Fish Type: Cod Price: $9.00
Overall, I would not recommend this Fish Fry.
| Fish Score: Good Potato Score: Excellent Tartar Score: Fair Bread Score: Poor Miscellaneous Score: Good |
Comment: Argh. I'm not sure what it is with Next Door. I want their Fish Fry (and their beers for that matter) to be so good, but just they never are. It's tough, since I love their vibe, their style, and their 'hood, but when the product doesn't match the aesthetic it's hard to swallow.
NDBC has $9 cod, $12 perch, and $17 walleye available all day on Friday, and since all of them come beer battered I stuck to the basic cod (since that's basically the best fish when beer battered). The 2-piece I received was middling at best. The beer batter had zip for flavor and while the cod was long and thin it was maybe a couple ounces per piece.After I saw it, it made sense while it was only $9 - there just wasn't much to it.
While the fish fell flat the frites blew up. The house-cut spuds had the perfect fry job and really stood out among the crowd. The cup of tartar on the side took the fish up a tad but was odd to say the least. It was thick (which is a plus), but had tiny chunks throughout, almost like a Parmesan peppercorn. Of course, there was no bread, and I died a little inside.
The slaw was clearly made in-house and had notable black pepper overtones that dominated the flavor profile. While it wasn't bad in the least, it wasn't necessarily something I'd seek out again.
At this point I'm not sure what I can do... I want to like Next Door, and the food on their normal menu has been good enough, but I think I need to cut ties with their Fish Fry. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, and I guess I'm just a glutton for punishment. Overall, we don't recommend this Fish Fry and are going to have to force ourselves to stay away.
www.nextdoorbrewing.com
2439 Atwood Avenue
Madison, WI 53704
(608) 729-3683
