Cahoots Bar

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that not all Fish Frys are created equal. That the best are endowed by their creator with certain unknown spices, among these are season salt, pepper and secret blends that culminate in the pursuit of perfectly fried fish. That to secure this deliciousness, expert fry cooks are instituted among men, deriving their genius from years in the kitchen and countless hours of frying. That whenever any Fish Fry becomes incredibly tasty, it is the right of the people to eat it, and to tell of its glory such that others who may not of known of its delectableness may do so. To prove this we will eat every Fish Fry, and let facts be submitted to a candid world.

Madison Fish Fry is declaring its independence from any and all tyrants who would say that bars cannot be held up amongst the best in the Fish Fry universe, for we have been to Cahoots. Cahoots is a very unassuming looking bar, but packs a wallop when Friday night rolls around. We stumbled into Cahoots right around 8 o'clock, grabbed a pint of the Cow at the bar, and found ourselves a table right near the door. Having noticed that we were in the mood for more than just booze, the petite waitress pranced over and took our order almost immediately. Since MFF has patronized the establishment previously we knew that the cock of the walk was the lake perch, and had no trouble convincing Melissa that she should follow her Fish Fry friend in ordering. Jer, being the delightful character that he is, changed it up a bit and chose to canoodle with some cod. We also procured an appetizer of mini corn dogs 'cause the lady of the table was just in that kind of mood.

The little cornies came well before the fish and were not great, but certainly tasted just like a corn dog. When the fish hit the table a few minutes later they were quickly put into the back of our minds as the pristine perch stole the show instantly. Wasting no time (as per usual) I grabbed one of the six fillets and went to town. Just like Dexter's earlier in the day I was immediately greeted by excellence. The perch enjoyed a flavorful, crumbly batter which complimented the moist, flaky fish underneath perfectly. This is easily some of the best perch around town and one of the few places that gives the Villa Tap a run for their money. In no time flat I exhausted my portion and moved on the "help" my friends with theirs.

Jer, being the generous soul that he is, also allowed me a bite or two of his cod which was also good, but not in the same echelon as its freshwater counterpart. While it dawned the same breading as the perch, it was much richer and tasted like it had be drown in butter prior to meeting its maker in the fryer. Overall, it was still very good, but the perch was clearly superior.

Being that we are a diverse group of individuals we chose diverse potato options, which seems fitting. The best among them were the good old French fries which were straight-cut and delicious. They resembled McDonalds fries and were every bit as good, if not better. The twice baked potato that Jer paired with his cod turned out to be not so hot, while the baked potato was, well, a baked potato. All reports were that the fries were easily the best among them, which reinforced what I already knew in my heart to be true. Fries people, fries.

As you may know, Madison Fish Fry likes tartar with his fish, but when the percentage of dill present rises, this is not the case. Cahoots hasn't fully fallen victim to the dill-craze, but they do slip a fair amount into their sauce. While it still tastes pretty good, the dill/relish ratio is close to pushing it over the edge. That said, at this point it still helps the fish, but the perch is so good, and so flavorful on its own, the assistance was minimal.

Putting the finishing touches on this Fish Fry were some zesty coleslaw and a wee dinner roll. The slaw was actually pretty good, but the roll was a little below average and Jer and Melissa didn't even give it a chance. I found them both to be edible and perfectly complimentary to the spectacular fish.

Being that Cahoots has kind of an odd layout it is pretty remarkable just how good of a job they do feeding the flock. The young waitress was quick and attentive, while the owner/manager dude went around to just about every table to check on the satisfaction of his guests. Overall, this is one spectacular little Fish Fry and a pretty good value at 11 bucks. It is easily recommendable and we'll even go beyond that to say the perch is no doubt, some of the best in the city. The French fries were also great and when amalgamated with a suitable tartar, some creamy slaw and a plain old roll were just what the doctor ordered. Christ Cahoots, where did you even come from? I guess I don't really care as long as you stick around and keep that perch a-comin'. Score another one for the Fish Fry guy, and ya'll make sure to put Cahoots on your Friday night wish list.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that not all Fish Frys are created equal. That the best are endowed by their creator with certain unknown spices, among these are season salt, pepper and secret blends that culminate in the pursuit of perfectly fried fish. That to secure this deliciousness, expert fry cooks are instituted among men, deriving their genius from years in the kitchen and countless hours of frying. That whenever any Fish Fry becomes incredibly tasty, it is the right of the people to eat it, and to tell of its glory such that others who may not of known of its delectableness may do so. To prove this we will eat every Fish Fry, and let facts be submitted to a candid world.

Madison Fish Fry is declaring its independence from any and all tyrants who would say that bars cannot be held up amongst the best in the Fish Fry universe, for we have been to Cahoots. Cahoots is a very unassuming looking bar, but packs a wallop when Friday night rolls around. We stumbled into Cahoots right around 8 o'clock, grabbed a pint of the Cow at the bar, and found ourselves a table right near the door. Having noticed that we were in the mood for more than just booze, the petite waitress pranced over and took our order almost immediately. Since MFF has patronized the establishment previously we knew that the cock of the walk was the lake perch, and had no trouble convincing Melissa that she should follow her Fish Fry friend in ordering. Jer, being the delightful character that he is, changed it up a bit and chose to canoodle with some cod. We also procured an appetizer of mini corn dogs 'cause the lady of the table was just in that kind of mood.

The little cornies came well before the fish and were not great, but certainly tasted just like a corn dog. When the fish hit the table a few minutes later they were quickly put into the back of our minds as the pristine perch stole the show instantly. Wasting no time (as per usual) I grabbed one of the six fillets and went to town. Just like Dexter's earlier in the day I was immediately greeted by excellence. The perch enjoyed a flavorful, crumbly batter which complimented the moist, flaky fish underneath perfectly. This is easily some of the best perch around town and one of the few places that gives the Villa Tap a run for their money. In no time flat I exhausted my portion and moved on the "help" my friends with theirs.

Jer, being the generous soul that he is, also allowed me a bite or two of his cod which was also good, but not in the same echelon as its freshwater counterpart. While it dawned the same breading as the perch, it was much richer and tasted like it had be drown in butter prior to meeting its maker in the fryer. Overall, it was still very good, but the perch was clearly superior.

Being that we are a diverse group of individuals we chose diverse potato options, which seems fitting. The best among them were the good old French fries which were straight-cut and delicious. They resembled McDonalds fries and were every bit as good, if not better. The twice baked potato that Jer paired with his cod turned out to be not so hot, while the baked potato was, well, a baked potato. All reports were that the fries were easily the best among them, which reinforced what I already knew in my heart to be true. Fries people, fries.

As you may know, Madison Fish Fry likes tartar with his fish, but when the percentage of dill present rises, this is not the case. Cahoots hasn't fully fallen victim to the dill-craze, but they do slip a fair amount into their sauce. While it still tastes pretty good, the dill/relish ratio is close to pushing it over the edge. That said, at this point it still helps the fish, but the perch is so good, and so flavorful on its own, the assistance was minimal.

Putting the finishing touches on this Fish Fry were some zesty coleslaw and a wee dinner roll. The slaw was actually pretty good, but the roll was a little below average and Jer and Melissa didn't even give it a chance. I found them both to be edible and perfectly complimentary to the spectacular fish.

Being that Cahoots has kind of an odd layout it is pretty remarkable just how good of a job they do feeding the flock. The young waitress was quick and attentive, while the owner/manager dude went around to just about every table to check on the satisfaction of his guests. Overall, this is one spectacular little Fish Fry and a pretty good value at 11 bucks. It is easily recommendable and we'll even go beyond that to say the perch is no doubt, some of the best in the city. The French fries were also great and when amalgamated with a suitable tartar, some creamy slaw and a plain old roll were just what the doctor ordered. Christ Cahoots, where did you even come from? I guess I don't really care as long as you stick around and keep that perch a-comin'. Score another one for the Fish Fry guy, and ya'll make sure to put Cahoots on your Friday night wish list.

The first Friday of Lent is, without a doubt, the busiest day for Fish Fry all year. Not only do you have the week-in week-out Fish Fry crowds, but the Catholics seem to come out of the woodwork. The prospect of long waits at places like the Avenue Bar or Quivey's Grove are especially unsavory this time of year, and for my money it is best to just avoid them altogether. Thankfully there are plenty of other Fish Fry options available as long as you go off the beaten path and are willing to try something new. After a botched attempt at Cahoots in Verona on New Years Day I figured their relatively unknown Fish Fry would be a good bet on this, the busiest of the busy Fridays.

I rolled into Cahoots just before 8 o'clock and saw not one, but two friendly faces. I had fully expected to see good ol' Gabe, but was surprised to see our hometown friend Jen Mac, who just so happened to be bartending and waitressing. She came right over, grabbed me a Spotted Cow, recommended the lake perch, and then scurried off to take care of the rest of the diners. When she came back to take our orders it was a simple matter of me following her recommendation and Gabe putting in for his standard cod. We sucked down our beers, BSed with Jen a little bit when she came by, and within 10 minutes our fish was ready.

The perch and cod were both fresh from the fryer and placed in front of us in pristine condition. The six grandiose perch fillets were flanked by a platoon of fries, a generous cup of slaw, some homemade tartar sauce and a standard looking white roll. The fish was simply too hot too handle, so I spread out my bounty and probed the slaw first. To my surprise the diverse looking slaw was delicious. It was a superb blend, a little creamy but still zesty. After a couple bites I felt the fish had cooled enough and refocused my attention on it, although I did polish off all the slaw eventually.

At first taste it was clear, the perch is fantastic. It has a spicy, ultra flavorful batter that is similar to that of the Villa Tap or the Old Fashioned. It was light, fall apart flaky, and complimented the thick perch fillets well. Since the perch was more than plentiful I swapped one with Gabe so I could try the cod as well. The cod was rich and buttery with a light batter that rivaled that of the perch. While I would say the perch was slightly better, the tender, flaky cod was well above average. Both styles of fish were delicious solo, but were improved by the untraditional, but very tasty tartar. It was clearly homemade and had a unique blend of ingredients including some dill, which I usually hate. Even so, it was very good, although not incredibly thick.

The matchstick style fries were hot and crisp and complimented the limp perch very well. There were also an absolute ton of them. When you take this portion size into account along with the above average amount of fish, the eleven dollar price tag seems more than fair. Up until this point Cahoots' Fish Fry was practically flawless and I was reveling in my decision to try them over the big guys. The stale and tasteless white roll brought me back to earth a little bit, but was nowhere near enough to bring me off my Fish Fry high.

Overall, I am going to highly recommend the Fish Fry at Cahoots. They definitely know what they are doing and are producing some top notch fish. Some local folks have clearly caught on to this fact since Jen said they were busy as hell earlier in the night, and had just cleared out a little before our ugly mugs showed up. As it stands, we were able to sit at the bar and enjoy our fish in peace and quiet, which is nothing short of remarkable on the first Friday of Lent. There was no standing uncomfortably shoulder-to-shoulder with a bunch of randoms for us. No hollering drink orders to a bartender while leaning over someone who was lucky enough to actually get a stool. We beat the crowd. What's more, we still got a great Fish Fry which is all you can ask for any Friday, more or less the busiest one of the year. To use the old adage, we are in cahoots with Cahoots now. This was one fine Fish Fry and we are already making plans for a return visit.

The first Friday of Lent is, without a doubt, the busiest day for Fish Fry all year. Not only do you have the week-in week-out Fish Fry crowds, but the Catholics seem to come out of the woodwork. The prospect of long waits at places like the Avenue Bar or Quivey's Grove are especially unsavory this time of year, and for my money it is best to just avoid them altogether. Thankfully there are plenty of other Fish Fry options available as long as you go off the beaten path and are willing to try something new. After a botched attempt at Cahoots in Verona on New Years Day I figured their relatively unknown Fish Fry would be a good bet on this, the busiest of the busy Fridays.

I rolled into Cahoots just before 8 o'clock and saw not one, but two friendly faces. I had fully expected to see good ol' Gabe, but was surprised to see our hometown friend Jen Mac, who just so happened to be bartending and waitressing. She came right over, grabbed me a Spotted Cow, recommended the lake perch, and then scurried off to take care of the rest of the diners. When she came back to take our orders it was a simple matter of me following her recommendation and Gabe putting in for his standard cod. We sucked down our beers, BSed with Jen a little bit when she came by, and within 10 minutes our fish was ready.

The perch and cod were both fresh from the fryer and placed in front of us in pristine condition. The six grandiose perch fillets were flanked by a platoon of fries, a generous cup of slaw, some homemade tartar sauce and a standard looking white roll. The fish was simply too hot too handle, so I spread out my bounty and probed the slaw first. To my surprise the diverse looking slaw was delicious. It was a superb blend, a little creamy but still zesty. After a couple bites I felt the fish had cooled enough and refocused my attention on it, although I did polish off all the slaw eventually.

At first taste it was clear, the perch is fantastic. It has a spicy, ultra flavorful batter that is similar to that of the Villa Tap or the Old Fashioned. It was light, fall apart flaky, and complimented the thick perch fillets well. Since the perch was more than plentiful I swapped one with Gabe so I could try the cod as well. The cod was rich and buttery with a light batter that rivaled that of the perch. While I would say the perch was slightly better, the tender, flaky cod was well above average. Both styles of fish were delicious solo, but were improved by the untraditional, but very tasty tartar. It was clearly homemade and had a unique blend of ingredients including some dill, which I usually hate. Even so, it was very good, although not incredibly thick.

The matchstick style fries were hot and crisp and complimented the limp perch very well. There were also an absolute ton of them. When you take this portion size into account along with the above average amount of fish, the eleven dollar price tag seems more than fair. Up until this point Cahoots' Fish Fry was practically flawless and I was reveling in my decision to try them over the big guys. The stale and tasteless white roll brought me back to earth a little bit, but was nowhere near enough to bring me off my Fish Fry high.

Overall, I am going to highly recommend the Fish Fry at Cahoots. They definitely know what they are doing and are producing some top notch fish. Some local folks have clearly caught on to this fact since Jen said they were busy as hell earlier in the night, and had just cleared out a little before our ugly mugs showed up. As it stands, we were able to sit at the bar and enjoy our fish in peace and quiet, which is nothing short of remarkable on the first Friday of Lent. There was no standing uncomfortably shoulder-to-shoulder with a bunch of randoms for us. No hollering drink orders to a bartender while leaning over someone who was lucky enough to actually get a stool. We beat the crowd. What's more, we still got a great Fish Fry which is all you can ask for any Friday, more or less the busiest one of the year. To use the old adage, we are in cahoots with Cahoots now. This was one fine Fish Fry and we are already making plans for a return visit.

Guess who got the last order of walleye at @cahootsbarverona1!? The fillet was large and in charge, as flaky as can be, and layered in their delightfully crunchy and flavorful breading. It was splayed across a handful of (forgivably) lukewarm fries, and paired with a pleasantly dilly tartar. The slaw on the side was commendable as was the well-toasted dinner roll. The place was jumping (as it always is on Friday nights) and our waitress did a fabulous job navigating the chaos. What's more, there is no mention of fried walleye on the menu, but when I asked if it could be done she didn't so much as bat an eyelash. "Absolutely" was all it took. Chalk this up as another victory in old Verona.

Verona on a Friday night (yet again) and this time we ran over to Cahoots for their legendary Fish Fry (and I'm glad we did).

The 3-piece cod at the self-proclaimed dive runs a scant $14 and is worth every stinking penny. This cod is nothing less than excellent, featuring an idyllically moist and flaky meat, and superiorly seasoned breading. I crushed my trio AND one from the kid's plate. It paired so well with the thick and creamy tartar that it should be a crime.

The scoop of cheesy hash browns was also crazy good. It was extremely rich and creamy as the flavors came in multiple waves. Deeeeeeeliciois. The slaw was also house made and tasty while the basic bun was lightly toasted and did the work.

While Cahoots isn't the fanciest place around it doesn't need to be to have a top-notch Fish Fry. Overall, we highly recommend this Fish Fry and think it might be the absolute best Verona has to offer (and I'm not even kidding).

Well, this was pretty excellent. @cahootsbarverona is a bar-bar for sure, but their 3-piece cod checked all the right boxes. The cod was lightly-breaded and well-seasoned, the hash browns with cheese and onion were outstanding, the tartar was spot-on, the slaw was as it should be, and the bun was lightly toasted which gave it a little something extra and showed they really care about what they're doing. Top it all off with some excellent service from the waitress/bartender and this was definitely a memorable one.

Talk about a night of big wins...not only did our son win his final soccer game of the season, and we got to enjoy this wonderful Fish Fry, but we snagged the big boy pull tab at @cahootsbarverona1! 250 big bucks in the can! As for the fish, you really can't go wrong with the walleye or the cod at Cahoots.

This walleye is a hearty real-deal fillet that's home to a well-seasoned breading that takes the musky meat up a notch.

A smattering of crunchy freezer fries was splayed across the plate and made a nice base for the grease-free fish. A cup of creamy tartar compliments the fish just right, some Sysco-standard slaw did the deed, and grandma's dinner roll is what it is.

We haven't hit a big tab in a while and after landing this bad boy we should be in good shape for a bit. Of course, had we missed (as so often happens) we still would have walked away winners thanks to Cahoots' tasty Fish Fry. Overall, we recommend this Fish Fry and think it's one of the best Verona has to offer.