Review
The Tempest is definitely a fine dining establishment since things like fresh oysters and swanky fish preparations are their specialty, but that doesn't mean they are just paying lip service to the Fish Fry. They does things right with both lake perch ($18) AND bluegill ($16) gracing their Friday menu, and the lake perch perpetration can be described as nothing less than beautiful. It's literally about as pretty as a Fish Fry gets with five fat fillets of real yellow perch gracing the plate with their crumbly breading, and near-perfect flavor. Of course, there is no grease at all on these loins, and our only regret about them was running out before we could get enough.
Few places, even supper club and taverns, do house-cut fries, but the Tempest has no problem with that demand. Theirs come in droves and serve as a type of straw bed for the festooned fish. Unfortunately, this Friday, the spuds were not fryer fresh, but the taste was still there despite some latent crispiness. In all fairness we've gotta dock them a point for the lukewarmness, but in general these things are excellent.
Whereas the perch and (normally) the fries knock it out of the park, the tartar was a bit of a miss. While it was house-made for sure, it was a bit on the dilly side. It certainly didn't really make the fish any better, which is the hallmark of any good sauce. Definitely a strike out for the Oyster Bar...as they say, you can't win 'em all.
Before any of the preceding occurred, a nice basket of crusty sourdough graced our table and made us all happy. In addition, waaaaaaay too much fresh slaw for one person the eat came along with the fish with the bevy of rainbow shreds being far too raw tasting. A bit more creaminess might have boosted the blend but even I sent at least half of the massive scoop back. It was a monster.
The Tempest isn't your average Fish Fry joint, but that shouldn't keep you from thinking about them when Friday rolls around. Taverns are tremendous, and supper clubs make us smile, but fine dining can be just fine as well. Overall, we highly recommend this Fish Fry, and think that as far as fancy Fish Frys go, it's easily among the best Madison has to offer. Get tempted.
While $16 is a hefty price tag for a Fish Fry, the Tempest Oyster Bar goes the extra mile to make it worth your while. It all starts with a big basket of fresh sourdough, and a sparse, but enticing relish tray. The delightful dough was crusty and chewy - a very nice option when compared to your standard dinner roll. The relish tray was a modern take on the classic, and featured: four pickled green beans, a few slices of radish with some sort of creamy spread on them, a couple pickled olives, one green onion, and one pink hardboiled egg sliced in half. While it was a crazy looking conglomeration, every single item was tasty, and totally worked. There were so many great little flavors it is impossible to describe them all, but they were all delicious. Needless to say, they did what they were supposed to and I was well primed for some fish.
They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression, and this plate instantly went down in history as one of the nicest I'll ever see. While the food itself looked stunning, it was presented artfully atop a diagonally-folded napkin, which not only looked classy, but soaked up any little dabs of grease. While it almost pained me to break up the idyllic scene, it would have pained me even more not to dig into the amazing feast in front of me.
I started, as I so often do, with the fish. The Tempest always knows where their fish comes from, and the Lake Superior lake perch was no exception. The five fat fillets featured were fresh and meaty, and paired with a flavorful breading that complemented them well. The light breading clung to the moist fish with herculean effort, and while it wasn't ultra-thin, it didn't inhibit the flavor of the fish one bit. It was truly fantastic, and some of the best I've had.
Also on the napkin were a generous portion of the Tempest's skin-on, house-cut fries. The spuds were fresh and delicious, and the kind of fry that makes you wonder "why can't ever place just do it like this?" They were literally almost perfect.
Wrapping up this fantastic Fry were two more of the Tempest's homemade goodies. The first was the tartar, which was clearly made in-house, but just wasn't quite right. While it had some zest, it was on the thin side, and didn't really improve the fish (this may speak more to the deliciousness of the fish than any shortcomings in the sauce however - the fish simply didn't need it). The second was the slaw which was also fresh and made in house. Like its cohorts it was placed loving on the napkin which kept its creamy substrate from leaking towards its fried friends. Smart and satisfying.
While I expected the Tempest to put out a decent Fish Fry, I never expected they'd put the amount of care and effort into it that they do. Their commitment to craftsmanship is evident as they are not merely slinging perch, but making a fine dining Fish Fry experience. Overall, we highly recommend the Friday Fish Fry at the Tempest, and think the $16 price tag is actually quite justified. It was just amazing all around, and I can hardly wait to come back for another round.
The Tempest will take your reservation on Friday (unlike a lot of places), and they were ready to seat us the moment we walked in the door. On our previous visits they were featuring lake perch and walleye, but this Friday they threw us a curve... a bluegill ball. Even though I'd already had bluegill earlier in the day, I wasn't going to complain about it, and stepped to the plate with my fish face on.
Prior to the entrées the Tempest trots out a basket of their scrumptious house bread. The sublime slices were sweet and doughy and simply delicious. They paired elegantly with the Tempest's relish tray which is a work of art both in appearance and palatability. Pink pickled eggs, radishes with chèvre, pickled green beans, and a pair of olives were artfully placed below a couple green onion tubes which nicely set the stage for the engaging fish that was to come.
The big plate of delicious fish arrived on the heels of the relish tray and was (as expected) masterfully crafted. It featured seven tiny bluegill fillets which were pure and smooth. While the breading could have used a hint more seasoning it allowed the bluegill essence to shine through which made me happy.
The fish sat atop a mountain of house-cut fries which were thicker than expected, but as superb as anticipated. You might not expect an oyster house to know their way around the deep fryer, but these spuds were well-fried, and maybe more importantly, plentiful. I love the taste of "real" fries, and this troop clearly was.
The tartar was also obviously homemade, but unlike the fries wasn't stellar. It wasn't bad per se, but was on the thin side and had a little more of a dilly flavor than I'd like to see/taste. That said, it wasn't overpowering or anything like that so I still used it sparingly.
A super stringy slaw formed a daunting blockade on the left side of the plate and while it tasted fine, it was hard to handle. It was diverse, but cut too long and thin and not zesty enough for my tastes.
After becoming accustomed to the greatness at the Tempest I will say that this particular Fish Fry was a slight regression. While it was still really good, I wouldn't put it in Top 25 territory like some of our previous visits. The bluegill was tasty, but not as expertly done as the perch we've had in the past while everything else just kind of maintained the status quo. Overall, we still highly recommend this Fish Fry, but hope a reprise of the perch on our next visit.
Truth be told, I really just had a hankerin' fer some perch, and since I wanted to follow-up on our previous exquisite visit to the Tempest it just made sense. We arrived fairly early, but Happy Hour was happening and the place was seriously slammed. We had a brief wait, which I spent trying to obtain a beverage from the boisterous bar, and no sooner had I actually acquired it than a table opened up for us. We were in like Flynn!
While the wait for our non-reserved table was on the short side, the wait for our mustachioed waiter was a bit the opposite. It took a few minutes before we even saw him, and a couple more before he graced us with his presence. Luckily, he was charming and friendly, and made the nearly two and a half hours which were to follow very bearable. Oh yeah, and that mustache was a handlebar, and it was totally kick-ass.
Last time around the Tempest only had lake perch on special, but this Friday a $16 walleye joined the fold. While I was tempted to try the well-described walleye, I stuck to my guns and pulled the trigger on the perch. As our order went in I tipped back in my chair, took a pull of my $2 bottle of Schlitz and awaited my destiny. Before long a basket of sourdough slices showed up, along with a little sweetened butter. The duo was velvety smooth and delicious, and we easily went through the whole basket between the two of us. When our food didn't show up shortly after, another basket was requested (along with another Schlitz).
As was the theme of the night, it took a little longer than you'd expect to get this round, but even so it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. While it was slow, the crowd was enjoyable, and the time passed quickly. Probably 45 minutes after our order went in we finally had our food, but as expected it looked immaculate. Everything sat atop a triangle of brown butcher paper, which added an artful flair (artful for a Fish Fry at least). From the huge pile of coleslaw, to the seven robust perch fillets, to a handful of house-cut fries, and a ramekin of tartar, everything was clearly made with care (no wonder it took so long).
The fish was simply superb, and the fillets varied in size from large to small (so you know they're legit). Despite the difference in mass they were unified by a well-seasoned, crumbly breading that complimented the sweet swimmers perfectly. They were golden on the plate and in the belly, and didn't upset my Schlitz-load of beers one bit. I left feeling goooooood.
Following the fish was a school of house-cut fries which were limp, but lively. While they were a little on the dark side, they were tasty, and well executed (for a fancy-schmancy seafood place someone in the kitchen at the Tempest knows their way around the deep fryer).
The tartar also was tasty, albeit on the thin side. Even so, the perched liked it, but didn't need to rely on it to be great. The huge scoop of slaw was also made fresh, and had a nice sweetness that added something to the meal that wouldn't have been there otherwise.
When it comes right down to it $16 isn't really that outrageous of a price to pay for a Fish Fry of this quality (plus the $2 Schlitz helps keep the alcohol bill in check). I mean let's face it, the cost of fish is rising, and even the dive bars are having to charge $14-$15 dollars for a plate of perch. Considering the little extras you get at the Tempest it's definitely worth a splurge once in a while. Overall, we highly recommend this Fish Fry and had lotsa fun, even if it did take lotsa time.