Jason Joyce
My typical Friday morning involves a bike ride to the Capitol Square, where I check the Isthmus post office box and hit the bank with a stop at Wonderstate Coffee on the corner of West Main and South Carroll streets in between. The walls of windows provide great natural light and it’s a nice spot to work or have a meeting if you like a moderately bustling coffee shop. The sidewalk cafe is breezy on even the muggiest summer days.
I order either a mug of whatever the light roast is, a glass of cold brew on warmer days, or sometimes a latte. Regardless of the drink, I always add a blueberry muffin. Wonderstate has a straightforward and consistent set of bakery options that include vegan and gluten-free choices as well, but my commitment to butter prevents me from trying them. And why would I? Blueberry has always been there for me.
What I appreciate most about Wonderstate’s version of this coffee shop staple is the BPCI (blueberries per cubic inch). There are juicy bites, but with plenty of, well, muffin in between. The top (“where the muffin breaks free from the pan and sort of does its own thing”) has a satisfying, golden crust, lightly dusted with sugar crystals, broken up by crevices that reveal the soft cake within. And the size is not so big that you think you’re having a slice of cake for breakfast.
Cafe manager Ben Frawley informs me that the muffins are baked in-house and Wonderstate features a blueberry muffin at each of its three locations: Madison, Viroqua and Bayfield.
