Carolyn Fath
Steak in the tacos is marinated in Sweet Baby Stout.
On every visit I’ve made to the Lone Girl Brewing Company, someone in my party has gasped audibly upon seeing the shiny new facade stretching down the block toward the railroad tracks. It’s that kind of a build-out, one that probably wouldn’t be possible in the world of Madison real estate prices. Out in Waunakee, you can do something this visually impressive as a first act.
Distance is both the primary boon and a potential obstacle to Lone Girl’s success. Waunakee is far enough away from even the north Madison brewery corridor (Karben4, Ale Asylum) to draw its own audience. The Parched Eagle in Westport and Octopi Brewing, also in Waunakee, have taprooms, but with limited menus of pizza and snacks. The Lone Girl has an expansive menu.
And its beautiful location in the revitalizing downtown has been a big draw for locals. Brisk crowds have marked all of my visits. It’s a family-friendly operation, already a sponsor to at least one sports team. It’s that kind of place.
But it may not be exceptional enough to pull in crowds from Madison or Middleton. The beers are uncomplicated and drinkable, like good homebrew often is. Off the Rails is a sudsy, modestly hopped IPA. Pipe Dreams is an even more impressive session-y pale ale, clean and mild.
I heard Sweet Baby Stout pitched to a nearby table as “not as dark as Guinness,” as if the waitstaff is trying to allay “I don’t like dark beers” sentiment. It’s exactly as dark as Guinness, just a little sweeter — which is probably what the server was getting at. As far as sweetly fruited wheat beers, the Summer Lovin’ mango wheat ale is a solid quencher.
The Lone Girl food menu, slow to finalize into its current form, is tidy and doesn’t overreach.
What the menu labels as “Taproom” seems most like an appetizer section, though the plates are quite large. Cheese curds are uniformly small, crunchy and occasionally prone to leaking out of their breading in the fryer. Three moderately sized pretzels arrive piping hot and appealingly crisp on the outside. Their interiors are soft, and there’s no shortage of butter holding the salt in place.
Don’t consider the crab cakes as an appetizer; they’re a full entree in reality, fat pucks padded out with a lot of bread and large pieces of onion and bell pepper. I don’t mind the filler in this dining environment, but the cakes should be better seasoned, better seared — or both.
I expect a buffalo chicken sandwich to be at least spicy, if not fried. Lone Girl’s version is neither, and the chicken is diced into a loose salad. Skip it. The burgers are better, prepared in the increasingly popular smashed style. Internally juicy and cooked right to the requested temperature, the Smash & Grab burger is a Big Mac clone — read that menu description with a song in your voice. While the patty could use more salt, it’s an enjoyable bite all the same.
Flour tortilla tacos are available with steak or seared cod. Cod is unlikely to be the next big fish taco thing, as the stronger fish flavor rides roughshod over the more delicate, fresh ingredients. Steak was a better fit, medium rare and tender (though, again, underseasoned).
A small ramekin of guacamole, while quite good, was an additional three dollars, and that speaks to an overarching criticism of the Lone Girl’s food menu: It’s overpriced. A modest meal for a table of three averaged out to over $25 per person with tip. Lone Girl is nice, but not that nice.
Even so, it’s a little easier to keep people happy in a smaller market, and everything here is designed to make people happy. There’s better pub food to be had in Madison. There are better beers to be had in Madison. But while the Lone Girl continues to refine its operation, it should still prove a draw in Waunakee, not in small part to its welcoming, palatial space on Main Street.
The Lone Girl Brewing Company
114 E. Main St., Waunakee, 608-850-7175, thelonegirl.com
$5-$15, 11 am-10 pm Wed., 11 am-11 pm Thurs.-Sat., 11 am-10 pm Sun. (kitchen hours), extended bar hours.
