school on a day they decided that they just didn't like children anymore. It was gross - big, fleshy squares of fish. I had the walleye and it tasted okay, but was certainly nothing special and was certainly not actually made in the Branding Iron's kitchen.
The salad bar was okay. You'd enjoy it more if you're a big fan of prepared salads, which I'm not. We suspected that the french fries came from a bag in the freezer, but the garlic mashed potatoes were pretty tasty and not at all too garlicky.
The Flavor: In theory, the Branding Iron's shitty food would probably taste better if you had a few drinks in you. In reality, this will be a big problem since the waitstaff is incredibly slow and inattentive. Perhaps they know how bad the food is and they're dreading having to deal with irate and disappointed customers.
If you do manage to score a drink, there is a nice-sized beer list, a number of cheap, boozy cocktails and traditional ice cream drinks like Brandy Alexanders and grasshoppers. You may want to double fist and order two at a time. Just sayin'...
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Showing posts with label family style. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family style. Show all posts
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Monday, December 10, 2007
Esquire Club - Madison, WI
The deal: Fish fry at the Esquire on Madison's east side is an integral part of a classic Wisconsin supper club experience. Depending on how your party orders, your fish is either served family style (and is all you can eat) or comes as a standalone entree.
The food: The Esquire Club specializes in fish with a thin, crispy batter. The ocean perch is tasty, not fishy and not greasy. The sides are nothing special - fries or potato and coleslaw. The meal doesn't come with salad, but you can add a surprisingly fresh garden salad for just $3.95. It's actually worth it.
The Esquire gets extra bonus points for bringing a nice sized bowl full of lemon slices to the table before you ask for it. Many fish fry aficionados won't touch their cod, perch or walleye before they squeeze the lemon.
Like any good supper club, you can make your meal even better (and unfortunately worse for you) with the addition of a Grasshopper. Mmmm. Grasshoppers make me feel like a little kid. They're like wonderful, boozy Shamrock Shakes!
The flavor: You can tell from the packed gravel parking lot that the Esquire has an excellent reputation. You'll almost always have to wait for a table for 10-15 minutes, but the wait is made easier with a large bar, good beer on tap (Guinness, Spotted Cow, etc.) and friendly bartenders.
With several different dining areas, it never feels that crowded once you're seated. While seated, please note the red candleholders. They've gotta be vintage 1962 models.
The crowd swings more toward 50 and 60-somethings out for a night of good fish and getting their drink on than it does to families. Feel free to loudly bitch about the Packers, Brewers or Badgers. You won't be alone ;-)
Second opinions
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Eating in Madison A to Z
Madison Fish Fry
The food: The Esquire Club specializes in fish with a thin, crispy batter. The ocean perch is tasty, not fishy and not greasy. The sides are nothing special - fries or potato and coleslaw. The meal doesn't come with salad, but you can add a surprisingly fresh garden salad for just $3.95. It's actually worth it.
The Esquire gets extra bonus points for bringing a nice sized bowl full of lemon slices to the table before you ask for it. Many fish fry aficionados won't touch their cod, perch or walleye before they squeeze the lemon.
Like any good supper club, you can make your meal even better (and unfortunately worse for you) with the addition of a Grasshopper. Mmmm. Grasshoppers make me feel like a little kid. They're like wonderful, boozy Shamrock Shakes!
The flavor: You can tell from the packed gravel parking lot that the Esquire has an excellent reputation. You'll almost always have to wait for a table for 10-15 minutes, but the wait is made easier with a large bar, good beer on tap (Guinness, Spotted Cow, etc.) and friendly bartenders.
With several different dining areas, it never feels that crowded once you're seated. While seated, please note the red candleholders. They've gotta be vintage 1962 models.
The crowd swings more toward 50 and 60-somethings out for a night of good fish and getting their drink on than it does to families. Feel free to loudly bitch about the Packers, Brewers or Badgers. You won't be alone ;-)
Second opinions
Insider Pages
Dunno Yet
Eating in Madison A to Z
Madison Fish Fry
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