text: Quick Review Dropped in on the Alchemy for their Friday night Fish Fry which was decent Place was a bit packed service suffered slightly Limited yet always changing menu and an excellent selection of beers Nice ambiance definitely a to star establishment You will not be disappointednnnDetailed ReviewnCoworkers had been telling us about the Alchemy for quite some time so we made our way over to the AtwoodWilly Street area in search of The Alchemys fish fry The place has a very cool look to it both on the outside and the inside When we arrived there were people waiting outside enjoying the beautiful spring eveningnnWe left our names and phone number with the hostess then ventured over to the Ideal Bar for a drink while we waited for our table Attempts to score a drink from the Alchemys bar were futile there were simply too many people crammed into the place we could not even get up to the bar to ordernnThe Ideal is definitely a townie establishment I think the jukebox screeched to a halt and all heads turned to inspect us as we walked in but no matter the bartender was friendly and they had New Glarus Moon Man on tap so all was swellnnAfter about minutes the phone rang and we were summoned back to the Alchemy where the hostess seated us at a small threetop table near the front of the restaurantnnThe interior is definitely inviting Lots of stone and heavy timbers It is quite small and I agree that if a band were playing it would be nearly impossible to chat it was extremely noisy inside without any entertainment I would like to spend more time here though the place has a great vibe to itnnOur waitress stopped by and took our drink orders they had about super unique brews on tap so I tried a Hell Lager while my dining partners opted for a traditional old fashioned We also ordered a starter of which there were limited options fries or soup nnDrinks arrived after a short wait and we placed our food orders On Fridays the Alchemy offers its normal menu along with a fish fry The only fish fry option is for beer battered cod so we placed three orders two with fries one with green beansnnIm pleased to report that the old fashioned was nicely muddled although it included an orange a nono when ordering a whiskey old fashioned sour and tasted delicious It was not too strong but instead was just right The Hell Lager was equally tastynnOur food arrived after about a minute wait we refreshed our drinks and dovein to the fishnnMy plate included four medium sized pieces of cod that were cloaked in a heavy yet crisp beer batter The fish itself was excellent no signs of grease It was moist and flaky yet meaty enough to standup to the heavy batter It was served nice and hot and even as the fish cooled the fish stayed excellent It did not become soggy or greasy it remained excellentnnOne of the fish fry fanatics that joined us is more of a purist when it comes to a fish fry as such he was down on the batter as he prefers a lighter more simple batter He felt the heavy and overly crispy nature of the Alchemys batter overwhelmed the cod I can go either way sometimes I like a nice thick beer batter other times I like a delicate batter nnThe green beans were decent if not a bit flavorless The whole wheat dinner roll was among the best I have ever had I am told the fries which were more like thick cut chips were excellent as wellnnFish fry was per person and is not AYCE The quality of the meal was decent portions were just right presentation was unique and the vibe was solid Drinks were excellent as wellnnAlchemy Cafe WINnnService starsnFood starsnValue stars for threenMISC stars excellent vibe nice beer menu regular menu looks greatnnSummary I will definitely be back to visit the Alchemy I cannot wait to sample some of those other brews along with a bison burger provided it is still on the menu when I return their menu seems to change quite often