How many fish fries do you go to on an average year? Have you been to every local custard stand to compare and decide who truly has the best chocolate flavor? Maybe your summer isn’t complete without going to a lakefront festival, or tailgating at Miller Park with a properly cooked brat.
If any of these are part of your routine, you may be interested in the insider information on Dan Murphy’s list of “16 Things Every Wisconsinite Needs to Know” in the November issue of Milwaukee Magazine.
Murphy says most of the things compiled on this list come from the state’s strong sense of tradition – starting with the classic Friday night fish fry. "It keeps them cozy in the winter I suppose...any excuse to eat tartar sauce is always a good thing," he says.
A lesser known Wisconsin tradition is the time-honored supper club, where the average Wisconsinite goes to eat, drink, and socialize. "It's kind of a rustic, hearkening back to old days kind of pursuit. Again, Wisconsinites don't let those go, which is a great thing."
"Any excuse to eat tartar sauce is always a good thing."
There is some ritual involved in the supper club experience. "[Drinking a] brandy old fashioned is step number one, and step number two is eating a lot of food that's not good for you," says Murphy. "I've been to a few out in the country, 40-50 miles away, and it's packed...It's really quite an experience."
Murphy also discusses the difference between a Brewers tailgate and a Packers tailgate, ("I was going to say 'one team wins,' but right now that's not necessarily the case with either..."), boiling brats in beer and how to deal with Wisconsin winters.
