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Fish Type: Cod     Price: $10.00

Overall, I would recommend this Fish Fry.

Fish Score: Good
Potato Score: Good
Tartar Score: Good
Bread Score: Poor
Miscellaneous Score: Good

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Comment: Sometimes it turns out that eating a Fish Fry can be the highlight of your day. I have often times found this to be the case when confronted with an overnight stay in my hometown. The last day of October turned out to be just such a day and I figured that I might as well try some fried fish at the Red Lion in tiny Victory, WI since their Fish and Chips was recommended to me by a good friend.

The Red Lion is an “authentic” (at least as authentic as you are going to find around here) English style pub located right on the mighty Mississippi River. The owners/operators are actual Brit transplants straight from the streets of Birmingham. Beyond their thick accents they brought some of the traditional English staples, not the least among them being Fish and Chips. We pulled into the Red Lion at about 8pm, ordered a beer and looked over the menu.

The first thing to grab my attention was the fact that the Fish and Chips is served two different ways: regular beer battered and “dusted” both for less than ten bucks. I inquired about the difference and was told that the beer battered fish was the traditional offering as you would expect it, but the dusted fish is much different. In his lovely British accent the owner relayed that this dusted variety was soaked in Whisky first, then lightly floured much like you find with the best Fish Fries. I was sold with this explanation and we each put in our orders for it. We took our drinks and headed to one of the open tables to await our meal.

The food was ready in a matter of minutes thanks to the fact that we were the only people actually eating so the cook was ready and raring to go. The two pieces of dusted cod were served nice and hot with equally hot pub fries and a side of peas. The fish was actually very good especially since it wasn’t a Friday special. The batter was light and fairly flaky as advertised as was the actual cod underneath. The fish tasted good but was not as spectacular as I hoped. It was still very good especially considering it can be ordered any day.

The fries were also good but nothing really remarkable. They were essentially thick fry planes that were well fried even though they were thicker than average. They, like the fish, mixed well with the side of tartar which was surprisingly standard. I half expected it to be a strange brew of god knows what but it turned out to be on the level and very good.

Since it was Fish and Chips there was no coleslaw or bread to speak of and the peas didn’t really do it for me as I am not a big pea fan. However, overall I was pleasantly surprised by the Red Lion. The fish was very good while the fries and tartar held up their end of the bargain. While it isn’t a Fish Fry in the purest sense I can certainly recommend the Red Lion if you have a hankering for fried fish mid-week. The Red Lion is a neat place being run by some unique folks for this part of the world. If you find yourself in southwestern Wisconsin in the mood for fish check out the Red Lion, good food and definitely A little “Brit” different.



redlionvictory.com/default.aspx
S6844 Terhune St
De Soto, WI 54624

(608) 606 2753