**Updated for 2020, now with direct links to the promos**
Happy birthday! You’re out and about in Madison, wondering what restaurants and bars to go to on your special day. Here are some ideas: (more…)
Archive for February, 2014
Where to celebrate your birthday in Madison
Sunday, February 23rd, 2014Brews Brothers Pub
Sunday, February 16th, 2014
Before I walked into Brews Brothers Pub located on the far west side on Junction Road, I was envisioning a huge space, a comprehensive menu and walls filled with TVs. I was wrong on all accounts.
However, sitting in the recently opened establishment, I realized it’s similar to many strip-mall restaurants/bars I’ve visited in smaller cities and suburbs, and if you keep that in mind, the place meets all expectations.
Capacity is only 80, the bar only serves beer and wine and really the only items on the two-sided menu are burgers. Let’s start with the Brothers’ Original Burger ($5.39). It’s pretty plain, but the nice thing is you can add some “extras,” such a fried egg (49 cents), a brat patty ($1.79) or even pulled pork ($1.29).
The other 11 burgers, all made with 4.5-oz patties, have more excitement to them. The Weston Burger ($6.89) comes with bacon, cheese and BBQ sauce. The bacon was some of the best I’ve had on a burger, but the sauce was too tangy. Next time, I think I’ll try the Philly Cheese Burger ($6.39), which includes grilled peppers, onions and provolone cheese.
The special of the day was too tempting to resist. Called the Bourbon Burger ($6.39), it was topped with bacon, cheese, onion straws and a bourbon mayo. Again, the bacon was awesome, and I adored the slightly sweet mayo on this overall satisfying sandwich.
All burgers are served a la carte (hence the empty-looking basket in the photo above). Side choices are fries, chips, shoestring fries and sweet potato fries. I had an order of hand-cut fries ($2.39), which were a little soggy. I would have enjoyed dipping them into bourbon mayo if that was available.
A larger side item is Pub Grub ($5.29), consisting of hand-cut chips topped with beer cheese, chopped bacon and chives. Super delicious, but the cheese could have been more melty to make it easier to spread around the plate; instead, the cheese had solidified into several large clumps.
Regarding the beer, you have two pages of beers on tap, available in pints and 20-oz glasses, from which to choose. The beers come from all over the country. For reference, I had the New Belgium Snapshot ($6 pint), the Boulder Nitro Shake ($5) and the 3 Sheeps Baaad Boy ($6).
Brews Brothers is open every day for lunch and dinner, and it has happy hour from 4-7 p.m.
***
See more photos on our Brews Brothers Flickr set.
New items at Subway, Pizza Hut; Mighty Wings
Sunday, February 9th, 2014
Subway introduced recently a couple of new menu items. The Fritos Chicken Enchilada was publicized during the Super Bowl. It’s a nice balance of soft and crunchy, with the tender pulled chicken drenched in a surprisingly tasty enchilada sauce topped by half an individual-sized bag of Fritos (which reminds me of Cliff Huxtable adding potato chips to his hoagies). With the southwest chipotle sauce I added, the sub was bursting with diverse flavors, and I would order it again.
On the other hand, the Flatizza was a one-and-done for me. The flatbread was tasteless, and it’s pretty skimpy on toppings. You can choose a plain cheese Flatizza, pepperoni, spicy Italian or veggie, or you can select your own toppings.
***
Pizza Hut consistently makes a good crust. I like its pan style, and the stuffed crust is nice and cheesy. And now Pizza Hut has the hand-tossed pizza. The crust is lighter, a bit sweet, brushed with garlic butter and topped with seasonings. If pan style is too thick for you, then this is the pizza for you.
***
McDonald’s rolled out its Mighty Wings last fall for a limited time. I really liked them for their meatiness and slight spiciness, and I hope McDonald’s brings them back, although at a lower price. Each wing was priced at about one dollar (three for for $3.69, five for $5.59 and 10 for $9.69), making them too expensive for most consumers. That’s apparently the reason why McDonald’s has an extra 10 million pounds of Mighty Wings to get rid of.
-
You are currently browsing the EatDrinkMadison.com blog archives for February, 2014.
