Review
A $22 bluegill graces the menu in 2023 alongside a $24 walleye and $18 haddock. The four fillets are fat and fishy and cloaked in a delightfully crispy cornflake crust. Each is offset by a thick and zippy house tartar that comes in a supersized ramekin and far outlasts the fillets.
A nice batch of skin-on fries sit alongside the fish and do their part, as does the house slaw which is fresh and inviting.
A non-traditional garlic breadstick is a unique addition, as is the lady's signature orange wedge which finishes things off with a twist.
This was a good Fish Fry but the highlight of the meal might well have been the seasoned tots and cheese curd cube appetizers. They were fried right and absolutely delicious.
Six years is a long time and we're happy to see the Lone Girl is still kicking. Overall, we recommend this Fish Fry and think it probably won't be 72 months before we're back again.For starters, they have several fish to choose from: haddock, walleye, and lake perch among them, and the perch piqued my interest as it's a new addition since last we visited. The plate goes for $24, which isn't exactly cheap, but real lake perch never is in this day and age...and this was indeed real yellow perch.
The perch comes four to an order and had a batter that's unlike any I've seen elsewhere; not thick, but not thin, kind of like a second skin with a hint of hot sauce or something else with bite. By and large it was really good and punctuated perfectly by their homemade tartar. This sauce was almost like an aioli - thick and silky with a cool tang that really offset the bold batter. Simply brilliant.
The slaw is also clearly made on-site and was just downright tasty with a hint of curry or something at the end. I had no problem polishing off both mine and the kid's. The last truly unique piece of the puzzle is their signature orange wedge that sits in place of the traditional lemon. This surrogate citrus doesn't bother me since I don't put lemon on my fried fish but if you're a lemon lover come prepared to ask for a swap...
Finishing things off are the fries, which are just good old freezer fries, and a classic slice of marble rye. This dynamic duo are definitely the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" parts of the Fry.
The Friday special at the Lone Girl has evolved into a really intriguing one and it's nice to see their subtle nuances on full display. Overall, we recommend this Fish Fry, and while I'm a sucker for a good old fashioned cod, I'm equally enamored with a little shake-up from time to time. Well done, lady!When a new Fish Fry comes to Madison area I stand up and take notice. Even if it’s just fish and chips at a new brew pub I can’t help but try it as soon as humanly possible, and that is exactly what happened when I got wind of the Lone Girl Brewing Company in Waunakee.
The Lone Girl is the new kid on the block and as such is garnering a lot of attention from the locals. It took a good 30 minutes for us to get a table which was a bit surprising since we figured we were early, but hey, there aren’t a lot of option in the ‘kee so it kind of makes sense. This lovely lassie doesn’t have a Friday Fish special per se, although on our initial visit they did have an atypical walleye preparation (which sold out before we got a chance to order it, so there is a chance a consistent special will manifest). The everyday fish and chips was all that was remained for us and at $12 the haddock seemed like a reasonable deal.
While $12 doesn’t seem overwhelming for a full-blown Fish Fry, once you see the plate the price tag makes some sense. Two pieces make up the entirety of the haddock portion of the meal and fall in the middle of the spectrum size-wise. The flaky fish is home to a fried chicken style breading that has a decent amount of seasoning which perks up the smooth meat to some degree. On both of our visits it leaked a minimal amount of grease which wasn’t enough to ruin it and served as more of a lubricant than anything else. We’d say they should probably bump it up to a $13 or $14 3-piece, but what they have is a good start.
The “chips” contingent is comprised of a mix of regular and sweet potatoes which is something we’ve never seen before (and would probably be happy never seeing again). It’s a bit unheard of, and although both styles somehow remained crispy thanks what appeared to be a light batter, they didn’t really mesh all that well. Obviously, neither were cut in-house-cut, but were acceptable as far as freezer fries go.
TONS of tartar are trotted out with the conservative amount of fish and are really far too much for a couple 3-4 oz pieces. The mix is undeniably made in-house and boasts a definitive lemon essence. It’s not a particularly thick sauce, but not necessarily a thin one either. Unfortunately, it’s a little too sweet for our tastes and didn’t really improve the fish.
Like the unique slaw, and the kooky mix of fries, the slaw was also crazy. It was kinda soupy looking and clearly made right there, but it had heat…and I mean heat. There must have been some Sriracha (Rooster sauce) or something else going on ‘cause I reached for my Towhead time and again while eating it. Again, it was like nothing we’ve seen, and while not bad, was certainly unexpected.
Of course, at a fish and chips affair there isn’t any bread to be found which is one of the main things that separates it from a true Fish Fry. Hopefully it evolves into the real deal one of these days. Oh yeah, this little lady also serves their fish with an orange wedge instead of a lemon which, again, is something we’ve never seen before and would probably be happy never seeing again.
The Lone Girl is a sweet new place with good beer and an amazing outdoor patio, and while the food follows suit for the most part the fish and chips just doesn’t quite make the grade when compared to some of the other great fish our fair city has to offer. Overall, we don’t recommend this Fish Fry, and although we love the place don’t see ourselves coming back for a rubber match at this point. That said, we could see recommending it in the future if a few subtle tweaks are made.
When a new Fish Fry comes to Madison area I stand up and take notice. Even if it’s just fish and chips at a new brew pub I can’t help but try it as soon as humanly possible, and that is exactly what happened when I got wind of the Lone Girl Brewing Company in Waunakee.
The Lone Girl is the new kid on the block and as such is garnering a lot of attention from the locals. It took a good 30 minutes for us to get a table which was a bit surprising since we figured we were early, but hey, there aren’t a lot of option in the ‘kee so it kind of makes sense. This lovely lassie doesn’t have a Friday Fish special per se, although on our initial visit they did have an atypical walleye preparation (which sold out before we got a chance to order it, so there is a chance a consistent special will manifest). The everyday fish and chips was all that was remained for us and at $12 the haddock seemed like a reasonable deal.
While $12 doesn’t seem overwhelming for a full-blown Fish Fry, once you see the plate the price tag makes some sense. Two pieces make up the entirety of the haddock portion of the meal and fall in the middle of the spectrum size-wise. The flaky fish is home to a fried chicken style breading that has a decent amount of seasoning which perks up the smooth meat to some degree. On both of our visits it leaked a minimal amount of grease which wasn’t enough to ruin it and served as more of a lubricant than anything else. We’d say they should probably bump it up to a $13 or $14 3-piece, but what they have is a good start.
The “chips” contingent is comprised of a mix of regular and sweet potatoes which is something we’ve never seen before (and would probably be happy never seeing again). It’s a bit unheard of, and although both styles somehow remained crispy thanks what appeared to be a light batter, they didn’t really mesh all that well. Obviously, neither were cut in-house-cut, but were acceptable as far as freezer fries go.
TONS of tartar are trotted out with the conservative amount of fish and are really far too much for a couple 3-4 oz pieces. The mix is undeniably made in-house and boasts a definitive lemon essence. It’s not a particularly thick sauce, but not necessarily a thin one either. Unfortunately, it’s a little too sweet for our tastes and didn’t really improve the fish.
Like the unique slaw, and the kooky mix of fries, the slaw was also crazy. It was kinda soupy looking and clearly made right there, but it had heat…and I mean heat. There must have been some Sriracha (Rooster sauce) or something else going on ‘cause I reached for my Towhead time and again while eating it. Again, it was like nothing we’ve seen, and while not bad, was certainly unexpected.
Of course, at a fish and chips affair there isn’t any bread to be found which is one of the main things that separates it from a true Fish Fry. Hopefully it evolves into the real deal one of these days. Oh yeah, this little lady also serves their fish with an orange wedge instead of a lemon which, again, is something we’ve never seen before and would probably be happy never seeing again.
The Lone Girl is a sweet new place with good beer and an amazing outdoor patio, and while the food follows suit for the most part the fish and chips just doesn’t quite make the grade when compared to some of the other great fish our fair city has to offer. Overall, we don’t recommend this Fish Fry, and although we love the place don’t see ourselves coming back for a rubber match at this point. That said, we could see recommending it in the future if a few subtle tweaks are made.
As I envisioned the now fully featured special goes beyond haddock, pairing it with walleye every Friday as well as a rotating cast of characters from week to week. Since I figured I should get the lay of the land, I went for the 3-piece haddock with a side of fries (which is presumably the most popular option) over the $12 2-piece or the $17 walleye (the special this week was some sort of salmon thingy). All the fish come with a romp through their brew-room-adjacent salad bar, so let's begin there.
We were early, so not many had perused the freshly-stocked bar and everything was nice and tidy. Some crisp mixed greens led things off and were quickly followed by a big bowl of verdant spinach. The roughage made a luxurious landing spot for the bevy of toppings that came next. From eggs to a variety of cheeses there was a lot to choose from and my result was a picturesque plate that would make most supper clubs green with envy. A serving tray full of warm garlicy bread sticks brought up the rear but took a backseat to none, and what's more, they still served a pleasant (although not unique) coleslaw with the fish.
After smiling through a salad of this caliber one can only hope the hits keep on coming, but while the Lone Girl didn't strike out, a soft single or two was about all they could muster. The pieces of haddock were big and sported a fried chicken style breading, but it lacked any sort of seasoning. The haddock itself was limp and damn near impossible to pick up and dip for someone who likes to eat fish with their hands like me. While the fork aficionados would certainly find it easy going, when fish falls apart just by being touched I get touchy. A little grease also leeched from the flakes resulting in a slight saturation on its undercarriage.
Some shoestring style fries took the place of the sweet potato/normal potato mix of yesterday, and while an improvement, still weren't all that great. They appeared to be cut in-house, but were strachy as all get out. It was odd since I typically LOVE house-cut fries, but these just didn't do it for me.
So the fish was alright and the fries, while not great, still got eaten; but this is where the big whiffs came about - the tartar and the orange wedge. I don't think I'm off-base (no pun intended) when I say that traditionally Fish Fry (and fish in general) comes with lemon on the side. It seems that over millennia mankind has figured out that the acidity of the lemon brings about unique flavors in fish and whether you like that combination or not, it works. Never have I heard of oranges filling in for their citric brethren and while the concept seems feasibly the reality is not so palatable. The wedge on the side I could take or leave (I don't typically use the lemon anyway), but the zest and what appeared to be actual juice in the tartar were just too much. It really hurt the fish and 90% of what came in the cup wound up in the garbage. It's just a failed experiment in my eyes and something I assume they'll figure out before a(nother) public outcry ensues.
There is a hell of a lot to like about the Lone Girl. From the patio to the beer, and that excellent salad bar, they have done a lot of things right thus far. Unfortunately for the Fish Fry, the misses add up a little more than the hits and just overwhelm the good that is done. Overall, we don't quite recommend this Fish Fry, although we'd say it's just a wedge away...