Bluephies

Update: Bluephies... is closed.

In a word: Quite possibly the best chicken pot pie in Madison.

The specs: #0041
Bluephie's Food Fight page; Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at Dane101 on 7/18/2006 & 2/25/07, Yelp, Self Loathing Pop Culture Fanatic, Mad Hungry, Isthmus, 77 Square, Bloody Mary review at In Search Of...,

Latest Bluephies news and reviews

JM ate the chicken pot pie with a lemonade.
Nichole ate half a Caesar salad and pumpkin soup.
We shared the cookie dough egg rolls a la mode (thanks for the tip, Tiffany!)
JM and Nichole both gave Bluephies an A (see our grading rubric).

Bluephies is a Food Fight restaurant, which is a sign of reliable quality and good comfort food with a dash of frou. In this case, the only things we could think of to push Bluephies into the A+ range would be if it served Coke and if the atmosphere were a bit more welcoming to the average joe.

The pot pie was hella good, with plenty of chicken, corn, carrots, potatoes, and a (for JM) welcome respite from peas. The pumpkin soup was delightful - warm, spicy, and thick with vegetables, handily providing at least a weeks' worth of beta-carotene. As for the salad, the best bits were the croutons; a few of the lettuce leaves were a tad old.

On an earlier visit, Nichole tried the crab cakes and those were pretty tasty. JM has had the burrito, which he said was a little heavy on the beans.

Oh, but the crowning glory of a meal at Bluephie's are the cookie dough egg rolls. Save room. Oh, man.

Comments

[Rachel]

We went to Bluephies on your recommendation, and it was excellent! It's definitely a place we would take guests, and not have to worry about whether or not they will like the food. Thanks for all of the reviews!

[Kyle]

Finally hit Bluephie's tonight. I had the meatloaf and a cup of corn andouille chowder, while my lovely dining companion had the black bean and goat cheese enchiladas. I've never had meatloaf with visible chunks of sausage in it before, and it was tasty. The accompanying green beans were very al dente, just cooked enough to soften the woodiness. Really good. The bites I had of the enchiladas were also quite good.

And of course, we couldn't have gone there for the first time and not gotten the cookie dough egg rolls, and wow. They're good. Our server (Tony, who is awesome) even hooked us up with two Butterfinger won tons, just to test drive them. They too were good, and we might get them next time (there's a "dessert sushi" sampler platter you can get, which is tempting). Very satisfying, but the design aesthetic is a little standoffish. Could be warmer.

[Chelsea]

I was really excited to visit Bluephies, which might perhaps account for our disappointment. Ordered the wild mushroom pasta w/chicken for about $12-3 and the Thai something another for the same price. The pasta (what I had thus what I paid attention to) used canned tomatoes and the mushrooms had no flavor; the chicken was generic -- no seasoning, grilling, etc just from the package and warmed. The sauce was too heavy and didn't improve the next day. Person #2 usually loves restaurants unconditionally if they just offer a vegan option; he complained immediately out of the door that the quality and flavor were weak and especially not worth the money. The decor is more hometown diner -- lots of kids, larger tables -- and then there's the 30-40 min. wait.

In short, the food was only tolerable -- if I'd been paying diner prices, I wouldn't complain. But the place is much too pretentious for its lack of quality; if you want a great meal for the same price, try Tutto Pasta. If you want what Bluephie's promises, visit Harvest (but pay twice as much ... for something worth it!). Seriously, how can you charge $10-15 per plate and use canned/packaged products?!

[Tracy]

I don't know if I'd judge the place based on two of the dishes. The ambiance does differ, depending on the day of the week and the time of day.

Also, they take reservations, so you don't really have to wait if you plan ahead.

Just sayin'.

[Chelsea]

Tracy, I'm not sure what a review is if not a judgment "based on two dishes"!!!

Do you work for Bluephies? I'm curious why you made this comment without also contributing your experience -- I noticed you referred just to my post, which is the only negative critique of the restaurant on this page.

[Heather]

If you haven't gone to Bluephies for brunch - definitely hit it again. The stuffed french toast is to die for! I've been going there on a regular basis since I moved to Madison in 1999 and it's a regular choice for family Sunday Brunches.
It'll be interesting to see what your take on their Near East Counterpart - Monty's Blue Plate - will be. I love that place too - I reccomend the vegetarian BLT.

[Spike]

Chelsea - I don't work for Bluephies, but I agree with Tracy. I love Bluephies' food and the quality of the food.

I believe I have fairly discerning tastes (ie, would notice canned stuff) and have NEVER had that issue there. I will say some of their menu is executed more successfully than others (some things are a bit experimental for them), but overall the quality is great.

Yes, it IS diner-like. That's the point of it - comfort food with a natural, upscale twist. I knew that from Day One, so I'm unsure what you were expecting (which clearly failed to meet your standards).

And I could not disagree with you more about Tutto Pasta. Speaking of places with subpar food, stuff that often tastes like it comes out of a can, and long wait times to be seated....Tutto Pasta hits all of those points. I would sooner have sent someone to Macaroni Grill before I would have EVER sent them to Tutto.

[Spike]

In this case, the only things we could think of to push Bluephies into the A+ range would be if it served Coke and if the atmosphere were a bit more welcoming to the average joe.

I've gone in there in sweats and a T looking pretty low-rent, and was never treated with anything less than a warm welcome.

And I wish places would have Pepsi and Coke. For those of us that like (or must drink) diet cola, diet Pepsi is preferable. Diet Coke tastes like a stale fart.

[Lola]

Stopped last night for dessert and espresso after the awesome Orton Park Festival (8-23). Bluephies has added a proper bar area where the a retail shop was on the Monore street side of the building. The entrance is now in this bar area.

The bartender reported that the chocolate cake that I had a slice of weighs 16 pounds after it is baked. I don't doubt it, the cake was super dense and somewhat chewy. If you need a chocolate infusion, this is your cake. I'm still trying to figure out how many eggs and how much flour and sugar would have to be used to make a 16 pound cake.

As for the espresso, all I can say is don't expect all bartenters to be baristas. I can't remember the last time I had an espresso that was undrinkable.

[Kyle]

Bluephies has ceased to be worth it for anything more than dessert. Prices rise (and it's not just the economy), and quality is stagnant at best. Our service got slower as the place got less busy, and our drinks were far too weak to justify their prices.

Bottom line: there's no value left in Bluephies. It has moved to the bottom of the Food Fight ladder from our perspective.

[Megan]

Yeah, I gotta say, I've been there twice for lunch/brunch and was a bit disappointed both times. The stuffed French toast was pretty good but the portion size was ridiculous. I would've traded out a piece for a side. I got the meat lovers' scrambler and it was almost entirely meat with almost no egg. Then again, it was the meat LOVERS' scrambler but still, the meat was a bit overwhelming. I went again later and got an Italian soda which was pretty disappointing, and the fruity French toast thing which was nothing more than a couple pieces of French toast with some fruit scattered on top. A bit underwhelming. I'd be willing to try during dinner one last time but overall I wasn't impressed with the food. The decoration is very nice at least.

[Blue Crew]

I work at Bluephies. Have so for three years. The mushroom pasta is horrible, i will agree with you, because it's for people who don't have flavor. My best advice to anyone going is to not look at the menu. Have in mind something you want- cold, hot, spicy, big, healthy, fried, etc... And ask your waiter what you should have. The menu is too big to tell you the things you can do to your food. The decor is warehouse like and for good reason, it has no fixed attitude. For the stuffed french toast, don't get the whole damn thing, get one piece of that, and sides of eggs and meat. You'll get a cheaper and more satisfying breakfast. And as for the coke vs. pepsi debate, you can take your complaints to the food fight office, we have no say over the carrier we have. If you really want to have a good meal, try our specialty drinks. They may be expensive but you wont find anything like them in Madison

[unhappy customer]

Bluephies is a shell of its former self! Stay away! Wake up Monty and clean out the management! What do you expect from a place that now calls itself a vodkatorium??

[MJ]

Finally made it to Bluephies for lunch. I had the risotto with squash and mushrooms. I've never had risotto but have seen it made on TV about one gazillion times. I don't know if this was good risotto (I had imagined a creamier mouth feel) but it was very tasty rice stuff. Friend had the chicken pot pie and was delighted. Yep, pricey. I've been underwhelmed at Monty's and Hubbard Street on several occasions. This Bluephies lunch hit the spot.

[Konny]

Visited on 04/16/2011. Ordered: “creole crab cake”,” Greek burger”, flatbreads, the “worlds littlest value menu” for our son, one beer and a glass of California red wine. Total bill $86.00
Crab cakes despite the menu description did not have any crab meat, but were rather made of some sort of stale bread mixture with a fishy taste. Greek burger was very similar to a Big Mac with addition of some cheesy substance that they claimed to be a real Greek cheese. Flatbreads were made of components out of a can including chicken strips. Wine was very sour. Beer was OK. Well, overall experience as once can guess was very bad. As my three year old son said: “I ate small burger at Blue Feces. I did not like it" Honestly, it is a cheat place, not even an eatery.

[Huh?]

When I look at the Bluephies menu (http://www.bluephies.com/assets/Uploads/Bluephies/menus/BXmenudinner.pdf), I come up with the following itemized bill:

Creole crab cake: $17.99
Greek burger: $11.79
Flatbreads: $8 (assuming you got the entree size, otherwise $5)
The World's littlest value menu: $4.99
Wine: $6
Beer: $5

Subtotal is $53.77, then add $2.96 for tax, giving a pre-tip subtotal $56.73. If you paid $86, that means you left a 52% tip, which I would consider to be a lot for someone didn't care for the food.

I'm a pretty cheap guy, and I don't care for Bluephies or any Food Fight restaurants, but either you're a big tipper or a liar. Receipt pics or it didn't happen.

[Timmy]

SNAP!

[Konny]

Forgiveness please. I did not mean to be precise on the menu items or to emphasize how expensive or inexpensive the food was. Rather to describe our negative dining experience at Bluephies.
To correct, here are all the items from the receipt:
Open liquor ballistic - $5.00
Mark west - $7.00
Dinner donuts - $5.99
Mac bites - $4.99
Small flatbread, chicken - $5.00
Value menu, coke float - $4.99
Greek burger, broccoli - $12.79
Crab entrée - $17.99
Baked mak - $12.79
Subtotal: $76.54
Tax: 4.21
Total: 80.75
As you can see I am too a cheap guy and a small tipper. Oh, as a side note. Judging by the tone of your post I wonder did you really had to go to (http://www.bluephies.com/assets/Uploads/Bluephies/menus/BXmenudinner to get an itemized bill?