Madison's locally owned and operated Food Fight Restaurant Group has officially opened yet another culinary hot spot. Everly, now located on Monroe Street (right where Bluephies used to be), describes itself as "a casual, California-inspired restaurant, featuring fresh ingredients, cocktails, and an amazing outdoor area." Executive Chef Scott Harrell successfully offers customers both fresh and inspired cuisine, with a major focus on vegetables. Obsessed with trying all the different food options here in Madison, I set out (twice) to see exactly what Everly's extensive menu is all about. Fellow foodies, keep scrolling for the delicious details you won't want to miss!
For Brunch.
Everly's brunch menu is huge. To be honest, I had a pretty hard time choosing just one dish to order. The menu begins with various "Things On Toast"--options include avocado toast, kale toast, smoked whitefish toast, and artichoke toast. Order for something both Instagram worthy and tasty!
The following portion of the menu consists of Everly's egg-related dishes. Here, you can choose from a variety of plates including seasonal scrambles, hashes, and chilaquiles. I tried some of the smoked salmon & avocado benedict, and would definitely recommend.
Next up are the brunch bowls and plates. Every single dish sounds unreal: crispy rice bowl, brown rice pudding, brioche french toast, etc. I ordered the So-Cal grain bowl, and it did not disappoint.
Everly's brunch also offers various salads/sandwiches including a shaved vegetable salad, local beef burger, roasted chicken sandwich, and a Nor-Cal sandwich. And finally, because Everly knows brunch without booze is just a sad, late breakfast, there's a whole collection of fancy cocktails (and trendy lattes) too!
For Dinner.
Although the dinner selection isn't that different from the brunch menu, Everly does add some premium plates starting at 5 pm. Since my first meal was so good, I decided to head back and try out the dinner options too. And yes, my waitress did remember me.
Fortunately, the dinner menu still offers the amazing "Things on Toast," salads, and sandwiches that are featured on the brunch menu!
In addition, it highlights some fresh and delicious veggie appetizers. While I ordered the brussel sprouts, which were absolutely amazing, there's also cauliflower, charred carrots, roasted squash, curry eggplant, beets, and fried artichokes. Yum!
The next menu addition is the pasta and grains section. Here, Everly offers various vegetable-forward dishes such as eggplant couscous, farrow risotto, and a buckwheat bolognese. Let's be honest, who doesn't love a good seasonal pasta dish???
Finally, the premium offerings (which start at 5 pm) are divided into two sections: smaller plates and big plates. The smaller ones, perfect for sharing, each sound delicious. There's baked oysters, mussels, beef tartare, meatballs, and a few others to choose from. The big plates, equally as enticing, are where you'll find your more typical, entree selections.
For Dessert.
As best put by Louis C.K., the meal isn't over when you're full, it's over when you hate yourself. So, of course, the dessert selections are equally as important as the meal itself.
While I'm personally more of a basic chocolate fan, Everly's dessert menu consists of a few selective and fruitier options. Order the caramelized granola, just like we did, for a dish that's both refreshing, and the prettiest thing you'll see all day.
All in all, my meal(s) at Everly this week did not disappoint! The restaurant fully lives up to its description, offering more mouth-watering, veggie-centered dishes than you could possibly choose from. I'm officially an Everly supporter, and now you can be too!
