Caleb Westphal hasn’t missed a Friday fish fry since 2013. Follow his never-ending adventures HERE. This week: fish fry #648, at Spirits Bar & Grill in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Having gone to Pat’s Oak Manor, Thirsty’s, Slick Willies, and Tracker’s, I wasn’t sure there were any South Milwaukee tavern fish frys left to try. But there it was, right on the main drag of Milwaukee Avenue, Spirits Bar & Grill (922 Milwaukee Ave.; 414-62-2005). It’s not like they are a new place—they’ve been around over 40 years, longer than I’ve been around, but I’d never heard of them. A fire in 2012 couldn’t take them out, nor did the loss of their owner, Ed Abrams, Sr., two years ago this week. Now owned by Ed Jr., they are still going, and are even having their own block party this weekend, SpiritsFest.
The length of their bar rivals the one that I sat at while eating fish fry in Buck Bradley’s. You know, that’s the bar that is the longest straight bar in the United States east of the Mississippi River, the one that is now being stewarded by Copper on King. Okay, maybe the one at Spirits isn’t quite that long—I didn’t bring a 75-foot tape measure along to check—but it has to at least be the longest bar in South Milwaukee. There’s plenty of space past it too, towards the back of the building, where there’s more seating, a pool table, and then an enclosed smoking area. The smell of smoke is actually quite strong anywhere indoors beyond the bar, ironic considering the inordinate amount of “no smoking” signs posted inside the business. But I didn’t go that far back when I arrived, I just plopped myself down a half dozen or so stools from where the bar started.
I ordered an NA beer before I asked about the fish fry. I had faith they had one, but momentarily paused wondering how quickly I could down a Heineken 0.0 if I had to go somewhere else. Thankfully, the chugging wasn’t necessary. Spirits’ fish fry is a three-piece hand battered cod fry ($9.75) with rye bread, coleslaw, and a choice of waffle fries or potato pancakes. They also offer jumbo shrimp and “cod pieces” for 75 cents each (minimum of 10 per order), or a “six pack” of them along with rye bread, coleslaw, and waffle fries for $8.50. Perhaps asking about the cod pieces would have been worthwhile, but I went straight for the regular cod fry with potato pancakes.
“I hope it tastes as good as it looks. I saw you take a picture of that,” the lady sitting to my left told me after I snapped multiple pictures of my fish fry. She then recounted this to the bartender who had brought it to me. The bartender, who turned out to be bar manager Sue Ford, said she’d already had a piece. “I actually mixed the batter for it,” she said, right at the moment I took a bite into the batter.
This batter is actually pretty decent, and so is the cod, I thought. The batter had lots of visible seasoning, with some of it making its way to the palate, along with a light beer flavor and a buttery essence. It was slightly crispy, had an ideal thickness, and clung well to the cod. The cod seemed fresh, like it hadn’t languished in the tavern freezer long. The pieces fit just fine alongside cod from other good cod fish frys. The one thing that was lacking—the ultimate faux pas—was they were serving them with packaged tartar sauce. There were three Kraft tartars. Now, I did use some of it, and it was okay, but the fish was better without it, and I’m not going to get into the specifics of what it tasted like. I’m just going to leave it.
The rye bread was a small dark piece, halved and buttered, with salty edges. The coleslaw was a standard cabbage and carrot slaw. The potato pancakes were mouthwateringly soft, dense, and quite mild considering fresh green onion slices were throughout them, the only really noticeable component besides potato. While the flavor of the pancakes was modest, it was pleasant, as was their presentation.
Taken altogether, this is a respectable fish fry. I dug the batter, the cod, and the potato pancakes. While not the best I’ve ever had, I wouldn’t change them, for they represent a unique fingerprint of the person making them and of the establishment serving them. While specifics could be quibbled about, it takes all kinds to make the fish fry world, and Spirits should just keep on rolling.
That being said, the greatest shortcoming here was the lack of tartar sauce. The respectable fish fry accompanied with the packaged tartar just didn’t match. But here’s the thing, based on how well they are making the cod, I trust that they have the capability to make a damn good tartar sauce. So they should do it.
“Oh, are you going to take an after picture?” The lady next to me started talking about pictures again after I cleared my plate, and I gave a half smile. It’s good to know, as I’m sure I’ve said before, that places that focus more on drinks than food, like mom and mom taverns, have kitchens that serve Friday fish frys, that places that are gone to more for cocktails or beers can also fill the Friday need. So here’s another arrow for your cod quiver, that can be used if you are in the South Milwaukee area, or if you are looking for a back-to-basics fish fry for $9.75 (!), or if you are looking for a place to get bombed on cheap rail drinks, or if you are looking to escape all those snooty sophisticated restaurants. Because we need to escape them from time to time, and what better time to do it than on Friday night, and what better place to escape to than one called Spirits.
Takeaways: Longstanding tavern in a small Wisconsin city; fish fry for under $10; fine batter with seasoning and light beer flavor; cod that seems rather fresh; packaged tartar sauce; mild and soft potato pancakes.
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