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One manโs voyage through Wisconsinโs fish fry joints New dispatch every Friday #TheCodyssey Captained by @jeffoloizia Somewhere between Homer & Nolan
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Recent posts
THE FINAL SCORECARD.
#TheCodyssey
07 Aug 2026
Donโt cry because itโs over; smile because it happened.
#TheCodyssey
03 Aug 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐ฎ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ข๐ซ๐, ๐๐
โ๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ ๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฐ๐ง๐ง, ๐ซ๐ถ๐ด๐ต ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ค๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ.โ
When at last I reached my Ithaca, I expected to be greeted by bloodthirsty suitors. Instead, I found only friends, waiting with open arms.
Our homecoming unfolded at Courtโn House, a place that resembles the Wisconsin tavern of my dreams: faux-tin ceiling, checkerboard floor, red vinyl booths, and enough local memorabilia to satisfy even the most homesick wanderer. My companions had gathered in Eau Claire for a tournament, not of spear and shield, but of music sung in falsetto.
From the outset, time seemed to move differently within these walls. At one point our server, apologetic throughout, explained that the tavern had just been slammed. My crew and I surveyed the kingdom, finding no evidence of the invading horde. Perhaps some trickster god had lured them away while we werenโt looking. Having at last reached this place, however, I was in no hurry to move on.
Our patience was rewarded. The coleslaw, so often the villain of these dispatches, was lovely, bright with dill, and among the mealโs strongest offerings. The waffle fries were perfectly seasoned. And while beer batter is rarely my preferred cloak for walleye, the fish was crisp, flaky, and satisfying.
And so, my voyage came quietly to its end, not with exile or triumph, but with a full belly and a table of friends. Sure, this final meal was no five-trident classic. But somewhere along the way, my crew and I had learned what weโd been searching for all along.
Zeusโs law held that a traveler should be welcomed before being questioned. Food first. Conversation second. Only after sharing a table did names matter. It struck me, after fifty-two Fridays wandering Wisconsin in search of battered fish, that this old law had never really disappeared. Weโd simply renamed it the Friday night fish fry.
๐๐ญ๐: Fried walleye ($23)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Bloody Mary with a Lazy Monk Brewing Bohemian Pilsner chaser
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: Familiar and welcoming in all the best ways.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ (Three tridents out of five.) Somehow, exactly the meal the journey required.
31 Jul 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฒ๐ง๐, ๐๐
Our penultimate adventure brought us to the shores of Lake Winnebago, where Wendtโs has fed hungry hunters, fishermen, and farmers in one form or another since 1942. Coming upon it felt a bit like Odysseus arriving at Eumaeusโs hut: not the journeyโs end, but the last good hearth before the final reckoning.
We arrived for our 4:30 reservation to find the room already alive with merriment. Platter after platter of lake perch โ the house specialty โ sailed past our table. Before attempting the feast itself, we fortified our ranks with cheese curds and fried smelt, that increasingly rare delicacy. The curds proved the stronger offering, but both disappeared quickly enough.
The perch itself came in three portions: 5, 10, or 15 ounces. Surrounded by the sort of diners who looked capable of polishing off the largest without breaking conversation, my crew and I wisely settled on the five-ounce portion. A traveler learns not to compete with those who have spent a lifetime on these shores.
It was the right decision. Served butterflied, the perch wore the sort of crisp, golden crust that can only be forged over countless Fridays. Better still, Wendtโs simply leaves a full squeeze bottle of tartar sauce on the table โ a small but noble act of hospitality.
So why not five tridents? The fries were a touch too limp, as though they, too, had spent ten years upon the wine-dark sea. And while I admired the vinegar slaw, it had soaked up enough dressing to pickle a lesser sailor. Still, these are small grievances. Like Eumaeusโs humble hut, Wendtโs offered exactly what a weary traveler hopes to find near journeyโs end: honest food, warm company, and renewed strength for the final miles ahead.
๐๐ญ๐: Lake perch ($20)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Third Space Brewing Happy Place
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: As unpretentious as they come, with Lake Winnebago shimmering just beyond the windows.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ (Four tridents out of five). Proof that the finest harbors are often the humblest.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
24 Jul 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐๐ข๐ฌ๐จ๐ง, ๐๐
Many a traveler had sung the praises of this east-side deli, which long served a beloved fish fry before closing its dining room altogether. When it recently revived the tradition as a takeaway-only affair, I knew I had to make the pilgrimage. Yet it seems that the nearer I draw to home, the more Poseidon delights in blowing me off course.
I arrived at the appointed hour of 2 p.m., only to be told to return at 3. When at 3 I placed my online order, I received a call informing me it would not be ready until 4. And when at last I returned at 4, I waited still longer. So I stood and watched tattooed men in sleeveless shirts work great balls of dough in the open kitchen while my supper slowly took shape.
Could the meal redeem itself? Nearly.
I carried it back to my quarters. The rye bread was, inexplicably, dry as though it had spent a season lashed to a shipโs mast. The coleslaw was serviceable and abundant, while the potato pancakes were more like actual pancakes than any I have encountered on my travels โ pleasant enough, if a touch soft.
And then there was the walleye: an eight-ounce portion sheathed in a crackling golden crust. It was among the finest pieces of walleye to emerge from these fifty Fridays, somehow as juicy as fried chicken and nearly enough to make me forget everything that had come before.
Were this meal judged on fish alone, it would be flirting with perfection. But when a man is so close to Ithaca and the women he loves, he must not be kept waiting. So we row on, hoping for one last trophy catch before home.
๐๐ญ๐: Walleye fish fry ($22)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: New Glarus Moon Man (drinkerโs own)
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: None to speak of, unless you mean my humble quarters.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ (Three tridents out of five). Even the finest catch cannot wholly redeem a difficult voyage.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
17 Jul 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐๐ฎ๐ค๐๐, ๐๐
Two days before my forty-second birthday, I found myself at the edge of Milwaukee, where great metal birds ascend toward the heavens and carry travelers toward distant shores. There stands a supper club ten years my senior and, remarkably, one that has remained in the same familyโs hands all the while. The final Milwaukee stop on this Codyssey, itโs a place where, come Lent, lines of hungry pilgrims in their ships stretch down the block. Yet today, with so many travelers bound for other shores, the dining room sat as still as a windless sea.
How did I know I was in a supper club? Perhaps it was the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts we ordered to begin. Or perhaps it was the bar โ long as a trireme and topped by a ceiling high enough to hang the stars โ that greeted our arrival. Whatever the reason, I felt the peculiar comfort that comes from finding oneself in familiar waters.
I ordered the bluegill, as I have learned to do whenever it appears upon a menu. It arrived perfectly crisp, its flesh carrying that trademark sweetness. The fries, too, were golden and good, though both were a touch heavy with salt. The highest praise, however, belongs to the pillow-soft marble rye from Peter Sciortino Bakery and the clam chowder, among the finest Iโve encountered on this journey. Both were included in the price of the meal, as was the slice of banana cream pie that concluded our feast.
There are restaurants that dazzle like the palaces of kings and others that feel cursed the moment you cross the threshold. And then there are places like The Packing House: warm, dependable, and solid as Ithacan rock. Perhaps that is what I needed, standing on the threshold of another year and the end of this journey. Not every harbor need astonish. Some exist simply to remind weary travelers why they set sail in the first place.
๐๐ญ๐: Bluegill fish fry ($28)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Lakefront Brewery IPA
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: An old-school supper club slumbering peacefully between storms.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ (Four tridents out of five). A harbor of comfort and consistency, where the bread and chowder threaten to eclipse the catch itself.
10 Jul 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฌ, ๐๐
With our Codyssey nearing its end, I led my companions to the Dells โ the Phaeacia of the Midwest, some say โ to rest our oars awhile. We began at Ishnala, where the old fashioneds were mixed with uncommon care. Had fish fry been on offer, we might have lingered until dawn.
But no mortal outruns the designs of Fate.
Along the road beneath Mount Olympus stands a supper club that sings like a Siren. The Del-Bar has welcomed travelers for nearly a century โ first as a humble cabin with six tables, now as a Prairie-style landmark. Many come seeking its celebrated steaks, and had we done likewise, perhaps the poets would have sung a different song. But this is not the Steakyssey, and I am not Steakdysseus. And so we asked for cod.
The first omen came when our server urged us toward another course. I mistook the warning for salesmanship. It was prophecy. Presently there arrived a platter bearing two pallid fillets beside a baked potato stripped of every earthly comfort. The fish possessed neither crispness nor conviction. The potato fared no better.
And, sure, not everything was lost. The old fashioned was commendably stiff, and the spinach salad, dressed in warm bacon vinaigrette, acquitted itself honorably. But to treat a Friday fish fry as a mere obligation rather than a feast is to violate a sacred covenant.
Like Odysseus, I have learned to distrust beautiful promises. Make your fish fry without love, and into the trash heap you go. Thereโs vigor in this old sailor yet.
๐๐ญ๐: North Atlantic Cod ($24)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Bourbon old fashioned sour
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: Prairie-style grandeur that deserves a pilgrimage, even if the fish fry doesnโt.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑยฝ (Two and a half tridents out of five). Del-Bar? More like Del-blah.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
03 Jul 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ, ๐๐
Perhaps it was the early hour of my arrival or the sun shining peacefully upon the generous patio, but is there any friendlier waystation on the fish fry road than Kegelโs Inn? Opened in 1924 as a speakeasy, the tavern became one of Milwaukeeโs most authentic German restaurants and now transforms every Friday into fish fry Mecca. Yet for all its reputation, what won me over first was the warmth.
Let us begin with the menu. With cod, lake perch, walleye, bluegill, grouper, and catfish โ not to mention a 3-2-1 sampler bearing two cod fillets, two perch, and a lone walleye โ it is the most robust offering I have encountered on this Codyssey. The sampler tempted me, but I ultimately followed the barmaidโs counsel and ordered the walleye instead.
The fish arrived clad in a crust so dark and handsome it called to mind a freshly baked pretzel. Crisp without, tender within, it paired beautifully with a deep amber Hofbrรคu Dunkel. The potato pancakes made fine companions, their savory heft balanced by cinnamon-kissed applesauce. Even the rye bread from Grebeโs deserved mention, soft and comforting as an old friend.
And yet. As every epic requires a monster, every fish fry seems determined to test me with coleslaw.
Kegelโs version began promisingly enough, but before long the cabbage surrendered to a flood of watery mayonnaise. Halfway through the serving, the slaw had become a pale and soupy wreck, as though Poseidon himself had reached from the depths and dragged it beneath the waves.
It is a small complaint in the grand scheme of things. Indeed, were the slaw merely competent, this fry might have ascended to the highest reaches of the Codyssey rankings. Instead, it falls just shy of immortality.
๐๐ญ๐: Walleye ($23)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Hofbrรคu Dunkel
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: A shrine to fish fry, complete with stained glass and old-world charm.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑยฝ (Four and a half tridents out of five). A magnificent fry brought low by the same foe that has haunted this voyage from the beginning
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
26 Jun 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐๐ข๐ฌ๐จ๐ง, ๐๐
With just seven ports left on my Codyssey, I have little appetite for mediocrity. So on this Friday I set out with my cousin Eddie, captain of the Argonauts, in search of provisions before witnessing the worldโs game.
Our course led us to Settle Down Tavern, a hall better known for smash burgers than fish. Yet favorable reports had reached my ears. We claimed two stools at the bar and ordered the lone fish fry offering: lager-battered cod with fries, house-made tartar, jalapeรฑo citrus slaw, and peppadew relish.
The cod was worthy of song. Its crisp shell recalled the fish and chips of England, while the batter โ fashioned from the tavernโs own lager โ softened my long-held skepticism toward heavily clad fish. The tartar sauce ranked among the finest accompaniments of the entire voyage. The remaining provisions were more uneven. The matchstick fries were crisp and competent. The spicy pink slaw made a worthy foil to the tartar. But the peppadew relish, mistaken at first for cocktail sauce, contributed little to the feast and remained largely untouched.
As for the contest that followed, the host nation prevailed 4โ1, though the performance was surpassed several days later by England. Whether football is, in fact, coming home remains uncertain. I know only that I am, with six stops left between myself and Ithaca.
๐๐ญ๐: Cod fish fry ($19)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Young Blood Take It Easy IPA
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: An airy refuge just off the Capitol Square.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ (Four tridents out of five). A worthy stop on the voyage, though not among the immortals.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
19 Jun 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐๐ข๐ฌ๐จ๐ง, ๐๐
The nymph Calypso once detained Odysseus for seven years. Mine held me only seven days, though she compensated with oysters and crawfish. Upon my release, I made straight for Tobyโs.
Tobyโs is one of the old legends of Madison fish fry lore. Its doors open at precisely 3 p.m., and pilgrims begin gathering almost immediately. I waited for a place at the bar beside a graybeard regular whose order the barkeep knew by heart (โthe usual?โ) and who passed the time recounting the deeds of the family that has long ruled this kingdom.
The customs of this supper club are peculiar. One orders both food and drink at the bar and then waits to be summoned when a table becomes available, sometimes hours later. Many a traveler, lured onto the rocks by brandy old fashioneds, has arrived at supper pleasantly shipwrecked. Forewarned by Athena, I accepted my feast at the bar instead.
Before the fish came the relics of an older age: a relish tray, that increasingly rare treasure, accompanied by salad, bread, and a miniature cinnamon roll. Then arrived the perch itself, not as a lone fillet but as an entire school, escorted by a hashbrown broad as a hopliteโs shield. Though the coleslaw was mysteriously absent from the voyage, I scarcely noticed. There are greater tragedies in epic poetry.
As I prepared to depart, the gods offered one final omen: Chico of Villa Tap, whose fry remains the only one in the Codyssey to earn the fabled five tridents, seated across the bar. If Tobyโs is where fish-fry legends choose to eat fish fry, who am I to question their wisdom?
๐๐ญ๐: Lake perch ($24)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Brandy old fashioned sweet
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: A localsโ haunt that nevertheless welcomes wandering sailors.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑยฝ (Four and a half tridents out of five). Your favorite fish fryโs favorite fish fry.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
12 Jun 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐จ๐ง๐จ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ๐จ๐, ๐๐
Near the great ribbon of I-94 stands Stolleyโs Hogg Alley, a roadhouse known as a gathering place for riders astride chrome-clad steeds. I arrived instead in the faithful Mazda3, drawn by rumors of a rare prize: bluegill.
Though the hall was crowded, fortune favored me, and before long a platter appeared bearing bluegill alongside an impressive company of provisions. There was rye bread dusted with flaky salt, German potato salad rich with bacon, and potato pancakes โ another scarce treasure โ served with cool applesauce to temper their heat.
The fish itself proved worthy of the journey. Its crust crackled magnificently beneath the tooth, scattering crisp fragments like kindling from a well-struck axe. The flesh within remained tender and sweet, though perhaps touched by a heavier hand with the salt than was strictly necessary.
For a moment, I wondered whether I had stumbled upon one of those legendary taverns spoken of in reverent tones by fellow travelers. Then came the coleslaw.
Faithful readers know this adversary well. Across many Fridays it has appeared in one uninspired form after another, and here again it arrived bland and forgettable. Why would a place that took such pride in its fish fry treat the slaw as an afterthought? I cannot say. But let this serve as a lesson to the remaining taverns upon the Codyssey: the path to five tridents is narrow, and every companion upon the plate must walk it.
๐๐ญ๐: Bluegill ($19)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Lake Louie Kiss the Lips IPA
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: Open-air dining beside a motorcycle gathering large enough to launch a minor crusade.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑ (Four tridents out of five). A rare catch and a memorable feast, undone only by an old enemy lurking in a plastic cup.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
05 Jun 2026
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ก ๐๐จ. ๐๐ | ๐๐๐ฎ๐ค ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ, ๐๐
In Sauk City, where the road forks west toward the Wisconsin River and east toward the distant Capitol dome, there stands a supper club called Green Acres: a great manor of timber and stone, risen improbably beside the highway like the estate of some retired northern baron. Many travelers upon this Codyssey had spoken its name to me in tones bordering on reverence. Thus did I resolve to seek its fry for myself.
Before entering the dining hall, I fortified my spirit with a brandy old fashioned at the bar, where the drinks were poured stoutly and without apology. Then I took my place among the gathered diners and ordered the beer-battered haddock, accompanied by baked potato and clam chowder. But first there came tribute.
A miniature loaf still warm from the oven. A lone slice of garlic bread glistening with butter. Two slices of cheddar set forth as though provisions for a winter crossing. Long accustomed to hardship and meager rations upon this wandering Codyssey, I descended upon them greedily. The chowder, likewise, did not disappoint. It was thick and creamy, alive with black pepper, fit to restore warmth to a traveler weathered by long roads.
Yet fate seldom grants unmixed victory.
The baked potato emerged steaming beneath its armor of tin foil, soft and yielding as fresh earth after rain. But the haddock itself was overpowered by its own batter, the rich shell swallowing the fish within. And beside it stood a tartar sauce heavy with oil, offering little salvation.
Still, not every harbor upon the journey need hold hidden treasure. Some offer instead a warm table, a strong drink, and kind souls to serve them.
๐๐ญ๐: Beer-battered haddock ($20)
๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ค: Brandy old fashioned sweet
๐๐ญ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ซ๐: A stately manor where the cocktails flow mightily and the servants show uncommon kindness.
๐๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐๐ญ: ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฑยฝ (Three and a half tridents out of five). A worthy stop upon the road, though the fry itself fell short of legend.
#FishFryFriday #WisconsinEats #TheCodyssey
29 May 2026
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