From dairy products to drinks, here's a cheat sheet of Wisconsin foods for visitors to try

Maybe one of the only things people in Wisconsin like to do more than eat and drink is to share with visitors all the good things there are to eat and drink in the state.

Visitors to the state looking to get a taste of the foods that give Wisconsin its flavor are in for a treat, but if you don't know a Spotted Cow in a bottle from a spotted cow in a barn or a bowl of booyah from a "Booyah!," have no fear, our Wisconsin Foods 101 cheat sheet is here to help you sort it all out.

So dig in and work up an appetite, and if you don't go home after your stay with at least one grease stain on your shirt, we're going to be disappointed.

When you’re talking cheese in Wisconsin, curd is the word

Cheese curds: Can be white or yellow; equally delicious. Can be enjoyed fresh or deep-fried; also equally delicious. Highly snackable and sharable in any form. Greatly admired for coming with their own sound effect.

The little nuggets of unaged cheddar goodness start as milk. The curds separate from the whey and then are formed into slabs that are pushed and pressed to get out the moisture before they’re sliced into chunks. Fresh curds are bagged up and best enjoyed at room temperature in the first day or two. It’s that signature squeak against your teeth that let’s you know your curd is Wisconsin fresh.

Curds that are battered or breaded and deep-fried are an entirely different experience of melty goodness, but sorry, no squeak when you eat them this way. Go ahead and dip them in ranch dressing, the condiment of choice in Wisconsin. If you're wondering what "Midwest nice” is all about, just watch a table full of people at a restaurant politely decline to be the person to take the last curd left in the basket.

Bratwurst is a mainstay on grills among the tailgaters outside Lambeau Field on game days.

Brats put the sizzle in Lambeau Field tailgating

Brats: Short for bratwurst. Pronounced like it rhymes with “swat,” not like “Brat,” as in the Charli XCX album that turned the word into a cultural phenomenon last summer. A German-style sausage made with pork and a host of seasonings, it’s the signature sizzle of Lambeau Field tailgating.

Served on a hard roll or brat bun with whatever you like: mustard, onions, kraut, ketchup (although that one can be controversial among purists) or nothing at all. Sometimes soaked in beer as part of the prep; more often consumed with a cold beer.

Well-known brat maker Johnsonville was founded in the Wisconsin town of the same name in 1945. Meat markets around the state offer specialty brats in every flavor imaginable, including bloody mary, mushroom and Swiss, Hawaiian, mac and cheese, Door County cherry and garlic Parmesan.

Also available in the less-popular patty form and served atop a hamburger patty for double the fun in one bun.

Sea salt caramel pecan kringle from Uncle Mike's Bake Shoppe was awarded Best Kringle in North America.

Wisconsin's Danish heritage is baked into kringle

Kringle: The official state pastry of Wisconsin since 2013. Yes, we’re that kind of state! The Danish-style pastry is made with layers upon layers of flaky, buttery dough, filled with any number of fillings, including raspberry, cherry, apple, blueberry and cream cheese, and then topped with icing and sometimes nuts. Shaped like a giant pretzel or a big oval, depending on the bakery. As decadent and delicious as it sounds.

Thank Wisconsin’s Danish heritage for making kringle a favorite. When people from Green Bay talk about how they can’t wait to come home for a visit and have Uncle Mike’s kringle, they’re not talking about family. They mean Uncle Mike’s Bake Shoppe, which is synonymous with the stuff. It’s home to the “Best Kringle in North America,” as awarded in 2014 for its famous sea salt caramel pecan kringle, but it makes a wide array of flavors (and, should be noted, serves samples).

Racine, just south of Milwaukee, is considered the Wisconsin mecca for kringle lovers, with O&H Danish Bakery and Bendtsen’s Bakery among the kringle makers.

Harry and Caroline Kroll's famous butter burger was born on Main Street in 1936 and has been a favorite for generations since.

The more napkins needed, the better the butter burger

In Green Bay, the boss of butter burgers is Kroll’s, where the tradition dates back to the 1930s when Harry and Caroline Kroll served up their first one. Today, there’s Kroll’s East on Main Street and a Kroll’s West across from Lambeau Field, each location under separate ownership but both revered for their butter burgers and decades of dining nostalgia. Locals are often fiercely loyal to one location over the other and happy to tell anybody who asks why.

A Brandy Old-Fashioned is the quintessential Wisconsin cocktail and goes hand-in-hand with the supper club experience.

A Brandy Old-Fashioned is the state's signature cocktail

Old Fashioned: Wisconsin’s cocktail of choice and a staple of the supper club scene, as in “Let’s order an Old-Fashioned at the bar while we wait for our table for dinner.” Made with brandy, not whiskey or bourbon, to be a true Wisconsin Old-Fashioned. (Hey, there’s a reason Korbel sells more brandy in Wisconsin than anywhere else.)

Bartenders have been known to be judged in Wisconsin solely on their Old-Fashioned abilities. It starts with muddling an orange slice, a cherry, a sugar cube and bitters in the glass, followed by that all-important brandy, ice and enough room left for a splash of 7Up (a Brandy Old-Fashioned sweet), Squirt (a Brandy Old-Fashioned sour) or half 7Up and half club soda (a Brandy Old-Fashioned press). Garnishes run the gamut from an orange slice and a cherry to an olive and pickled mushroom. Cheers!

Chicken booyah is scooped from a large kettle during a fundraising event for Redeemer Lutheran Church in Green Bay.

Booyah gets brewed up in big batches

Booyah: Pronounced boo-ya, just like the expression of joy; hold the exclamation point. Calling it a thick, hearty chicken-based Belgian soup is maybe the easiest way to describe it, but it doesn’t really begin to touch all the love and work that goes into that bowl in front of you. The definition of comfort food. Call it a “stew” if you must.

Introduced to northeastern Wisconsin by people of Belgian descent, it’s a staple of church picnics and community fundraisers, where it gets brewed in big batches outdoors in enormous steaming kettles stirred with a canoe paddle. Beyond the chicken, ingredients vary by proud booyah maker — typically peas, corn, beans, cabbage, onions, carrots, celery, potatoes, beef and oxtail. With or without bones or whether or not to add tomatoes can start a heated debate.

Recipes are handed down from generation to generation and are closely guarded secrets. Booyah is also found on menus at Green Bay-area restaurants, including The Booyah Shed, Kroll's West and The Rite Place.

At Maricque's Bar in Green Bay, diners can still get their perch bones in or bones out.

Perch gets top billing at the Friday night fish fry

Perch: Full name: yellow lake perch. The freshwater fish is the undisputed star of Wisconsin’s Friday night fish fry tradition. Mild taste; not “fishy.” Some say it almost has a sweet taste. Flaky in the best way possible. At Maricque’s Bar, Green Bay’s most classic fish fry dating to 1932, you can still order your perch “bone in.”

It’s most commonly beer battered (but can also be breaded or floured) and deep fried as the centerpiece for a Friday fish fry. Many local restaurants also offer walleye, cod, haddock, whitefish or other options for Friday night fish, but when in Wisconsin, do as Wisconsinites do. Order the perch.

Spotted Cow beer is available 'only in Wisconsin'

Spotted Cow: If a craft beer can be adored, this one is. Brewed by New Glarus Brewing Company in New Glarus (population 2,200) since 1997, the fruity, naturally cloudy farmhouse ale can be found at just about every bar, restaurant and liquor store across the state.

But maybe what makes it taste so good is that you can only get it in Wisconsin. No distribution outside the state. No shipping, either. It’s why when Wisconsinites who live out of state come home they often find a Spotted Cow calling their name. “Only in Wisconsin,” as the New Glarus tagline says, can you tell the bartender, “Give me a Spotted Cow.”

Zesty's Frozen Custard makes chocolate and vanilla custard as well as a different specialty flavor each day.

Any weather is frozen custard weather in Wisconsin

Frozen custard: Similar to ice cream but oh, so much better. A touch of egg yolk and a higher percentage of butter fat give custard the sinful creaminess that makes it a favorite in America’s Dairyland.

Made fresh daily and best right when it comes out of the machines at places like Zesty’s Frozen Custard in Allouez and Howard, where customers plan their visits around the monthly flavor of the day forecast. Sinful creations like Chocolate Salted Caramel Toffee, Peanut Butter Oreo, Mint Mackinac Island Fudge and Never Enough Chocolate.

Tip for first-timers: Custard melts quicker than ice cream so focus on the task at hand.

Friday night fish fry is a staple.

The Friday night fish fry is a part of the state's dining culture

Friday fish fry: Wisconsin’s version of working for the weekend? Being able to go out for a Friday night fish fry. Nearly every bar or restaurant has one. Nearly every person has a favorite they’ve been going to for years.

A cherished part of the state’s dining culture, it’s as much about the plate of fish you’re served — overwhelmingly perch, alongside some kind of potato, coleslaw and a slice of buttered rye bread with a slab of raw onion — as the socializing that comes with it. Waiting for a table is half the fun. It’s a weekly outing for many, but the action really heats up during Lent when Catholics abstain from eating meat on Fridays to commemorate the crucifixion of Christ on Good Friday.

A box of Glazers Donuts is hard to resist when making a stop at Kwik Trip.

Don't forget the Glazers when you're at Kwik Trip

Glazers: Full name: Glazers Donuts. Think of them as Wisconsin’s “other” six-pack. Introduced in 2003, the glazed doughnuts (more than a little like Krispy Kreme’s small-town cousin) are a mainstay at Kwik Trip’s 860 convenience stores across the Midwest, but they get made, fried and glazed at the Wisconsin-based company’s La Crosse bakery, where 400 a minute come off the line. That’s 45 million a year. Innovative Green Bay Packers tailgaters have been known to freeze a box and then throw them on the grill for extra crispy goodness on game day.

Kendra Meinert is an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or [email protected]. Follow her on X @KendraMeinert. 

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: From dairy products to drinks, here's a cheat sheet of Wisconsin foods for visitors to try