I tend to love my New Orleans cuisine spicy hot which is certainly one way to go. Liliana’s on the other hand opts for a spice that hits quickly and then fades to a blend of flavors.
Up first was a pair of starters. An order of hushpuppies was near perfect. The corn meal was speckled with bits of cranberry and jalapeno and fried perfectly. Better yet was the cheddar cheese at the center of the hushpuppies although every nugget varied greatly in how melted it was. I would have preferred to see the inside match the consistency of the perfectly fried outer shell. Our second dish was the soup of the day, a butternut squash with pumpkin accents. My partner found the soup to be completely satisfying yet I thought the pumpkin oil and roasted seeds overpowered the sweetness of the squash.
The two entrees we picked grabbed out attention immediately and we were not let down. My shrimp and crawfish etoufee had a great kick as it hit my tongue but that faded to a bouquet of flavors. The shrimp and crawfish were as fresh as could be. My partner had the pasta Liliana that was composed of blackened shrimp, chicken and andouille sausage in a red pepper cream sauce. The pappardelle that this was all laid over was some of the finest fresh pasta I’ve had in months. Again, the spice had a nice initial burst and then mellowed to a nice complex flavor.
Perhaps the most pleasant surprise of the evening came as we got the bill and discovered that this somewhat extravagant meal was less then $30 a person. Liliana’s is quite the suburban gem and a much-needed addition to the chain filled Fitchburg.
Liliana’s, 2951 Triverton Pike, Fitchburg, WI (608) 442-4444
1 comment:
As the Executive Chef, and owner of Liliana's, my family and I would like to say thank you for your blog of our restaurant. We strive to ensure that everything is of the finest and freshest quality that is available. At Liliana's we ONLY use fresh local produce whenever possible, and never use any products that have been frozen (that is, except for our ice cream and corn) We look forward to many more years in the fitchburg community, and would love to tell you of a couple other things that might interest a foodie such as yourself. We are now offering a foodies brunch. Brunch the way it is supposed to be. Plated. not some disgusting buffet, whose food has been festering under a 400 degree foodlamp for four hours. We are also serving a chefs three course tasting menu every Tuesday for just 30 dollars, and an additional wine flight to accompany it for just ten dollars more. Hope to see you sometime in the future...
Chef Dave Heide
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