Review
For starters this experience was far from perfect. The service was off, the fish wasn't cheap, and the veggies sandwich my wife got was laughable; but despite all that this Fish Fry made the grade. Max's has cod ($14) and lake perch ($15) specials on Fridays and on this maiden voyage I decided to stick with the standard cod. We took a corner booth, ordered at the counter, and got our number. Apparently this was the first week of counter service as the normal table service wasn't working well for them, but even this "upgrade" was still wonky. No one really seemed to know what their job was, beer had to be retrieved from the upstairs bar, and things were just kind of slow in general. It was an odd introduction, but thankfully none of it caused the fish to suffer.
The cod didn't sit too long before it came our way, but it wasn't steaming hot when it arrived. The flaky fish was highlighted by a light and crispy breading with a pleasant seasoning. The crunchy coating had a dark color, but that didn't mean it was burned. Maybe they use wheat flour? I don't know. But I do know it was tasty and grease-free. The three pieces were quite large, although I'm sure some would still gripe over the $14 price tag. While I do think it's a tad high all prices are trending this way so Max might just be a bit ahead of the times.
Dividing the plate in half was a heaping handful of house-cut fries. The thick-cut spuds were right on the money and perfectly fried (which is difficult to achieve with house-cuts). They complemented the fish well but not as nicely as the house tartar did. This brew was thick and creamy, but ran out way before the big portion of fish did. While I would gladly have taken more of the splendid sauce I didn't even consider asking for it since would have required a trip to the counter and god knows how long it would have taken as there was a long line forming.
A warm, glistening, white bun and a dollop of butter filled the bottom corner of the plate and was not your run of the mill dough. It was light and fluffy and a huge step up from a basic yeast roll. The house-made apple slaw was also head and shoulders above the Sysco standard and as diverse as they come. While fruity slaws usually misses me, this was charmingly bizarre. My vegetarian wife enjoyed it quite a bit and ate nearly all of it as her side-less sandwich was nowhere near a full meal. For $8 she received a roll dotted with a few sautéed peppers, and onions, and slice of provolone, that was it. It was puny, no sides come with it and it was basically a rip off, there's no other way to say it.
All in all this Fish Fry was good, although on the high end for a 3-piece cod. Every element was above average and despite the shortcomings in service the Fry delivered the goods. Overall, we recommend this Fish Fry and while we're not champing at the bit to come back we'll no doubt give them a chance at full redemption one of these days. Hopefully, they'll have their feet all the way under them by then.
Previously we tried the cod, and while we liked it a lot the service was off which painted everything in a strange light. Luckily, the fish didn't suffer much which gave us a glimpse into all that Max's had to offer. This time around we picked the $15 perch and everything seemed to go much smoother.
Like the cod, the perch has a dark brown breading that is extra crispy. The crunch is satisfying, but as the breading doesn't have a ton of seasoning the flavors of the perch what remains. While that is a good thing to some extent, perch is mild and always benefits from a bump (usually in the form of salt). Regardless, the five fillets were quite tasty and went quite fast.
Some truly excellent homemade tartar had plenty of pop, and paired really nicely with the perch. It created a dichotomy of delectability against the fish's crispy coating, which might be exactly what they were going for when they kept the breading demure.
House-cut fries are always preferable and Max's minions are thick and hearty. This bunch was fried to a point of supple attraction without being soggy. These are some truly top-notch spuds, and if you can't finish the generous portion feel free to pass the rest my way, I'll gladly gobble them up.
Max's slaw is some of the craziest out there, but that isn't necessarily the worst thing. The fruity fusion is loaded with dried cranberries and apple slices. It's clearly made with thought and while I don't love it I bet there are many out there that would. It's odd, but all that sweetness doesn't make it unappealing.
A little glistening bun glowed under the lights and was a welcome departure from the prepackaged yeast roll. It was fresh and warm and just makes you feel good. Kudos to Max on this one.
Kinks cane be hard to work out, but it looks like Middleton's newcomer is finding a serious groove. Everything this time around ran much smoother and everyone in our crew was happy (even our resident vegetarian who got a hearty salad this time around). Overall, we highly recommend this Fish Fry and think it fits well on the Middleton landscape. We'll be back to max this baby out, you can bet on that.