Lazy Oaf Lounge

In a word: Neither lazy nor oafish. Discuss.

The specs: #0525  
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at Yelp, TDP Forum, Slice, ; official web site, Facebook.

Irene ate the black olive and cream cheese burger with a Weissbier.
JM ate the chicken BLT with fries and a lemonade.
Nichole ate the Love me Tender pizza with a White Russian.
Victor ate the Carnivore pizza.
The bill was $50, or $12.50/person, plus tip (thanks, MadisonDining.com!)
JM and Nichole gave Lazy Oaf Lounge a B+ (see our grading rubric).

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Lazy Oaf Lounge, a new bar/aspiring gastropub/pizza joint, was a long-overdue landmark: the first meal we shared with Irene and Victor from the inimitable MadisonDining.com. Their review of our mini-dining-summit will be posted there, so check it out, and if you like picture puzzles, be sure to follow them on Twitter.

Lazy Oaf has a relatively bright dining room with a bar in the center, pool tables to one side, and a wood burning pizza oven tucked into a corner. The pizza that came out of this oven was definitely a draw. Meanwhile, the dairy in the white Russian was a little past its prime, but at least it was in the right glass.

JM's chicken BLT on white toast could have been better. The bacon was extra crispy (not his preference), and the lettuce slightly bitter (which he's sure could be right up someone's alley). The fries hadn't enjoyed a hot enough oil bath, but the black pepper was a nice touch.

Irene shared her black olive and cream cheese burger and that sandwich restored Nichole's faith in the idea that such a thing can work when done right, with a light hand with the cheese and enough time on the grill to let it melt.

Now, those pizzas. We had a hard time choosing between the specialty offerings. Tried and true combinations (and familiar, to patrons of Glass Nickel, Picasso's, Roman Candle or other even slightly adventurous pizza joints) included a Chicken Ranch with red peppers, bacon and red onions; a Herbivore with zucchini, red onions, green and red peppers and feta; and two we ended up getting, a Love me Tender with steak, bacon, bleu cheese, and red onions on white crust and a Carnivore of pepperoni, ham, sausage, and bacon on wheat. Both were very good, with generous use of cheese. Both crusts were medium-thick, and the toppings didn't quite reach the edge.

For a quieter, more relaxed bar dining experience, we'd have to say Lazy Oaf does well.

Comments

[GB]

If the bacon's not crispy, it's not done.

[noni]

not true. Some people prefer crispy bacon, which is fine, some people don't- bacon doesn't need to be 'crispy' to be fully cooked.