A Wisconsin Tavern Meal at The Old Fashioned on Capitol Square

A plate of beer-battered cheese curds and a brandy old fashioned is a very reasonable way to settle in after a lap around Madison’s Capitol Square. At The Old Fashioned, directly by the Wisconsin State Capitol, that combination is less a novelty than a useful introduction to the house style: familiar regional food, classic tavern drinks and a room built for lingering over both.

The restaurant has the comfortable, busy character of a traditional Wisconsin tavern rather than a polished downtown dining room. Dark wood booths, a substantial back bar and a collection of vintage regional touches give it some visual texture before the food even arrives.

It works nicely as a stop between Capitol sightseeing and downtown shopping, but it is also easy to make a full meal of it. The menu ranges from snacks and sharing boards to burgers, brats, fish and hearty sandwiches, with enough Wisconsin shorthand to keep the table happily occupied.

The beer-battered cheese curds are a natural opening order. Their batter is thin and crisp rather than bulky, leaving room for the warm cheese inside to do what good fresh curds should do when pulled apart: stretch a little.

Tiger sauce, a horseradish dip with some bite, comes alongside. It is a good counterweight to all that fried cheese and makes the plate more interesting than a plain basket of bar snacks.

Poutine takes the same Wisconsin appetite in another direction, bringing together fries, cheese curds and sauce. It is the sort of fork-and-share dish that can disappear quickly while everyone is still deciding on entrées.

The onion strings are another useful table order. They are finer and more snackable than standard onion rings, and they suit the menu’s preference for foods that pair easily with a beer or cocktail.

For a group, the Lazy Susan appetizer board provides one of the more playful arrivals on the menu. It comes on a revolving tray, so the pickled beets, deviled eggs, summer sausage, cheese spreads and smoked lake trout can make a slow circuit around the table.

It is a particularly pleasant way to avoid the usual appetizer negotiation. One person can reach for a cheese spread while another turns the board toward the smoked fish, and the table has something to nibble on while drinks and main courses arrive.

The board also puts several old-school Wisconsin supper-club and tavern flavors in one place without turning dinner into a formal tasting exercise. It is simply a good spread of things to pass around.

Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup has enough body to register as more than a preliminary cup. Thick, sharp and warming, it belongs on a cold-weather lunch as readily as it does beside a larger dinner order.

The Old Fashioned burger is one of the more loaded options: beef with fried onion, aged cheddar, bacon and a soft-cooked egg. It is a committed, napkin-needing burger, built for diners who regard a burger as a complete evening plan.

A bratwurst double brings another regional standby to the table on a grilled bun. The bratwurst has been identified with Bavaria Sausage Kitchen, a detail that fits the restaurant’s interest in recognizable Wisconsin food traditions.

There are plenty of alternatives if a burger and brat sound like too much. The menu has included a patty melt, sloppy Joe, spicy burger, tenderloin sandwich and grilled chicken sandwich. The tenderloin has a notably generous scale, while the chicken sandwich offers a more straightforward, well-seasoned option.

Fish fry is firmly in the Wisconsin tavern vocabulary, and The Old Fashioned offers Friday fish fry along with fried perch and walleye. The walleye has a crisp exterior and tender interior, a welcome contrast to some of the menu’s heavier cheese-and-beef territory.

A cherry salad gives the menu a lighter lane, with a dressing that has earned a following of its own. It will not make the surrounding curds, poutine and soup disappear, but it gives a mixed group another sensible choice.

The bar is known for the Wisconsin-style old fashioned, made with brandy and served with cherry and orange. In a state where the brandy old fashioned carries serious social standing, it fits the room as naturally as the dark wood and neon beer signs.

Rye and Door County cherry variations add options for drinkers who want to move beyond the standard version. The old fashioned is a central order here, not an ornamental cocktail included to satisfy a trend.

Beer has a substantial place at the bar as well, with a wide Wisconsin-focused tap selection. A beer with fried curds is hardly an adventurous pairing, but some pairings become classics because they do not need much improvement.

The décor does not try to be subtle. Vintage photographs, old Schlitz and Pabst neon signs, mounted fish and other regional memorabilia keep the walls active and give the place the accumulated look of a longtime gathering room.

The back bar is one of the strongest visual anchors in the space. Settle onto a bar stool or slide into a booth, and the setting encourages the same low-stakes pleasure as the menu: order something recognizable, try one more thing than planned and let the evening take its time.

The interior is compact, and its energy can rise from conversational to noticeably noisy during busy periods. That is especially true around weekend dining times, when the tavern can be buzzing.

The Old Fashioned operates as a walk-in restaurant rather than a reservation venue. Seating includes booths, indoor tables and counter seats, and waits can range from none at all to roughly 10 to 30 minutes during busier evening stretches.

Parking around Capitol Square can take some patience. Paid street spaces, garages and paid lots are the usual possibilities, and finding an open spot can be difficult.

For visitors already on foot, the location is simple to fold into a Capitol Square outing. The meal can be a quick curd-and-cocktail stop, but the Lazy Susan, fish fry, beer list and dessert menu offer plenty of reasons not to rush.

Dessert stays in the same regional orbit. Cherry crisp is a straightforward finish, while the old-fashioned sundae adds a brandy drizzle for anyone willing to carry the evening’s cocktail theme all the way to the last spoonful.

The brandy flavor in that sundae is pronounced, so it is best viewed as a true old-fashioned-inspired dessert rather than a plain ice cream dish with a decorative splash. After a burger, curds and a round of drinks, splitting one may be the wisest move.