Flannery's Wilhem Tell - New Glarus, WI

The Deal: Flannery's is in Wisconsin's "Little Switzerland", beautiful New Glarus, located about 45 minutes southwest of Madison. As befitting a traditional Wisconsin supper club, Flannery's offers an $11 fish fry on Friday nights. Meals include dinner rolls, coleslaw or applesauce, choice of potato and baked or fried cod. You can get salad for (I believe) $1.50 extra.

The Food: My table kicked off the evening with some cheese curds. Flannery's cheese curds were among the best any of us have ever had this side of a state fair or the World Dairy Expo. They were just lightly breaded so you got the full flavor of the cheese instead of the deep fryer.

None of us opted for salad, but the coleslaw appeared to be homemade and was allegedly very fresh (I don't touch the stuff). The applesauce was excellent and had a nice hint of vanilla. Flannery's dinner rolls, were actually rolls instead of glorified bread slices, which was nice. They would have been perfect if they were still warm and a little crusty, but alas, you can't have everything.

Both the baked and fried fish was simply excellent. The baked cod was firm and flaky and frankly didn't need the butter it was served with because the fish itself actually had enough flavor. The fried version was equally good, with a thin batter that didn't overwhelm the tasty fish inside.

On the potato front, Flannery's, unlike most places in Madison, offers potato pancakes served with applesauce. I was quick to snap these up and couldn't have been more pleased with the result: lots of onion and potato goodness. Mmmmm. One of my dining companions opted for the famous roesti potatoes (basically, a swiss dish of hash browns and swiss cheese) and frankly, while they were delicious, the potato pancakes were so good that they trumped cheesy potatoes. Yep, I know, that's shocking!

The Flavor: One great thing about Wisconsin supper clubs is that they'll make you feel young. The average age of the diners at Flannery's Friday night was pushing 60. That's not a bad thing though, as the older generations certainly know their fish. They also know their classic cocktails, so we were able to take advantage of some perfect Old Fashioneds and Grasshoppers.

Although I've never been to a quaint Swiss mountain restaurant, I imagine that it would look something like Flannery's, minus the convenient access to delicious New Glarus Brewing Company beer: wood paneling and tsotchkes, although I'm disappointed I didn't notice any alpenhorns. I guess you can't have everything, although Flannery's comes close with this excellent fish fry.

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Green Lantern - McFarland, WI

The Deal: McFarland's Green Lantern Restaurant, perched on the shores of lovely Lake Waubesa, evokes old time Wisconsin while being just minutes away from downtown Madison. On Fridays, they have a variety of fish specials, including cod starting at $9.95, perch for $11.95 and walleye (battered or steamed) for $14.95. Dinners include soup or salad (thank God), rolls and a full choice of potato options: french fries, ranch fries, hash browns, baked potato or rice or broccoli. I really do appreciate restaurants who understand the fish fry experience and strive to make it more than just a variation of fish & chips.



The Food: Unfortunately, most of the food at the Green Lantern was disappointing. The salads were fresh and fine, but nothing special. The rolls were served cold with cold butter. That's a big pet peeve of mine - if you're not going to heat the rolls at least have soft butter, you know?

Worst of all, was the fish. My table opted for walleye and cod, but in both cases, the fish could have been just a little bit more done. The texture was okay, but neither the walleye nor the cod had any flavor. Combined with the completely tasteless batter, it meant that the eating the fish was just slightly better than eating cardboard.

The only highlight of the meal were the hash browns, which were simply amazing. They achieved the minor miracle of being both crispy & creamy. Their excellence makes me think that while I'd skip the Green Lantern for a fish fry, I'd be smart to come back for breakfast sometime.

The Flavor: The Green Lantern has a split level dining room. The upper level has full windows looking out on Lake Waubesa. The lower level, without the view, feels more like a typical Wisconsin dive bar. That in and of itself isn't a bad thing, but you do kind of feel like you're in steerage or something when compared to the room with a view.

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Red Stag Supperclub - Minneapolis, MN

The deal: The Red Stag Supperclub in Northeast Minneapolis, in keeping with the fine supperclub tradition, offers a Friday night fish fry. For between $11 and $13 you can get a single fried fish basket of cod, some Alaskan fish or walleye (note that the fish shown on the menu online are not what's currently on the menu). Baskets include sweet onion tartar sauce, chips and a bit of coleslaw. A basket of bread is served with the meals. The fish fry menu also includes more exotic options like calamari, smelt fries, fried oysters and seared scallops.


The food: Although I appreciated the bread basket, I was a little sad that the rolls weren't hot and that the "butter" was some bean spread concoction that had almost no flavor. For fish, I went for the walleye and within 5 minutes (yep, it was really that fast) I had a basket of four small pieces of fish and about four large, thin chips. The fish was nearly perfectly flaky and flavorful while the batter was light and crispy without being too crunchy or dry. The chips were wonderful and for I didn't feel cheated by a lack of fries or hash browns. They had a bit of garlicky flavor, but not so much as to overwhelm the fish. As an extra little treat, each basket was served with a tiny spray bottle of malt vinegar. I didn't take advantage of it, but I appreciated the touch.

After the fish, our party split a special ginger creme brulee dessert. I loved the chocolate bottom, but when I have ginger in a dessert, I really want to taste the ginger. It should be the hero and here it wasn't.


The flavor: The Red Stag is really more of a faux supperclub. No real supperclub would be as pretty or have charming touches like the coasters shown here. You use one side of the coaster to show the waitstaff you want regular water or flip it over for sparkling water.

While our food was served incredibly quickly, once the place got crowded things slowed down and it took awhile to order dessert and get our bill. That's not a big deal, but it's something to be aware of if the Red Stag is just your first stop of the evening.

The drink menu was extensive and included lots of wine, an excellent and thoughtfully chosen selection of beer and lots of hot toddies. There's nothing better on a cold night than a hot toddy. I ordered a hot buttered rum and it was easily the best I've ever had. I'd highly recommend the Red Stag for a contemporary take on classic superclubs, whether you go on Friday or not.

Second opinions:

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Mariner's Inn - Waunakee, WI

The deal: As a seafood restaurant on the north shore of Lake Mendota, the Mariner's Inn has a good selection of Friday night fish specials. The traditional fish fry is simply cod with french fries, but you can also opt for lake perch or broiled walleye. These options are a little pricier, but include soup or salad, dinner rolls and a choice of potato. If you opt for the regular fish fry, you can upgrade to to better sides and add a salad for a small charge.

The food: Our server gave the walleye a rave review, and as a Central Wisconsin girl, I had to try it (let's hear it for Nekoosa's Walleye Days!). It was simply the best fish I've had since starting this site. The fish was flaky and yet a little crispy around the edges with a slightly spicy lemon pepper flavor. I had a part of my companion's beer battered cod and it too was absolutely delicious. It was crispy without being greasy. I have no idea how the kitchen accomplished this miracle, but I'd like to thank them for it!

If you go to the Mariner's Inn, I must insist that you get their hash browns with your meal. They're served family style and are so good that a formerly loving family will fight like hell for the last spoonful. They're creamy and crispy and every other good adjective that starts with "cr".

The salads were okay, nothing bad, but nothing special while the rolls were sweet and dark and (gasp!) served warm. The fish here was so good that to be honest, I didn't even care about the salad, slaw and rolls. The Mariner's Inn wasn't exactly grasping for bonus points, you know?

The flavor: Although the restaurant is huge, we had to wait for a table for a long time. Unlike many fish fry joints, the Mariner's Inn's bar is a little more classy and quiet than it is fun. Oh don't get me wrong, the staff is nice, but the bar is just a little dull.

The crowd leans a little on the old side, as do some of the waitstaff. I felt like maybe we could all trade stories about the Ice Bowl. Well, maybe we could have if I was enjoying one of the Early Bird Specials ;-)

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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 ;-)

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