Bob Koch
Living on the north side of Madison means the Tip Top Tavern is tantalizingly close to home when you want to grab a quick bite to start an evening out, or simply are too fried from work to consider firing up the stove. What I’m going to order is not an automatic decision for me — the Friday fish fry is too irresistible to ignore — but I get the namesake Tip Top Burger often enough to be in danger of a server preemptively marking it down.
The dish as designed comes with lettuce, tomato, raw red onion, pickles and Tip Top Sauce, a mayo-based concoction that’s sweet, salty and a bit spicy. I order the sauce and pickles on the side, using the sauce for dipping french fries (subbed in for kettle chips for an extra buck) and the pickles passed along to my pickle-loving partner (who reports they are excellent). The burger is always tasty and relatively hefty, but not so overwhelming it takes you down for activities afterwards like, say, band practice. And the secret weapon that really sets the Tip Top’s platter apart for me is that it comes with a side salad, so you’re at least getting something healthy along with the yummy fried food.
