Jake's -- off Bluemound

A restaurant that takes reservations on Friday nights is a FIND. Friday evening is Amateur Night, we’ve discovered. The amateurs – folks who don’t eat out every night of the week – are all out buzzing around from one restaurant to another, looking for a place to sit and eat – in that order. Even finding a place to sit while waiting to eat is a challenge. Jake’s takes reservations. They got our business on Friday night when we went out for a fish fry with my brother and his wife from Watertown.

The evening got off to a great start when the four of us arrived at Jakes at 6:30 on Friday and were seated immediately. We were in a small, back room with rough-sawn cedar walls decorated with signs from wine companies. We ordered old fashioneds to sip while we caught up on the family gossip and the trips we’ve taken and the ones we are about to take. My family is SO much fun. We love each other so much that about 50 of us actually own a big log cottage together in Central Wisconsin. We hang out there on summer weekends playing guitars, singing, sleeping some, eating lots, and even occasionally drinking together. I’ll bet you don’t even know the names of your third-cousins-twice-removed, let alone know which ones like Sprecher’s Black Bavarian and which ones prefer pinot noir.

Back at Jake’s, three of us ordered fish fries ($14.95), as we’d planned. But of course, you can guess who did not. Though The Man Who Is Picky About What Goes Into His Stomach will -- on occasion -- eat something that swims, if it is heavily battered and deep fried. But he isn’t about to eat anything as funky as walleye, which is the fish fry option at Jake’s. Cod, he said, is his fish of choice. "How about haddock, just for a change?" I asked. "No," he replied, "Just cod." Such a wild man I married.

I can tell you the walleye was delicious: lightly battered, deep fried and served with a very tasty tartar sauce (a little onion and maybe tarragon in it?). The fish came with our choice of two side dishes. I chose the vegetable of the day, brussel sprouts in a warm viniagrette, and a side salad with parmesan peppercorn dressing – one of my favorites. The Man decided not to have an entre and ordered a half Caesar salad, a bowl of French onion soup, and a twice-baked potato. The potato was delicious, as was the onion soup. The half Caesar salad was ridiculous – a small hunk (and I do mean "hunk") of romaine, some shaved parmesan and a chunk of crouton-like bread, with dressing. Not especially appetizing.

We skipped dessert at Jake’s, as I was serving dessert at our house. Not homemade of course. It was a styrofoam bowl (so elegant) of Gilles’ French Silk frozen custard served with a selection of chocolate bars from Lindt & Newman’s & Giardelli. My sister-in-law is known to be fond of chocolate. I thought ithis would be her kind of finish to an evening of good food.

I was also showing off my new kitchen, which is almost "the most beautiful kitchen in Brookfield." My major appliances were delivered on Friday. There are issues, however. The stove couldn’t be hooked up because the gas pipe was too high and in the way. The plumber has to fix that. The dishwasher is in its box, waiting for the plumber to unpack and install it. The refrigerator has a bigger problem. It doesn’t go back as far into the cabinets as it should. It looks like an afterthought; something that was replaced after the kitchen was built. Mike Wahlen from Cabinet Werks (bless his heart) said he wouldn’t put up with this, and we shouldn’t have to either. We also didn’t like the finish on the window and door frame moldings, so Cabinet Werks will also replace those. These ARE good folks to work with.

I’ll keep you up to date on the status of these final touches. And you will be the first to know if I indeed do have a sink by Monday evening! If so, what should I cook? Do you think The Man would consider fried eggs – dinner?

Now I’m Barely
Kitchenless in Brookfield