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Fish Type: Smelt     Price: $10.00

Overall, I would highly recommend this Fish Fry.

Fish Score: Excellent
Potato Score: Excellent
Tartar Score: Excellent
Bread Score: Good
Miscellaneous Score: Good

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Comment: There simply isn’t enough smelt around in this day and age. Rarely if ever do you find the most diminutive of frying fish, and when you do it’s usually at some sort of special event. It really is a shame since smelt has strong roots in Wisconsin and when fried just right offers a truly exceptional taste.

If you can find an AYCE Smelt Fry like the one at the North Bristol Sportsmen’s Club make sure you go to it. Smelt are small and if the fish is good you are going to want to eat a good 20 to 30 or so of them, so having them portioned out ahead of time can really cramp ones style. Dexter’s has established itself as one of the preeminent Fish Fry joints in Madison and recently kicked off a Wednesday Night Fish Fry in an attempt to relieve some of the pressure on their Friday feed. We paid them a visit last week and had our choice of cod or walleye, but this week they changed things up a little bit, and I would say it’s definitely for the better. This week they still had the cod, but also added crappie (a little odd, but intriguing), and wait for it… wait for it… SMELT!!! Needless to say I was wasn’t about to miss an opportunity to get my smelt on.

While it’s not an AYCE smelt feed, Dex gives you around 12 fish for your 10 bucks. It’s a good deal all things considered, and of course, it comes out steaming hot (Dexter’s would never server cold fish, they’re good like that). Unlike other smelt you might find, Dexter’s puts in some serious prep work to get the little buggers ready. Not only are the heads and tails chopped and the guts cleaned out, but they actually go the extra mile to fillet each and every one of them. From there they coat them in their signature light breading and fry them to golden-brown perfection. The fishy taste of the smelt is well complemented by Dexter’s spicy breading, and while the filleting causes them to be almost totally flat, it also causes them to be totally delicious. For a first soirée into smelt, I’d say Dexter’s knocked it out of the park. Hopefully they stick with it.

Even though there are a ton of side options I find it almost impossible to shy away from the waffle fries, and this round reiterated why. The pile of spicy spuds was huge, and delicious as all get out. They are literally the world’s perfect waffles and you simply can’t do better. End of story.

Some places use tartar to cover up the flavor of their fish, but Dexter’s diverse blend enhances the taste of the freshwater finsters rather than replacing it. Every iota of the thick mix was sopped up by the smelt and left me grinning from ear to ear.

Even on Wednesday you’ll find a half-slice of rye with Dexter’s fish and while this piece was on the dry side, it was still the rye you like, and paired with a big cup of Dexter’s homemade slaw. It’s a dynamic duo if ever there was one.

Smelt can be a tough hill to climb, but, as expected, Dexter’s planted their flag at the summit without much difficulty. While I’d like to see a few more of the tiny fish on the plate, the $10 price tag is fair when you consider all you get. Overall, we highly recommend the smelt at Dexter’s and really hope they keep it around. It’s a nice change of pace from the usual Friday suspects, and gives Wednesday something special to hang its hat on. If it sticks around I’ll definitely be back for it, you should give it a shot too.



www.dexterspubmadison.com/
301 North Street
Madison, WI 53704

(608) 244-3535