Fish Type: Cod Price: $9.00
Overall, I would barely recommend this Fish Fry.
| Fish Score: Good Potato Score: Good Tartar Score: Good Bread Score: Good Miscellaneous Score: Fair |  |
Comment: Being that we were heading out of the state for the Labor Day weekend I had resigned myself to the fact that a Fish Fry was not going to happen. I was a tiny bit disappointed, but figured a long weekend in Chicago would erase that feeling soon enough. We hit the road just after the noon hour, bound for the skyscrapers and traffic snarls of the Windy City. We didnt eat much before we left and as we drove down I-90 our crew started to get that hungry feeling. Being that I still wanted fish, and well knowing that finding a small local place serving Fish Fry for lunch would be damn near impossible, I resigned myself to finding a Culvers and giving their cod another shot.
We pulled into the Worlds Largest Culvers outside of Edgerton and B lined to the counter. The fish dinner at Culvers comes in a 2-piece or 3-piece for around $9 or $11 respectively. Since it was lunch time I went for the 2-piece and grabbed myself a water to drink. The rest of the crew opted for burgers or sandwiches and even though they ordered after I did, had their food in hand well ahead of mine.
It took a good 10 minutes for the fish to appear, but it was nice and hot, and freshly fried when it did - I was pretty impressed actually. The cod was surprisingly good. The fish was really flaky and moist, and cloaked in a thick batter which was actually tasty as well. I fully expected them to be pre-battered, frozen fillets, but these clearly were not. The tartar was also surprisingly good. It was a nice thick mayo blend with a fair amount of relish. I expected some Kraft-like concoction, but this stuff looked homemade and tasted far better that its generic counterpart.
Culvers fries are Culvers fries and while they arent perfect, the thick cut crinkle jobs do what they need to do. A hefty dose of salt made them more than edible and I really cant complain since I have eaten them on numerous burger runs in the past. I think they are fine, and if they go great with a burger they gotta go great with a Fish Fry, right?
The slaw and the bread that accompanied the meal were also better than expected. The roll was soft and fairly fresh while the slaw was actually really decent and served in a huge cup that I only made it about half way through.
Overall, I was incredibly impressed by this trip to Culvers especially based on my previous fish related experience there. Basically I went in not expecting much, and Culvers more than blew those expectations out of the water. The fish was really decent as was the tartar sauce. The fries are what you expect from Culvers, and they seem to working for them so I gotta give them credit there too. When you take into consideration that the roll and slaw are both perfectly respectable you get a full meal for a fair price. I guess I have no choice but to give them the Madison Fish Fry seal of approval. Hell, Id go back in a pinch and would have no qualms about telling someone else to do the same.
www.culvers.com
571 E. Richardson Springs Road
Edgerton, WI 53534
608-884-1800
