Dairy Queen Gillingham St. Neenah, WI

Well to my surprise it appears that different Dairy Queens have vastly different vendors for their cheese curds.

I was expecting to get what I considered the standard DQ cheese curd of white cheese curd and battered.  I was surprised with not only yellow and breaded, but what appeared to not even be cheese curd, but rather chunks of cheese (pressed and aged) that was breaded and fried.

However I will judge these on the merits of what was presented rather than the difference from what my expectation was.

The temperature was good, and the cheese had a distinct flavor, most likely coming from the fact that it was a fully developed cheese rather than a curd.  This was a plus on the flavor.  There was however a serious knock against it in that being a full fledged cheese when melted too fast, it separated the oil from the body of the cheese.  This gave a look and texture of microwaved cheese.  While it didn't much affect the flavor, the presentation and mouth feel was quite off.

The breading was a bit thick, but was cooked thoroughly enough to no be doughy.  I would call it too much crunch, but everyone has different preference on crunch.

To give credit to the cooks, given this material to work with they did the best they could.  It was well prepared.

I almost feel bad giving this a rating as a cheese curd, because it really should be in a separate category of perhaps fried cheese, much like mozzarella sticks are, but they sell them as cheese curds, so I will have to grade them as cheese curds.


Even with the best efforts of the fry cooks, these "curds" cannot be given a score of higher than a 3, they just lacked too many of the things I would want in a curd.

Finally I would like to give a shout out to the crew that went to lunch and experimented in the Way of Curds today.  Thanks to Lindsey, Scott, Linda, Melinda and Melissa .

That's the Way of Curds today,
-Matt

Live from sawdust days in oshkosh.

So people tend to rave about how great carnival curd are, so I had to give some a try. I hit the first stand I saw and bought a medium pack of curds. Medium is a LOT of curds.
Anyway the cheese was of really fresh. Lots of squeak. They could have a bit saltier, but that's splitting hairs.
The batter was also very good. Thin but flavorful.

The problem was in the execution they were cooked in too much of a hurry. They were all clumped together and were very greasy.

They had. Very good materials but due to the hurried nature of the business it had to be hurried and they botched the execution.

What could have easily been an overall 8 or better I can't give them a higher overall score than a solid 6.

That's the way of curds,
-Matt

Gyros and More, Neenah, WI

First of all, my apologies for not updating the blog in a very long time.  I'm sorry and I'll try to be more consistent going forward.  I have some ideas for posts coming soon.

Recently, I ventured to Gyros and More in downtown Neenah, WI for a gyro and I was pleasantly surprised to find out they also serve cheese curds.  As a fried cheese connoisseur I of course had to give them a shot.


Well these curds are quite clearly pre-made, so they already have a strike against them.  However they were cooked with great skill, browned well and melted almost to perfection.  The breading was a bit thick, but not obnoxious. However, the batter was very bland.  The cheese was pretty good, it was both stretchy and salty.

Overall I'll give these curds a 5.5 rating as in they are just a touch above average, but not something to seek out.  Note that this really shouldn't reflect too poorly on the restaurant, the gyro was pretty good in my opinion and the french fries were excellent ( however that is a post for some other blog).

For now, that's the way of curds,
-Matt

Irish Cheese Curds at Dublin's Irish Pub, Oshkosh, WI

Last week I ventured out to Dublin's Irish Pub for some fish and chips, and while I was there I decided to try their Irish Cheese Curds. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement. These little nuggets of cheesy deliciousness were absolutely wonderful.

Now these cheese curds had a very unique batter.  It makes for a different than normal taste, but one that is surprisingly good.  The curds were browned to absolute perfection.  There was enough crunch to not be greasy, but they were still delicate enough to not be tough.

The cheese was a very good flavor, creamy and salty.  However the cheese didn't stretch as well as I would have hoped and seemed just a touch on the chewy side.  But the flavor was absolutely exceptional.  

These curds can absolutely stand on their own, but with a bit of ranch sauce they are divine. 

Out of a ten point scale Dublin's Irish Pub's Curds score:

8 out of 10

They are definitely worth taking a trip for.

Your guide to the fried,

-Matt

Tom's Drive In

I ordered a large order of cheese curds at Tom's Drive In on CB in Neenah.  This is more along the lines of what I expect from a fast food restaurant, as in bland.

I'll start with the good:
The portion size was very good.  I ordered the large which was a bit more expensive I got quite a big load of curds.  The breading was cooked well, nice color and crunchiness.  The cheese was almost well melted, just a bit short.

Now the bad:
This is one of the first times I've ever had an order of fried cheese curds that I didn't want to finish.  The breading was overpoweringly bland.  Not just a taste of nothing bland, but a bland that sucks the flavor out of your mouth.  The cheese while having a decent texture lacked flavor as well.  When I peeled the breading off of a couple curds to get a gauge of what the actual curd tasted like I was still disappointed. This cheese doesn't provide much of a base.  I also tried the breading by itself, it tasted like flour and hot frying oil ( this is not a compliment).

Overall Score: 3 out of 10

I can't even imagine a dipping sauce that would save these.