Madtowne Fried Chicken

Update 2/18/12: Madtowne Fried Chicken has closed and will be replaced by a JJ Fish & Chicken.

In a word:  Fried treats make for cheap eats.

The specs: #0361
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; review at Isthmus (scroll down), 77Square;

JM ate the three-piece chicken with a lemonade.
Nichole ate the small order of fried chicken livers and a hot tamale.
The bill was $9.50, or $4.75/person.
JM and Nichole both gave Madtowne Fried Chicken a B (see our grading rubric).

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Call us impetuous, but even after one meal we're prepared to say Madtowne Fried Chicken is among the city's top fried chicken takeout. Granted, that's a small pond, in which Kipp's is the big fish and JJ is the bottomfeeder (man alive, we miss Jada's).

The whole process is fairly quick in and out, with no dining area, but a wide selection of dry goods to peruse, from Obama shirts to keyrings. Madtowne Fried Chicken's also your source for personalized belt buckles starting at $25. We got our order, stocked up on tiny tubs of BBQ and hot sauce, and found a park bench nearby.

The fried chicken was somewhat less spicy than KFC. It filled our mouths with the flavor of oily goodness but that's pretty much it. The fries were light in color and buttery in flavor (we forgot to add our own salt), but had a very short life span. Once they cooled off they were without merit.

The "hot tamale" was just a frozen microwaved treat (still in wrapper), but as such was not so terrible. However, Nichole set it aside to eat more of the fried chicken livers, which were dark and tender. She counted 14 to the small order, which came with fries for $3 and would have fed 2 easily (if you can find a friend who likes deep fried liver, that is). It wouldn't be totally inaccurate to compare the texture to McNuggets, only less fatty; at least liver comes by its homogeneity naturally. The initial tang of liver flavor was short-lived, but definitely overpowered any spiciness in the batter.

Since we've been drawing comparisons to fast food, it's worth noting how dirt-cheap Madtowne Fried Chicken is. It rivals the chains in affordability, and serves up decent quality and local character to boot. Though the menu skews away from other common carryout like BBQ and brisket, you can find Italian beef, hot dogs, and fried fish - anything to make a pleasant picnic basket. Just bring your own beverages unless you are a fan of Faygo, the CW of sodapop.

Comments

[BT]

Faygo is great stuff. I've never tried a variety I didn't like.

[Creighton Hogg]

Fried. Okra.
That's about half the reason to go to Madtowne Chicken. It's an amazing comfort food.

[Linda]

I love those chicken livers. I'll split an order with you any time, Nichole.

[Keith]

I miss Jada's so much I could cry.

[Kyle]

I know it, Keith. I know it. Sadly, my very well-placed sources have told me that there's little to no indication that the Clashes are interested in giving it another go.

Sad face. At least I got to try them (I'm looking at you, Francois).

[Timmy]

Speaking of Francois, what ever happened to Francois Bakery?

[JJ (not the owner of the other chicken place)]

I can't believe that this fried chicken place received such a good review! When I attempted to go there to order some food only a few months ago, I was given dry, tasteless chicken with some edible, but soggy, french fries. The service was terrible, even though all they had to do was take my order and give me my food in a paper bag. Quite disconcerting, to say the least. The food may be cheap, but you get what you pay for at this establishment.

[John]

I tried the livers. I'm a pretty big fan of fried chicken livers. These were just alright. They were cooked way long though, so the liver was too dry. I don't think Madison has any other places that offer chicken livers though.