Saturday, July 5, 2008  |   Madison, WI: 71° F  
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THE PAPER / EATS

RESTAURANT REVIEWS

Gotham Bagels: Holy cream cheese, Batman!

We were heading to Mount Horeb for lunch when one of those oddly apocalyptic summer storms whipped up, the kind that seems to have become, suddenly, freakishly routine. The radio was making noises about running for cover, and we decided maybe it wasn't worth the broken bones and twisted neck, and that long, tempting tunnel of light, even for a really good lunch. So we turned back to Madison, and that's how we ended up, drenched, at Gotham Bagels for lunch instead. >More Sucre brings continental flair to the Square

Where there once was McDonald's, there is now Sucre. There is no better metaphor for the evolution of downtown Madison -- from fast-food restaurant to Euro-chic patisserie, from Quarter Pounders and fries to cold poached shrimp and Sachertorte, from Coke to cosmos. >More

LOCAL FLAVOR

Behold the farm bill
Alt farmers share in the bounty, but at what cost?

So often something mind-numbingly boring and horribly complicated can be really, really important. Forgive me, then, for subjecting you to a column about the 673-page farm bill of 2008. >More Flooded farm, part two
Another year, another devastating storm

After last year's $750,000 loss, Richard de Wilde was doubtless hoping for a not-too-wet wet season. He didn't get one. On de Wilde's Harmony Valley Farm, the organic operation near Viroqua, 20 acres' worth of plantings were destroyed by the recent storms. Among the losses were tomatoes, peppers, sweet potatoes, salad greens, dill, cilantro and a cornfield — the same one ravaged in last year's rains. >More

TABLE TALK

Bob Crowe, Manager of The Seafood Center at Willy Street Co-op
The Seafood Center at Willy Street Co-op, 1221 Williamson St. (the mother ship's at Heritage Square, 712 S. Whitney Way)

Why you should go: Because you're picky about fish. >More Anna Zalner, Head bartender & Saturday server at The Continental
Where: The Continental, 2784 Fish Hatchery Rd., Fitchburg

Why you should go: Last year Jim and Nick Schiavo, who own Cafe Continental on King Street, took over the little castle that used to be La Paella. This summer they've put some of their old family recipes back on the table, and turned the patio into one of the best outdoor dining spots in town. >More

DINING

Dinner and a movie
We pair terrific takeout with flick picks

No one likes a chewer at the movies. It boggles the mind that theaters sell nachos. Of all the possible snack foods, why choose one of the loudest? >More Tavern time
Small burger-and-fry grills shall not perish from the earth

To a certain segment of the population, there's nothing more alluring than a vintage sign for Pabst Blue Ribbon hanging outside a converted farmhouse or an old hotel. The house-turned-tavern is as old as the concept of the public house itself — Madison's first pioneer residents, Rosaline and Eben Peck, were tavern- and innkeepers. >More

THE DAILY / EATS

On the hunt for root beer floats in Madison
You got me floatin' on the ultimate summer ice cream soda

The nation's hot weather palate has shifted from traditional ice cream sodas and hot fudge sundaes to Peppermint Java Chip Frappuccinos and Iced Matcha Lattes, although recent news reports have suggested that "pain at the pump" has prompted many working stiffs to cut back on their $4/day frozen coffee drink habit. While I have nothing against iced coffee, the super-sweet sensation of a proper root beer float is one of the rituals of summer that should be indulged in at least once between Memorial Day and Labor Day. >More Beer Here -- Old Glory American Pale Ale from the Great Dane

Looking for a great beer to celebrate the birth of our country? How better than with a beer named "Old Glory"? This beer is a great choice for the holiday picnic table or backyard barbecue, and its assertive hoppiness offers a little fireworks in every pint. >More Fringe Foods: A southern summer with chicory coffee, horchata, and chicha morada
Drinking down the Western Hemisphere

The United States, it's worth noting, doesn't always treat its neighbors to the north and south so well. Heck, you might even say that there was some careless treatment of our southern locales, New Orleans in particular, during the 2005 hurricane season. For my part, I love all points south on the American compass. And to show a little bit of that love, I'm going to take you on a liquid tour of some of those locales, with tastes of chicory coffee, horchata, and chicha morada. >More Beer Here -- Contorter Porter from Ale Asylum

Ale Asylum has been making a porter since it opened two years ago. Its original label, "Disporterly Conduct," was the result of a naming competition by patrons. However, this proved to be a marketing challenge when the brewery decided to move the beer into its bottled lineup. Contorter is a reference to how deep dark black beer looks big and heavy, but in reality is smooth, soft and well balanced on the palette. >More Azzalino's speakeasy offers hearty portions on near south side of Madison

Billed as "a joint for bootleggers and flappers," Azzalino's on South Park Street serves up standard American bar food in baskets and large plates in a strip of taverns on Park Street just south of Meriter Hospital. The menu is jam-packed with fried items named after famous -- or infamous -- characters of the 1920s and dangerously fruity cocktails that mask their large amounts of alcohol behind citrus and grenadine. >More
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FOOD AND DRINK

Five Guys Burgers and Fries debuts in Madison

I kind of have to admire Five Guys Burgers and Fries for managing to include 80% of its menu right in the name of the restaurant. This East Coast-based chain doesn't serve much beyond its namesake burgers and fries. The menu also branches out to offer a hot dog and something named on the menu as "veggie or grilled cheese," which I at first took to mean a veggie burger. It's not. >More Fringe Foods: Soft-shell crab from Gotham New York Bagels
Getting comfortable with the menu of a really big country

I came across a prime example of this regionality completely unawares, when I wandered into Gotham New York Bagels and Eats on Mifflin recently. I was looking for lunch, and looked up to see a menu item that had been absent for months. Gotham's menu has undergone something of a remodeling since it debuted about a year ago. So, when I saw "Soft-Shell Crab" on the new chalkboard menu behind the counter, the foodie in me leapt for joy. >More

BEER

Beer Here -- Fatty Boombalatty from Furthermore

Furthermore owner Aran Madden began with a white beer recipe and ramped up the amount of grain in this beer by 50 percent. He also dropped the amount of wheat malt used, so while the beer has the appearance of a big, bright hefeweizen, it doesn't strictly meet the style. That certainly doesn't bother Madden, who takes pleasure in deviating from brewery norms and beer classifications. The Boombalatty offers bitterness in the spirit of a pale ale, with spices like coriander in the background. >More A toast to the 75th anniversary of Prohibition's end!
Vintage Madison ales and lagers are brewed once again

April 7 may be just another day on the calendar to many people, but to those who truly love beer it's Independence Day. On April 7, 1933, beer returned to the public following 13 years of Prohibition in the U.S. The Cullen-Harrison Act, a modification to the original Volstead Act which established Prohibition, took effect, and the result was the legalization of 3.2 beer. >More
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