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| - I'm only kinda a fan of The Old Fashioned. The food was delicious. The drinks were meh. And the service was snotty.
The food was delicious. We had the cheese curds because what else do you eat when you're in Wisconsin and we hadn't had any since dinner the night before. They were very good. I had a BLT with either fresh mozzarella or burrata (I don't remember which) on it and it was fantastic. It may have been the highlight of my trip. Actually, I was so focused on my sandwich I don't even remember what anyone else had.
The service when we sat down was great. They were there when you wanted something but not annoying. We did have to wait for about 30 minutes for a table, which isn't a problem when there's a bar to grab a drink at. The Old Fashioned is definitely a Wisconsin treasure. I'm pretty sure everyone in Madison was there for dinner that night. The décor just screams "WISCONSIN" which could be a bad thing, but they've done it just right here.
Now, sadly, the service and drinks that mad me think "meh"...
We showed up around 7 on a Tuesday night and there was a 30 minute wait, so of course we decided to get a drink while we waited. Being an old fashioned lover I figured I should order one of the namesake drinks. The bartender who looked about 23 asked if I wanted it sweet or sour or with brandy. I looked at him like he had two heads. I said "An old fashioned please". Aaaannnd we repeated the same process. The other bartender recognized this look of confusion and started to explain that in Wisconsin things are done stupidly, I mean, scratch that, "differently". Bartender #1 said "Ok, just tell me what you want and I'll make it" So I gave him the ingredients for how the rest of the world makes an old fashioned. Bartender #2 acknowledged that the rest of the world makes them one way; then explained how they make them in Wisconsin is the original recipe, which changed around 1880. I replied "I was barely drinking age in 1880 so maybe that's why I've never had one like that". He did not find that as humorous as I did. The drink was how it would be if I made it at home: Meh.
I'm sure we'll be back at The Old Fashioned next time we're in Madison. I will not be ordering an Old Fashioned though. Maybe I'll try the Spotted Cow...
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