Eating in Madison A to Z

Old Town Pub

In a word: Not stellar, but better than it looks.

The specs: #0442  
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at Yelp, Decider, .

JM ate the burger with a lemonade.
Nichole ate the Reuben.
The bill was $13 plus tip.
JM and Nichole both gave Old Town Pub a B+.

Old Town Pub doesn't overserve vowels - we were so pleased it's not Olde Towne anything. Likewise, the sandwiches we got were not huge or overstuffed. We can't speak to the drinks, however.

Swivel factor was at a minimum, and the bartender/cook was fast and friendly. The menu included bar favorites (fried everything) as well as surprises like prime rib, chili dogs, and salads. Some items had a twist, such as the beany chili nachos, which offended JM's anti-bean sensibilities. So we settled on a couple sandwiches.

The marble rye of the Reuben was very light, the corned beef cut medium thick and not especially "corny," as it were. The Swiss cheese had melted completely, and the sum of the parts had the effect of a cloud - truly, a light, fluffy Reuben cloud, and very good. (Some regulars call it the best Reuben in Madison, according to the cook.) That said, had it been a carryout sandwich, it might not have fared as well.

JM's burger:

• Bun: decent and not too bready
• Meat: good on the Sysco quality scale
• Bun/meat ratio: average
• Cheese: not noteworthy
• Misc.: crispy veg, clean finish, not greasy, good snap in each bite. About a 6.5 of 10 overall.

We'd add Old Town Pub to our short list of "places to snack cheap before grocery shopping at Woodmans West," where they're in good company with La Bamba.

Old Feed Mill

In a word: Get your feed on.

The specs: #0441    
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at Yelp, , mention at Althouse; official web site.

JM ate the queen cut prime rib and a lemonade.
Nichole ate the cider chicken and a coffee.
The bill was $35.04 plus tip.
JM gave Old Feed Mill an A; Nichole gave Old Feed Mill an A-.

Old Feed Mill, as quaint as anything in Mazomanie, is on the way to American Players' Theatre from Madison and is definitely worth a stop. We were impressed by the character - rural but not saccharine, with a candy counter, gift shop and quilts balanced by slightly funky mismatched wooden furniture. Housed literally in an airy old mill, they still grind their own grain for the bread. The food was a great value (even if you account for a comped dessert - more on that later) and offered reasonable portions of comforting classics.

Dinner started with a sweet, soft and nutty loaf of warm whole wheat bread, the kind that is ephemeral in its many charms and therefore disappears quickly. JM's salad included the first really delicious cherry tomato of our year, even if it wasn't from around here.

Nichole's cider-roasted chicken came from the "lighter appetites" menu, which served smaller portions of favorites. In this case, two pieces of lightly sweet and apple-infused chicken came with vegetables and potatoes, instead of a half bird, still an ample meal. The dark leg was very juicy, while the breast was rather dry.

JM's prime rib was cooked to order and served with a peppery jus. The garlic mashed potatoes had large quantities of fresh garlic (so much they almost tasted hot), with the skin in. The mixed vegetables on both our dishes were a bit softer than al dente but not overbuttered.The whole meal was a robust sensory experience, warm and delicious.

The only drawback to our meal was the hectic service - we were greeted by three different people, served by a fourth, and got uneven refills. While we didn't see this as a huge problem, our server seemed to think so and offered us a dessert (something that never happens in Madison, even with far worse service), which is how we ended up with a brownie cheesecake a la mode. A sweet yet dark and very moist chocolate brownie foundation supported a layer of tart, sticky cheesecake. Oddly, the brownie was smoother than the cheesecake. The accompanying ice cream served in a martini glass was vanilla plus chocolate, nuts, and caramel.

While Nichole was pleased with Old Feed Mill, she wasn't as thrilled as JM. His excitement rubbed off, however; anywhere that isn't BK that JM gets excited about eating at is worth returning to, in Nichole's opinion. And so we hope we haven't jinxed yet another good restaurant.

Old Fashioned

In a word: Everyone dining merrily.

The specs: #0440 
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at In Search Of..., Madison Foodie, Fringe Foods, Ruppert Food Blog, The Culinary Adevntures of Jahboh and Tossy, Heartland, Wisconsin Fish Fry,  Yelp, The Mango Lassie, Fresh Food, dane101, Ultimate Madison Bar Tour, , Madison Magazine, Decider, Madison Beer Review, Self Loathing Pop Culture Fanatic; official web site.

JM ate the #52 mac and cheese with ring bologna and a lemonade.
Nichole ate the #41 pork sandwich.
Ross ate the #42 beef sandwich with a beer.
Sam ate the #36 walleye sandwich with a Furthermore Knot Stock.
We split the #7 Lazy Susan appetizer, a root beer float, and beer-nut ice cream.
The total of the numbers is 178.
The bill was $82 plus tip.
JM and Nichole gave The Old Fashioned an A-; Ross and Sam gave The Old Fashioned an A.

We chose the Old Fashioned to welcome an expatriate Sconnie back after a tropical adventure, and to introduce the wonders of Midwestern regional cuisine to our uninitiated companion. While the food resonated with authenticity, we were reminded that Midwestern also can just mean "mainstream" in America today. Some dishes on The Old Fashioned's menu, like the Miesfeld Market double brat really push the Wisconsin angle, others are takes - skilled takes, to be sure - on things you'll find anywhere. Testament, perhaps, to Mark Kurlansky's observation that the Midwest the part of the country that nearly everyone wants to leave, and that's how the accent and the food has come to mean "common."

Philosophizing aside, we had a great time - according to Sam, this is impossible to avoid anywhere that Furthermore beer is sold. We started with the amazing #7 Lazy Susan, which included:

• Pickled beets - less sweet than our family recipe but more subtle
• Grilled bread and Ritz crackers
• Dilly, zingy potato salad
• Grilled vegetable and red pepper/bean dip, which were both a titch bland - or, as one of us proclaimed, "If I'm putting something on a cracker it's going to be cheese."

The assortment of goodies evoked memories of others, like the canned, tart red apple rings that sometimes appeared on our holiday table.

Three of us opted for sandwiches and were not disappointed. Nichole's tender pulled pork sandwich came on very buttery Texas toast, topped with mild Muenster cheese, sweet relish, and (apparently a dab of) smoked paprika sauce. The accompanying green salad was on the wilted side. Ross' chilled roast beef tenderloin sandwich had just the right kick from its "tiger sauce," with average fries on the side.

The walleye was melt-in-your-mouth with a light batter that held up well to the wait while Sam had her popcorn-garnished beer cheese soup. It was topped with a kind of deconstructed slaw made of shaved radish and cabbage and came with a side of house-made tartar sauce.

Each entree was garnished with a sweet pickle slice, which polarized our party across gender lines. No winner was declared in this debate, unless you count the sweet pickle fans who got double portions vs. the dill dogmatists who got none.

The mac and cheese was the star of the table and beautiful to behold - JM found the grainy mouthfeel, probably the Sarvecchio's contribution, to be ever so slightly challenging. A side of grilled ring bologna and excellent brown mustard filled out the meal.  And JM knows from macaroni and cheese.

We made room for dessert. Hearing beer-nut ice cream as "Beer Nut" ice cream, Nichole was sort of disappointed that the bar treat was not part of the deal. She was not disappointed in the ice cream itself, which is made at Lombardino's from an Old Fashioned recipe. It was, again, quite buttery, with skin-on Spanish peanuts adding a pleasant saltiness but virtually no hint of beer. The root beer float was likewise wonderful.

We heartily recommend the Old Fashioned for its star turns of downhome cuisine. Everything on the menu may be "normal," but nowhere will it all be served with such care and thoughtfulness.