Head for the Hills

As some of you have probably read, my blog is rather eclectic. Most of the stuff on this thing are essays, thoughts, and in some instances reviews of the world around me, or the things in it. I'm not much for adding lots of paraphernalia such as pictures, movie clips, links, or the like. Not that I have anything against those types of things. I sometimes (o.k. most times) am just to lazy to bother, or more likely have no idea HOW to do such things.

Well, tonight I was invited by my mom to go out for one of Wisconsin's omnipresent "Friday Fish Fry" dinners. Upon seeing an ad touting one such place's cole slaw as being the best, we decided to venture to a new place for something completely different. I found it interesting that we would pick a place that highlighted its cole slaw as the mitigating factor for trying the fish. But, I'm always game for something new and different, even if our food priorities were somewhat askew.

Anyway, we went to Hackbarth Hills on the northwest side of Janesville (actually in Janesville Township) to see what this fish fry was all about. I'm pretty good about knowing where things are in general. But in this case, I had absolutely NO idea where we needed to go. But, upon arriving at the restaurant, I was surprised to discover it actually has a 9 hole golf course. This mini-clubhouse was where we were to have our dinner.

Entering the restaurant, it seemed pretty nondescript. Going inside, it reminded me of some very nice garages that I have seen on the Parade of Homes tour, complete with bar, finished drywall walls, a kitchen off to the right, and several unassuming tables at which we could sit. There wasn't a terrible crowd occupying this concrete carpetless eating establishment when we arrived, but we were seated immediately and brought the menu card that was simple and plain.

After ordering drinks, I was looking over the menu to see if there was something in tune with what I've normally been eating since the 15th of January. Initially, I was going to be good and order some broiled shrimp on a skewer. But, alas, I opted for the exact same thing my mom had, which was the two-piece cod dinner, complete with choice of potato, roll and the secret special cole slaw. There really wasn't anything fancy about this place, and from the prices on the menu, things were quite reasonable.

After a reasonable amount of wait time,the cheerful server brought our food. After the first bite from our unassuming plates, I knew we were at a place that is a hidden gem, even with it's non-frilly glory.

The fish was crispy, fried to perfection, and not overly breaded. The breading was nothing like I've ever had before, in that it included herbs within the batter. Hints of basil and oregano in just the right amounts perfectly complimented the soft taste of the flaky fish. The cole slaw, I must say, was nothing I've ever had before either, and certainly WAS one of the best I've sampled in a long time. Often times cole slaw is touched as a side, but never completely finished. Cole slaw can be sketchy, but this was anything BUT that. And, it was completely gone by the end of the meal, as a testament to its tastiness. With a sweet-sour dressing added to it (and not cream based), it was a perfect complement to the well seasoned fish. Of course, it came with our chosen baked potatoes. While the potato was excellent too (and I LOVE potatoes), it acted, for lack of a better descriptor, as sort of a required accoutrement to the meal rather than a staple of it, which anyone knowing my food preferences (knowing how much I love potatoes) speaks LOUDLY about the quality of the food served to us.

I must say that it was well worth the venture out of the mainstream to dine at Hackbarth Hills. For all of the fish fry dinners available to Wisconsin patrons, this one IS one of the tops in my view. It's always fun to find an "off the beaten path" type of establishment, and this one certainly fit the bill, proving the fact that great food doesn't require frills and methods of food preparatory techniques that only Julia Child could muster to make this dining experience a real treat.