Fish Type: Cod Price: $10.00
Overall, I would recommend this Fish Fry.
| Fish Score: Good Potato Score: Good Tartar Score: Excellent Bread Score: Poor Miscellaneous Score: Excellent |  |
Comment: Raise your hand if you know where Withee, WI is...
So, no one raised their hand??? Fair enough, I'll tell ya all about the bustling metropolis that is Withee. Withee is a very small town about half way between Eau Clarie and Wausau on Highway 29. It's also where my mom's side of the family is from, and home to Beaver's Bar and Grill. "Beaver" it turns out was the nickname of my cousin Steven. I say "was" because not a month after Beaver lived out his dream of owning his own bar he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and it wasn't long before it got the best of him. He was an amazing guy. A happy guy. One of those guys everyone loved, one of those guys we all wish we could be. So, when we went up for his funeral we had to stop at his bar and try his fish.
In small towns people expect more for their money (that's just the way it is) and the Fish Fry at Beaver's obliges at a mere $10. I could easily be biased about it and paint it in a better light than I need to, but in all honesty, this cod was incredibly well-done. As per usual, I was worried since beer batter can quickly get out of hand, but the coating on these fat little chunks was bubbly and inviting with no grease whatsoever. It also wasn't the crap cod that is loaded up with sodium triphosphate to make it heavier (which also leads to translucent fish with no flavor). It was nice and flaky, and sat well in the old gut.
Beaver was a man about town and as such gave lots of sides to pick from with his fish. I branched out (as he would have wanted me to do) and tried the cheesy rounds which filled the void admirably. I wasn't feeling the crinkle-cuts and these little breaded hash brown clumps were a breath of fresh air. I have to assume they were just Sysco, but it's really hard to tell since I've never seen a unique product like this from them.
It could just be that Sysco makes an amazing product, but the tartar at Beaver's den was spot on. It was as thick as molasses and had some pimiento and other goodies dotted throughout. Unfortunately, my cousin never thought to throw a roll on the plate, as is so in vogue in 2019, but man, I would have loved some additional starch.
A finely-chopped and zippy slaw rounded things out, and was also on the salad bar but I skipped the $2 up-charge on that one.
In all honesty I'd planned to go have fish at my cousin's place sometime, but never imagined it would be for all the wrong reasons. He was a great guy and he will be missed. Overall, we recommend Beaver's Fish Fry and can only hope the bar that carries his name will live on in the way he wanted it to. RIP Beav.
www.facebook.com/Beavers-Bar-Grill-709744019396820/
522 W Mill Street
Withee, WI 54498
(715) 229-0500
