Springers on the Lake

It's been a few days since I posted a new recipe and that's because I just got back from a camping trip to Lake Kegonsa State Park. My husband and I left on Friday, stopping for lunch at Springers on the Lake in Stoughton on our way to the park. I found this place on the Isthmus website after searching for all the restaurants in Stoughton (it's a short list) and was pleasantly surprised at how wonderful it turned out to be. From the website it looked like your basic sandwich place with a great location on Lake Kegonsa, but the food far exceeded my expectations.

First, let's start with the view. Anything is going to taste better when you're looking out on a beautiful lake on a sunny summer day.

We started with some scrumptious deep-fried cheese curds and some Leinie's (hey, we were on vacation). After being stranded in Iowa for a few years, I'm still delighted to see deep-fried cheese curds on so many menus, even though this is Wisconsin and it would almost be sacrilege not to have them. I don't indulge in them too often, but we decided to go for it since it was a vacation. They arrived, warm and gooey, only about 5 minutes after we ordered them. They were pleasantly salty, with a hot and melty center and a crisp outer breading. A light and refreshing Leinie's Summer Shandy was the perfect beverage for looking out on the lake on a hot summer day.

Our sandwiches and fries arrived fresh and hot before we'd even finished our cheese curds, despite there being multiple tables of customers. I had a Reuben with waffle fries; my husband also had a Reuben, but with regular fries. Reubens are my favorite sandwich (with the Cuban coming in a close second) and I probably order them far too often, although because they are on many menus they are a good gauge of the quality of a restaurant. The corned beef was good, although not extraordinary, covered in a generous portion of dressing, kraut, and melted cheese, all tucked into thick marble rye bread. The sandwich was crisp on the outside, but the interior of the bread was still soft and supple and melted into the sauerkraut, dressing, cheese, and meat. The waffle fries were pretty good, but nothing particularly special.

I would visit this place again in a heartbeat. The food was delicious, the service prompt and friendly, and the view extraordinary. What more could you ask for on a beautiful summer day?