The Old Fashioned

Last week we ventured to the Old Fashioned which touts itself as a place representative of all fare Wisconsin. Needless to say, bloody marys are a trademark drink to this fine state whether imbibed for breakfast or brunch as a delicious liquid snack or a tasty hangover cure. With these two factors in mind, the Old Fashioned had much to live up to...and it did!

Upon arriving and waiting for Patrick and Abby, Liz and I sat at the bar and watched as other bloody marys were prepared. To my surprise, the only thing that the bartenders added were the garnishes which are different depending on the type of bloody mary ordered (they have a wide variety to choose from). Upon asking the bartender how their mix was prepared, I was told that not only did they not know the contents but that the cooks were the only ones who prepared the mix. This is truly a testament to their dedication since consistency is key when trying to assign a lasting and representative rating.

Once we were all there and seated, we sat down to look at their bloody mary options. The three of us each ordered something different. I ordered the Old Fashioned Bloody Mary with the spicy option which uses pepper infused vodka. This bloody is garnished with a large slice of beef jerky, a deviled egg, and cheese curds. A beer chaser is also offered.

Without knowing the components of the mix, one can only hope to see and taste the ingredients. At first glance, it is obviously loaded with horse radish from the look of the mix. Upon tasting this bloody, I was extremely impressed. It was well balanced in regards to Worcestershire, vodka, spice, and horse radish. I'm sure there may have been other key components but to sum it all up...this bloody was perfectly balanced and tasted phenomenal. My best compliment is that I didn't even have to add any further spice or pepper to adjust it to my liking. It was perfect.

One final note, we were all truly impressed with our bloody, so much so that we debated whether we could assign it a 5.0. I have to say that it's the best bloody I have had in this town, so far, so it truly deserves a 5.0. All other bloody marys have much to live up to.

Miguel Dominguez

The Old Fashioned

Last Sunday we decided to head to the Old Fashioned because they are rumored to have an amazing bloody mary. We were pleasantly surprised to see they had a bloody mary menu! I ordered the Old Fashioned Bloody Mary. It was the tastiest mix I have had yet. All of the flavors were blended perfectly, but they did warn us it was a little heavier on the horseradish. The bloody mary definitely had more horseradish, but it also had a citrus taste which balanced out all of the other ingredients, I suspect it was lemon juice. We also got a beer chaser, which we believe was PBR. I definitely finished this bloody the fastest. It was very refreshing. Abby absolutely loved her house spicy bloody mary, and she wanted to rate it a 4.999999, but we agreed on the score of 4.5. I wish I had more garnish in my bloody mary but I was able to steal some from Miguel's, which he will blog about next. The Old Fashioned is a bloody mary you must try. Price was $6-8.

Question?

Should we go to The Old Fashioned or Come Back In this Sunday?

Talula

Last Sunday, Liz, Miguel, Patrick and I went in yet another search for the best bloody mary in Madison. Intrigued by the brightly painted pink building, we headed to Talula on Madison's eastside. Walking into the building, we were immediately impressed with the mexican/modern/eclectic decor - I'm probably not doing the style justice, so check it out for yourself! We sat down at the large, comfy bar and ordered a round of Bloody Marys. The bartender told us that the mix was homemade, however it would be different each time, as each bartender puts their own spin on the mix. The Bloody was garnished with a pickle and couple green olives. Liz and I took and sip and both thought it was great. Miguel took a sip and said there was too much worcestershire sauce. After a few more tastes, I was on board with Miguel and actually found myself unable to finish the very meaty tasting drink. Miguel asked for Tabasco sauce and the bartender gave us a plastic bottle filled with what she called "cheap hot sauce". Whatever it was, it was not good. If this drink would have been served almost anywhere else, I would not go back, but because of the decor and good vibes (and the chance of a different mix), I will probably give it another shot, most likely in the summer for brunch on their great outdoor patio!

We give the bloody mary a rating of 2.0.

Oh yes, Liz would kill me if I failed to mention their guacamole dip, which she thought was fabulous. While that was the only item we tried, their menu looked good.

Talula
802 Atlas Ave.
Madison, WI

*Not a great bloody, but stellar atmosphere - worth trying again.*

Double Diamond Bar @ Tyrol Basin

Although this may extend beyond our geographical reach (i.e. Mt. Horeb), we decided to review the bloody mary at the quaint little Double Diamond Bar at Tyrol Basin. My interest was initially piqued by the towering glass vase full of jalapenos marinating in vodka. Upon inquiring, I was told this was the vodka used in their 'spicy' and 'medium' Bloody Mary concoctions. Some brief background to their options: spicy is served with their own Bloody mix containing the jalapeno infused vodka, 'medium' is served similarly but with a mix of half jalapeno vodka and half un-infused vodka, and their 'mild' does not contain any of the infusion.

Before I could sit down to enjoy my tasty beverage, I was immediately impressed with the presentation...the rim was loaded with two giant shrimp, two skewered olives, and topped off with asparagus (pictures to follow). Upon tasting, one could definitely feel the tinge and unique taste of jalapeno in the vodka. However, I was disappointed when after a few sips there seemed to be something missing. I could taste the usual suspects: tomato juice, horse radish, and Worcestershire; but their mix fell a bit short and lacked that 'hearty' quality. Perhaps it may have had too much vodka since it appeared a bit watered down, but yet the vodka taste was not overpowering (perhaps because I was lost in the jalapeno flavor!). In the end, it excelled in appearance but fell short in substance. This is truly a shame since a great mix would've complemented this vodka so well.

My rating is 3.0. I loved the garnish and presentation, not to mention the effort in using infused vodka. However, taste is ultimately paramount in our reviews.

Mike's Horseshoe Bar and Grill

Welcome to the Madtown Bloody blog. Our mission is to find the best place for a bloody mary in Madison, WI. There are four people who are part of team madtown bloody. Our names are Miguel, Liz, Patrick, and Abby. Welcome to our site. Please help us achieve our mission by posting comments and recommending places to review. We will post the ingredients of the bloody mary if available, a few comments about the taste, and finally a score of 0-5 with 0 being completely undrinkable, 3 is decent, and 5 being the best ever. We really like Genna's (around the capitol) bloody mary bar on Saturday mornings so we would consider that a 4.

The first place we decided to review was kind of an accident. This bar provided a very interesting ambiance and reminded us of a typical small town Wisconsin bar.

Mike's Horseshoe Bar and Grill
3900 Dempsey Road
Madison, WI 53716-1144

Bloody Mary's were served in a 12 oz frosty mug. The bloody mary mix seemed homemade because it was poured out from a tupperware container but we can't be sure. The bartender really spent some time making it and we appreciated her effort. The ingredients she used are listed below:

~2 oz of vodka
Bloody mary mix (homemade?)
A few dashes of Worcestershire sauce
Lemon wedge
Pickle
Celery Salt
Tabasco (optional)
$3

Madtown Bloody rating = 2.5

Although we felt this was a pretty good bloody mary for the price it seemed to be missing horseradish. It could have been put into the mix, but we didn't taste it. Once we added tabasco sauce it tasted much better. It could have definitely used more garnish. We do want to note that while we were having our bloody mary's we ordered some fried portabellas for $3! We were really surprised to see them on their menu and they were delicious.

Thanks for reading!
Liz