The Old Fashioned is Old News

Why does everyone seem to love this place?  When people come to town they always seem to have heard of The Old Fashioned and suggest going there.  I have personally experienced this with friends and family, and I know others who have as well.  This boggles my mind.  The food is mediocre, and I say that only because I do enjoy their breakfast.  Their menu is scant in my opinion and the service is terrible.  I have just never been impressed by the place.

Exhibit A: The first time I ever visited the Old Fashioned I was not impressed by the menu.  There are not many healthy options on the menu and when I found what I thought sounded amazing and healthy (No. 35 grilled eggplant and portabella sandwich) turned out to have a highly unpleasant texture and zero flavor.

Exhibit B: I arrived at The Old Fashioned for lunch when my sister and mom were in town and we were meeting a friend.  The server got us water and took our drink order which seemed to take a while even though the restaurant was quiet at the time.  After getting our beers my sister asked for some lemons for our beers.  They never came, and we had to ask for them a second time, but by then we had almost finished our first beers.

I ordered their summer sausage sandwich which sounded delicious, and it was okay.  Very greasy, but okay.  However, I left the restaurant feeling sick and crampy - not how I want to end a meal.

Exhibit C:  Now, my husband and I always forget that the Sunprint Cafe is closed on Sundays (which is incredibly silly and feels like a bad business decision to me, but anyways) and we end up walking up to the cafe and realizing this after we arrive.  Therefore, we always end up having to choose another brunch option.  Automatically we think Bradbury's, but then we usually get there and the line is out the door, which means waiting probably another hour before eating.  At this point we probably have considered going to Gotham or heading somewhere down State St., but a couple of times we have made the decision to go to The Old Fashioned.  The first time we made this decision I was very hesitant, but thought I would give them another chance on breakfast.  It went well, the food was good, but again, not very healthy as half of our plate was covered in potatoes.

So, after trying to go to Sunprint again on a Sunday morning we ended up at The Old Fashioned for brunch a second time.  We ordered coffee when we first sat down and our coffee did not arrive before our waiter came to take our food order.  We reminded him and again, our coffee did not arrive until just before our food came out.  We waited probably 15-20 minutes for our coffee....

Exhibit D:  After having an okay experience for breakfast I decided to go to The Old Fashioned with my mom the next time she was in town.  Again we were meeting up with a friend and thought it would be convenient since it was the same place we met the last time we got together.  So, we get our coffee, etc. and are waiting for our food and when it comes out my mom's is cold.  They take the plate from her and apologize, but bring it back a minute later.  She's pretty sure they just threw it in the microwave or something.   NOT IMPRESSED.

I'm done with this place.   I applaud them for using fresh and local products, but their representation of Wisconsin eating is sad.  Some people say, "But what about the cheese curds?" and to that I say, "I prefer the curds at Graze."

Unless I'm going because someone else really wants to or am just going for a drink, forget it.  I'd rather spend my money at Bradbury, Lazy Jane's, or Sunprint Cafe (if they ever decide to  open for Sunday morning brunch)

Horrible service, mediocre food, have left feeling sick more than once.

Caught off guard and regretting my response.

Today while spending some “me time” around the square doing crossword puzzles, drinking iced tea, etc.  Two women approached me asking me what restaurants are good in the area.  I reply with, “What kind of food do you want to eat?”  and they respond, “Healthy, vegetarian.”  I say, “Oh, ok, I’m a vegetarian too,” and I start to name a couple of my favorite restaurants around the capital square, I eventually send them off to The Capital Taphaus on State St.  They have a pretty good vegetarian sandwich.  They thank me and head on their way.

I was really caught off guard with this inquiry and as I walked home I knew there was a place I had forgotten about.  I thought and thought and halfway home it hit me.  The Great Dane Pub and Brewery.  AHHHH.  I wanted to run all the way back and find those ladies and send them to The Great Dane!  I have a food blog for crying out loud!  How could I not blurt this out immediately??  I blame downtown Madison for having so many restaurants.

So I think it’s time I let you all in on some amazing food and beer.

The Great Dane Pub and Brewery is one of our go-to places around here.  They have a diverse menu with a good amount of vegetarian options including pizzas, amazing mac and cheese, falafel, a veggie burrito, and more.  They also have great burgers, fish and chips, and lots of Sconnie favorites.

But the best Sconnie favorite that they have there is their beer! The Great Dane is a brewery and their beer is very very good.  Being a light-beer drinker I usually stick to the Landmark Light and the Crop Circle Wheat, but no matter what kind of beer you like they have a delicious option for you.

My only gripe about this place is their selection of side items.  I only get the fries there because all the other sides I have tried including their coleslaw and cous cous have been majorly disappointing. 
Other than that though, the rest of the food, the atmosphere, and the service are great.

I apologize to the women that I sent to the Taphaus, hopefully they still have a good lunch and a nice time there.  It is a great place, but The Great Dane would have definitely been a better choice for them.  I will not make this mistake again! : )

Insider Tip:  Sometimes this place gets crowded, so if you’re just going there for drinks, there is a Rathskellar with its own bar downstairs that a lot of people don’t know about.  I always seem to find seating down there.

Saturday Mornings In Madtown

Check out our treasures from a normal Saturday at the Farmer’s Market. 

Since it is still early in the season there isn’t much produce, and it has been a little slow traffic wise, but I will keep you updated as to what comes in.  I get so excited and love supporting our local farmers. 

Here we have small sweet potatoes (which have made delicious fries), portabella and white button mushrooms, salad greens, a tomato, some beef jerky for AJ, cheese curds, banana bread and a cinnamon roll for breakfast!

Produce wise, this is all that is really at the market right now, so I’ve really been taking advantage of the awesome mushrooms!  They are so delicious!  I made an awesome portabella burger with them.

Also, there are a lot of flowers, plants, honey, syrup, organic and grass-fed meats, and bakery items right now, but soon I will be able to get most of my produce here instead of going to the grocery store.

Saved by The Market Basket

Living five blocks from my state's capital sure has its perks.  The capital square is event central and I love being in the thick of things.  The downside however, is the lack of affordable groceries close by.  So, my grocery shopping didn't go as planned today and has been hereby postponed until tomorrow.

That however doesn't solve the issue of having no food for tonight.

Solution:  I found a lone pork chop in the freezer that I grilled up with a little salt, pepper, and coriander.  I ate it with BBQ sauce.....

It was food.  For me anyways, but when the hubby got home from work it was a different story and like many nights before we found ourselves being saved by The Market Basket.   

Located on East Mifflin St. near the capital The Market Basket is a small grocery store that has all the necessities for the off campus college crowd.  It is similar to a convenience store or an open pantry, but has much more of a neighborhood feel.  So, after a walk to the capital to check out the mobs of protesters we headed down to get Mr. Low some dinner.  We ended up getting soup for his dinner. We also got butter so I can make popcorn, donuts for breakfast in the morning and a Diet Pepsi.

For any college students east of the capital that don't know about this place make sure you check it out.  It's a bit pricey, but super convenient and will save you in a bind.  They're open until 11pm which  is of course awesome and the people that work there are always friendly.  $5 minimum to use a credit card though, so keep that in mind. 

Some necessities they carry:

Milk

Eggs

Fresh fruit and veggies

Tampons

Toilet Paper

Snacks

and the most important necessity .. Wine :)

Happy Shopping!