Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Dylon's Steakhouse, Pewaukee

Happy Tuesday.  I am extremely busy these last couple of weeks and my schedule only gets more hectic in the upcoming months.  I am going to try to get to at least one fish fry a month as we warm up here in Wisconsin.  But please visit my facebook page for more frequent updates of restaurants as I visit them.

I've definitely been out of the blog loop lately, so I wanted to quickly get one posted.  This week you are going to be treated to a blog I should have posted a few weeks ago, but you're better late than never, right?  Welcome to the  Dylon's Steakhouse on Pewaukee Lake, review.

Dylon's is the old Golden Anchor, and I had been there before, but not under the new ownership, but  I still love that place, it's a very quaint restaurant, and if you get into the "sun room" it has an incredible view of beautiful Pewaukee Lake.  Unfortunately on that rainy Friday, I was pressed for time, I had to order the "takeout" fish fry, but I don't live far from Dylon's, there was no time for the fish to get soggy or cold.  I ordered the Beer
Perch for $17,  Baked Cod for $12,  1/2 Perch, 1/2 Beer Battered Cod for $15, French Fried Walleye Pike for $18 and Baked Walleye for $18.

The beer batter was delicious, I absolutely loved it -- it's so rare to get a perfectly cooked beer batter, because it does get damp quick.  This was not the case with Dylon's fish fry, the cod itself was hot, flaky and very tasty.  The potato pancake was pretty average, but the side of cole slaw was incredible.  The nice servers, while very attentive to me when I showed up, forgot to add in the rye bread, but I am going to assume here (I know, I know) that it was your typical store-bought bread, but if anyone who has dined there, can say otherwise, please do so.

Overall, even though the price was just a twinge more, I think you're paying for the overall "supper club" experience, and well, I ate the food at my dining room table.  But I was just as pleased and I would recommend Dylon's to anyone looking for a good fish fry in the area.

I think Dylon's is definitely worth a 7 out of 10.  I look forward to going back there and trying the other options looking out at the lake, rather than a Brewers game on television the next time I eat their fare.

I hope you are all trying to enjoy this interesting and dreary spring.  I pray summer is right around the corner for golf, running, biking, outdoor dining and blended drinks.  That's what is really important, right?

Don't forget to give out large doses of hugs to loved ones, especially now, while the sun is still in hibernation. 

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Culvers, Hartland, WI

So, did I sink to a new low? 

Some think I did, that I completely gave into the whole societal thought that "I don't have enough time, drive thru is my only option."  I played each and every scenario in my head, how I could get to a Lake Country Restaurant I haven't visited before, grab a quick to-go order, have it still be relatively fresh when I got home and do a decent review.   There was nothing close enough, nothing I hadn't reviewed, I had no choice.  I gave in, I went to Culvers, 701 Industrial Court, Hartland, WI.  Much to my surprise, the fish fry at Culver's is better than some of the restaurants I've dined at while writing this blog.  Sorry to those who think I sold out, but honestly, I'm glad I did. 

I had never had a fish fry from Culver's before and there were a lot of people saying I would enjoy the meal. I shrugged it off. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE Culver's, however, it's not the place I'm going to head when wanting to experience "fine dining" -- it is, after all, fast food. 

The line for the drive-thru was longer than normal at 8pm on a Friday night.  I waited probably 5 minutes to get my turn at the order screen.  I decided on the 2pc Beer Battered Cod for $8.99, there was also a 3pc option, for $10.99.  If you don't specify, you get french fries and cole slaw,  I chose to get the mashed potatoes instead of the fries, but did indulge in the slaw. 

This is going to be a quick review, as there is nothing to review aside from the food itself, I had no ambiance (my car was a little dirty), I had no waitress (although the car-side service was quick), and I had no cocktails (good thing, I was driving). 

Fish was a little heavy in breading, with that said though, it was cooked perfectly.  I took a little of the breading off, and the flavor of the fish was very good, it totally fit into my "say no to tartar" campaign. But for all of you who enjoy tartar, their "Culvers" brand tartar was all right.  My cole slaw was creamy and a little heavy on the mayo, but again, I enjoyed it.  There was also a store-bought bakery roll, which was irrelevant. 

All in all I am going to give this meal a  7.5 out of 10 stars.  It was a to-go fish fry, that traveled well and also tasted phenomenal.  Culver's has figured it out, fast-food that isn't the disgusting processed stuff we're used to. The ingredients are good, they're REAL and the most important thing (to me) is they are aware of food allergies and are sensitive to that, the franchise is often involved in the communities they're located in and their philosophy is truly one I can buy into and so is the fish!

Hope you all enjoyed my lame-ass blog this week.  I'm going to try to get to a nice place this week, time will tell what we end up deciding upon.

In the meantime, pray for all the people who continue to suffer in Japan.  I cannot imagine what the folks in that country are going through. As always, be sure to give out the hugs in abundance!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Hideaway Pub, Franklin, WI

This is not exactly about a Lake Country place, but Beth was nice enough to let me vent here as a guest blogger. Besides, she didn't want an empty space this week.

Last Friday, the Cabby family went to the Hideaway Pub on 76th Street in Franklin.  We were told phrases like: "this is the place," or "fabulous food," naturally, we decided to try it.

I made reservations for a group of 15 people, ten days ahead and called three days before to confirm the reservation.  Upon arrival, there were cars parked along the highway due to the overflowing parking lot.  Apparently, there were a great deal of walk-in diners.

The hostess kept the walk-in biz walking in, while our group (which included my 82 year-old dad and his wife) stood in the doorway hall cramped in with the party of eight that also had 6:30 reservations. A hostess cam out about 6:40 only to "x" out the grouper specials on a dry erase board.

We finally sat down at 7:30 and waited 10 minutes to order drinks (the stressed waitress forgot my dad's) and after orering, 2 people found out the baked fish they ordered was not available (sorry dad).

FIFTY minutes (yes, 50) after we sat down, we got food.  The beer battered cod coating was firmly around the nice sized pieces, but it had no seasoning nor did the cod (note from Beth: again, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, the tartar factor...).  Excellently flaky BLAND fish.  Two good sized potato pancakes tasted a bit like potato, but had so much flour in them, they stuck to each other like calories to my backside.  The offerings of syrup or applesauce couldn't even make them edible.  And, on a side note: the clam chowder was pasty.

I completely understand an unexpected rush of people, but not taking care of reservations (when you TAKE reservations) in a timely manner was totally unacceptable. A gesture of a discount or even a cocktail would have been nice, but the apology for the delay was half-assed at best...


So, my guess is Cabby won't be going back there anytime soon.  I would like to thank him for his input and helping me out while I deal with my crazy schedule.  Enjoy your weekend everyone.  And I promise, I'll be back next week.  I may even get a chance to do a review this weekend, but I can't guarantee it. Have a great weekend everyone, and please -- keep up with the hugs!