Fried & Fabulous

I have ordered a couple of sandwiches from this place and have been satisfied with my purchases. Basically, it’s been deep-​fried something (I usually get chicken) on a crispy baguette with lettuce tomato, and a bunch of mayo. The sandwiches are tasty and filling for what they are. The reason I’m not giving them a higher rating is because as far as I could tell all of the ingredients were pre-​prepared from a distributer. I saw her dump the chicken from a big industrial bag into the fryer and have seen similar bags of a bunch of the other menu items back there too (cookie dough, cheese curds, shrimp, etc.). The bacon bits from my sandwich were also from a bag. In short, this cart is basically a fast food joint that assembles the food to order, none of it seems to be made locally or in-​house.

Hmmm… spent a lot of money, but didn’t get what I was expecting. I wanted more curds, but only got 7 in my basket. Give more to the people!!!
XOXO FriNFabGrl

I have been to Fried & Fabulous twice now. Both experiences left me disappointed and with the feeling that I could do better for $ 10 in the freezer section of any grocery store in Madison.
Both of my visits were at the Capitol View Farmer’s Market, which runs from 3pm to 7pm on Wednesdays. As the market is a tad later, Fried and Fabulous sports their savory menu. Most of the Unilocal reviews on this food truck are for their dessert menu, which is typically seen at the Dane County Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings.
I decided to give the truck a second chance because their savory menu was significantly adjusted. The po’boys are now being served with slaw on them. I took the movement toward the traditional po’boy as a positive sign so I vowed to give F&F a second chance. Sadly, this food truck has lured me in with promises of delicious fried food twice and left me disappointed both times.
I ordered cheese curds and a Mandarin po’boy during my first visit. The sandwich was bland, lacking balance, and had what were clearly frozen shrimp on it. The cheese curds had way too much breading.
This second visit was disappointing for different reasons. Although, the po’boys had changed, I wanted to poke around and try more of the menu. I ended up ordering a small fried cookie dough for $ 4 and a fried cod basket with fries for $ 11. My food was up and pipping hot in about 5 minutes, which is pretty good.
What I paid and what I got were completely different. I was thinking my meal would be filling and satisfying for the $ 15 bill. The small fried cookie dough was a very small serving. I worked out that each bite ran us $ 0.50. The coating was very heavy, and I honestly only tasted chocolate with very little dough coming through. I enjoyed the bites, but it kind of felt like I was eating my wallet. I do not think the price point matches what you are getting with this item.
My biggest problem with this visit is the fish and chips basket. As soon as I opened the box that we were given I was a little bit saddened. The menu item is served with a giant mound of fries and four very small chunks of fried fish about the size of a chicken nugget from McDonald’s. The ratio of protein to fries was completely off balance. The amount of fries was absolutely ridiculous (my wife and I failed to finish the pile together), and it made the fish present in the box look almost nonexistent. What I was given should be called Chips with a light dusting of Fish, not Fish and Chips. The fish was cooked well enough, but just like the shrimp on the po’boy, it was clearly frozen. The slaw that came with the box was interesting. It had red cabbage and what looked like some kind of dried berry (craisins?) in it. It was sweet and easy to eat, but it was not traditional. I think the tiny cup of slaw was the best part about this box.
Overall, Fried & Fabulous may need to work on their savory menu a bit more. I felt disappointed by the lack of balance in terms of portion size and flavors over both of my visits. For now you would be better off spending your money on frozen sea food at the nearest grocery store unless significant changes are made.

They seem to have turned a new leaf: now they are doing mainly savory. And they are doing it very well if their chicken is the mark of their food.
I went today for lunch and got the chipotle lime chicken po boy and I loved it. At the beginning I thought there wasn’t enough sauce on it, but then that bit of dressing starts to hit and it builds and it mixes perfectly with the little tomatoes ready to burst with flavor. And by the time you get to the end you are dreaming about the next sandwich.
Which one will it be? Mandarine sesame? Bacon ranch? Buffalo? Curry peanuts? hard to choose. Will have to come back more than once I guess…

Stop reading and go. Really
Ill try & skip whats been gone over in other reviews. The food is awesome, awesomeness varies.
bacon– awesome, need more! kosher hotdog, cookies (⁵⁄₄ bucks). All recommended. The newer menu isn’t as rockin as the old, but given the state of the late night customer base its fair to say most wont care about flavor much. I like chicken nuggets too, but wheres the fried brownie or hot-​dog or some of the less banal fare I fell in love with?
There’re always specials, If you’re persistent enough they might feature your suggestion. I recommend a few things I miss from the south & carnivals; some time later it was the Special, yay!
Gripes, since room to improve is good:
Packaging: for a cart one assumes that most clientele is togo… so a wilting paper tray piled with five oreos heaped in powdered sugar: I’m sober and i know that’s spilling somewhere and hope its not my black upholstery. Yes I have to drive, most don’t so ignore this grip if it doesn’t apply. Maybe a paper sack or hep biodegradable Eco-​packs or some such? [Update, recently I’ve found they have lidded trays, just ask]
Friendly service. I’d loose it if I had to deal with a fraction of the drunks and assorted hassle that this cart draws in. Yet, the staff, especially the owner are monk-​like in their friendly, approachable, fist-​bumping demeanor. I don’t know how they do it, aside from getting paid I suppose, but it Service is worth a mention in itself. I’m not a regular and they even remembered me after a long absence, thanks.
They often need more stock of chocolate (sassy cow) milk; it seems its always out when I get there lately.
Takes cash/​card via Ipad. Used to BellyCard, but I think that’s in the past.
Lastly, know this, just this: Yum, Go!

So in short they are indeed their name; everything deep fried (oh so Wisconsin) and fabulous. They started out as doing dessert but now have cheese curds, and other savories which I am yet to try! I do try to stay clear of this cart as much possible because eating healthy does not happen here. But then again if you are eating healthy you won’t go to a place names Fried and Fabulous, so I am not really trying very hard: P
At a recent trip to the farmers market my husband and I with two other people had three things that we shared. Fried Cookie Cough– My FAVORITE! Fried Oreo: Awesome. Fried Twix: okay, but I am not a big twix fan so yeah it is probably awesome!
Because they fry everything fresh you do have to wait so that’s the only con. But is it really? The service is usually awesome-​really nice guys.
Except for the farmers market they are out at Riley’s weekend late nights– I am not sure of their other locations but they have a Facebook page so it’s easy enough to find.
Pro Farmers Market Tip– If you are getting something from Stellas, and this place. You can tag team it with someone since they are across the street, and you don’t wind up waiting in 2 lines!

Concept? Fabulous. Quality? Meh… hit or miss.
Deep fried Oreos: hit.
The chocolate cookie becomes beautifully soft from the heat of the fryer, as does the inner cream filling. Yum.
Deep fried pancakes and bacon: miss.
Lovin the spoof on pigs in a blanket, especially since I always prefer bacon to sausage. But… this concoction was just not right. The excessively crunchy, much too crumbly bacon did not pair well with the pancake, the flavor of which was completely clouded by the greasiness of it being fried and much too coated in powdered sugar.
Deep fried cookie dough ball: hit.
The cookie dough holds its own with its boldly buttery, brown sugary flavor that is complimented by the melted quality of the chocolate chips. Winner.
Deep fried breakfast sandwich: miss…
Maybe it’s just me, but I wasn’t too keen on deep-​frying a breakfast sandwich of pancakes, eggs, bacon, melted cheese and all…#heartattack
Hashbrown: hit.
This classic fried item is a welcome presence on a menu laden with wacky and unexpected.
Fried & Fabulous switches up their menu quite often. And as far as ordering, it’s always a gamble. I’ve found that I either love an item or detest it. But the thrill of the place is the novelty of it all being fried. Despite the occasional disappointments, it’s always fun to see what they come up with.

If you are getting crazy in the am and playing too much rock band or world of Warcraft or whatever the kids do these days, the niceness goes down a little bit. I understand if I had to be in a food cart handing out goodies to drunk people.
The cheesecake has made my tummy feel funny after I eat it, but I assume that will go away if you pass out immediately. The breakfast sandwiches are some weird frozen toaster strudel-​esq thing, they are not very delicious. Oatmeal cream pies are also not delicious.
Cheesecakes are definitely the best way to go.

I love Fried and Fabulous so much that it’s my first review of any restaurants in Madison (I’ve lived here for a year and a half now just have been too busy eating to write reviews!). I know a lot of people go there after drinking when probably everything tastes amazing, but I go there stone-​cold sober and it still tastes amazing. Kudos to the owner for such a great idea!
The staff is also super friendly and patient while people ponder over the menu. Everything looks good, so you really can’t go wrong ordering, which makes it extremely difficult to decide on something! I’m also quite appreciative that I’m not given funny or judgy looks for going to a deep-​fried truck while sober. Yes, I know what I’m eating, and I still choose to eat it, thank you very much!
My only silly complaint is that I have to stay out late enough for the truck to be open or wake up early enough on Saturday to make it to the Farmers’ Market. My ideal deep-​fried time would be around 8 or 9pm, but hey, with food that great, it’s worth having stayed awake!

Perfect after drinks. or in between drinks while bar hopping!
The batter is perfect and fresh. To be honest I don’t quite remember what we ordered that night, a little too many drinks already but from what I remember they were piping hot and delicious! I think it was PB & J and Cookie dough that I had… either way it was really good!
Verdict: When in Madison and bar hopping, must-​go.

Anything tastes better fried… if you want proof check this spot out. My friend and I were drawn in by some free samples. We both loved the fried cheese cake. Maybe it’s me but food out of a truck (cart in this case) just tastes better. This is going to be my go to spot from now on. Check it out!

Looking for an amazing late night treat?
I found the spot to get your sweet tooth fix!
The words unique and yum only start to describe this food cart!
At first glacé, walking up to this cart for the first time, I thought it would be like any other food cart. But, on Friday night I was in for a new treat in so many ways.
My wife and I were met by the owner of the cart standing outside the cart awaiting our arrival. This guy was so nice, the word polite does not even begin to describe him. Not to mention, he was not only promoting his own cart to us, but also highlighting some of the other food cart’s in the area for us to try.
This food cart is perfect model example of, how to run a food cart.
We ordered a brownie, an Oreo, and that night’s special, a Reese Stick.
They were all made fresh from the order and very quick. They tasted incredible!
Good work guys! I’ll be back for sure!

When you need a fried food fix, come here. It is amazing. I had a fried brownie. It was the perfect amount of junk food/​sweet tooth satisfaction. Seriously, amazing. The owner was outside talking to us about the menu and it was nice to have a friendly person introduce us to this truck.
I found out about this from a friend and I have been following them on facebook. They have a special every night. If you like it, one person gets the special for free. The night we went it was the Reese’s Sticks. My husband had one and he LOVED it. I tried the Fried Oreo but it was nothing compared to the brownie.
They carry Sassy Cow milk. Drink it, love it. It is Sassy Cow. I love Sassy Cow and have for quite some time. It is hard to find Sassy Cow in Madison because the dairy is outside the city. So go to this food truck.
It is perfect when you need a little cheat because it will satisfy your sweet tooth.
Not to mention, supporting a food truck is good karma. They are a friendly, quality business. They also take cards!!! No cash needed.

Holy Crap!
Friend & Fabulous is f’n amazing! Now I would like to let you know that I have tried their food twice now. Once absolutely hammered and once totally sober. Each time was a total A+!
The next time I’m feeling devilish I’m going back to Fried & Fabulous!
Holla

I freaken love this place. Late night fried food at it’s finest. They have the best sweets and late night eats. When I’m craving sweet gooey awesomeness I know where to go!

Update: I stand by everything I wrote, save for my comments about Steve. Steve and his partner are gods striving amongst men. Steve is a flawless human being about whom a negative thought should not be uttered.
But seriously, they’re really nice guys and I don’t think they’re overbearing. Keep up the good work!

Late night food is always a marvel. When the munchies (be them because you’re drunk, high or just sick of studying) strike at 3am, nutrition goes out the window. Which is lucky because otherwise you’d never get to experience the amazingness that is deep frying sweets in funnel cake batter. The fried snickers bar is amazing. The pb&j is surprising (seriously, it sounds weird, but it’s so good!) I’ve never tried anything else on the menu because I can’t resist those two options. Oh and for you healthy people, they’ve got some healthy options like apple slices… but really, be fabulous and get something fried.

Hands down the best deep fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich! After eating the deep fried cheesecake, i can never go to back to ians again for late night drunchies. great contribution to Madison’s after party night life. The only thing that could have enhanced my experience would have been a gallon of milk to wash down these delicious treats.

Sought shelter from the rain underneath Fried and Fabulous’ awning a couple nights ago. The sweet smell of funnel cake batter carried through the humid air teasing my nostrils. Tried the fried PB&J and the cookie dough balls. Both were equally delicious. Definitely worth checking out on the way home from the bars.