Brewery, burgers hit the mark

Last update: August 26, 2009 - 1:15 PM

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ANGRY MINNOW BREWING CO.

10440 Florida Av., Hayward, Wis., 715-934-3055, www.angryminnow.com. Open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

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The Rasmussen brothers have got a good gig going in Hayward, Wis. At their Angry Minnow Brewing Co., Jason handles the beer, Will runs the kitchen and the lake-cabin crowd pours in.

The basement brewery -- the operation is housed in an 1889 red-brick landmark, originally a lumber magnate's offices -- turns out a half-dozen beers, best sampled in a six-glass flight ($9). Upstairs in the kitchen, spent grain (mostly malt, but occasionally oatmeal and flaked barley) gets incorporated into puffy pretzels, thick pizza crusts and hearty breads.

In true Wisconsin fashion, the small plates are anything but. Crispy pan-fried cakes and well-stuffed tacos both boast Lake Superior whitefish. Crostini are topped with pesto, thinly sliced beets and salty Gorgonzola. Fries are of the hand-cut, skin-on variety. Blackened trout is the star of a pear-spinach-sunflower seed salad.

I wasn't wild about the overly ambitious entrees (bacon-and-apple-stuffed quail, a Creole-inspired pork chop), but the imaginative, beer-friendly sandwiches rock: a duck confit Reuben, an excellent avocado-finished BLT, a tall stack of thin-sliced turkey layered with basil, tomatoes and mozzarella and, in the burger department, a juicy half-pounder topped with an over-the-top combination of bacon, Cheddar and a feisty jalapeño slaw.

Prices are more than reasonable, with small plates and sandwiches averaging $8.50; entrees run $14.50 to $23.50. On Friday nights there's a fish fry. Oh, and our server was so friendly she could have been a Cheese Curd Queen candidate.

Dessert? Stroll a few blocks over to West's Hayward Dairy & Ice Cream Cafe (15848 W. 2nd St., 1-715-634-2244, www. westshaywarddairy.com) for a 40-flavor selection of softball-size scoops, including the wickedly tart Church Basement Lemon Bar and Chunky Muskie, a banana ice cream studded with walnuts and chocolate chunks.

RICK NELSON

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