I’ve been hearing about Buck and Honey’s in Sun Prairie for a couple years and the outside seating area lived up to the hype, but the food definitely did not. The large outdoor seating area features patio furniture, a fire pit, a grassy area with bean bag toss games and a small stage (the night I was there a spirited guy was singing and playing the mandolin). It would be nice if the outside patio faced something other than the back of a building and a parking lot, but it is still a nice feature and a great place to chat with a good friend!
We got the fried cheese curds to start, and I was immediately disappointed when they got to our table. For $9 you get like eight cheese curds and two sub-par dipping sauces — ranch and pizza sauce. The curds had potential, especially with the shaved parmesan on top, but that’s as far as it went. They were lukewarm in the middle, the batter was a bit too heavy, and they kind of tasted a little funny — like the oil was old. The curds were definitely not worth the price or the calories.
Their regular menu didn’t have a lot of promising things on it, so I was happy when our server sat down a specials menu. I got the brisket dinner with sliced brisket, roasted potatoes and onions in a red wine reduction. The serving was massive, which was surprising considering the curd serving. The slices of brisket could have been more tender and they didn’t have any of the smokey flavor I expect with brisket. The potatoes were edible, but could have been seasoned better, and the onions needed some more time in the pan to caramelize. The most disappointing part of the dish was the red wine reduction, which tasted and looked more like a sweet mixture of BBQ sauce and ketchup. The dish was good, but nowhere near the quality I expect when paying $18 for dinner.
FOOD NOTES: The public really likes restaurants that trick them into thinking their food is good just because the atmosphere is fancy and the prices are high. Buck and Honey’s in Sun Prairie perfectly fits that description. While the outside seating is very enjoyable, the cheese curds were disappointing, and the brisket dish was barely what is usually considered brisket and the sauce was amateur. I’m not sure I’d go back to even give other things on the menu a chance because none of the descriptions on the menu seem to warrant the prices.
Small Town Tourist 