Fish Type: Cod Price: $13.00
Overall, I would not recommend this Fish Fry.
|Fish Score: Fair|
Potato Score: Good
Tartar Score: Good
Bread Score: Excellent
Miscellaneous Score: Good
Comment: I want like the Fish Fry at Cafe Hollander, I really do...
I'm not sure what it is, but every time since our first couple endevours the Fish Fry has fallen flat. This time is was the $13 3-piece cod again and it just didn't work for me. The batter was far too thick for my tastes, but it did have a pleasant flavor so there's that. Since Hollander is a "beer place" the beefy batter was clearly loaded up with suds, but the brand was obviously indiscernible. The fish itself was plentiful and seemed to be of decent quality, but the only thing that came through was the flavor of the batter since there was just so darn much of it.
A nice portion of matchstick fries comes with the fish, but like it piscene counterpart, were kind of limp and uninspired. On the plus side they were slathered with plenty of salt which was enough to make them palatable in my eyes.
The fish needed tartar like I needed another beer and the spongy coating soaked the sauce up with ease. Despite the fact it was thick and creamy it still couldn't go toe-to-toe with the brawny batter which is really a comment on how overbearing this batter really was.
A forgettable slaw came along for the journey and while I remember very little about it every bite of it got eaten so I guess that is saying something. The highlight of it all (if there was one) was rye bread which (while seemingly unpopular) made me smile and added a hint of flavor that was otherwise lacking.
Hollander has a great ambiance, impressive beer selection, and stellar location, but the Fish Fry somehow keeps regressing. We initially found it chic and extraordinarily kid friendly, so maybe we were blinded somewhat, but whatever the case our last couple trips have not been great. Overall, we don't recommend this Fish Fry no matter how much we'd like to.
726 N Midvale Boulevard
Madison, WI 53705