This is a part of our Q+A series. Know someone we should interview? Nominate them here.
Profiles: Amanda Byrd, general manager of Everly + Haley Ceac, bar manager of Everly and Miko.
Join us for a conversation with a Monroe Street favorite known for its eclectic mix of upscale sips and bites.
Tell me about Everly.
Amanda: I’d like to say we’re a restaurant that really caters to everyone, where a meat and potatoes guy can go out with a vegan guy. [...] There’s a lot to choose from, but it isn’t a 16 page menu — it’s thoughtful.
What’s the staple of your drink program?
Amanda: When we started out we were gonna try to be more of a wine restaurant but really, people just started coming back for the cocktails.
And which drink(s) keep the people coming back?
Amanda: Hola From The Other Side, our house margarita.
Haley: It’s been on our menu since the beginning, I would say that’s the shining star.
We all know about the Wisconsin Old Fashioned, can you give me the scoop on Nana’s Old Fashioned?
Haley: We like to take classic cocktails and put our own twist on them. We use a banana oleo — macerating the peels using the inside [of the fruit] for the banana bread dessert and the outside we use for the oleo in the cocktail.
Staff picks — what are your ideal main plate and cocktail pairings?
Amanda: The Cutecumber Collins + one of our salads — the Mediterranean salad or the BLT salad.
Haley: Maybe the Spicy Shirley with the Tikka Masala.
Can we talk about the local beer scene?
Amanda: Craft beers. All over the place. Youngblood from downtown gives us a rotating beer every month or so. Everyone is brewing beer these days.
Haley: Non-alcoholic beer too, we have some really interesting N/A offerings too, and a beer that doesn’t just taste like Coors Light.
Everly’s current N/A offerings: Upside Down Golden Ale from Athletic Brewing + a mix of lemonades, fruit coolers, and coffee concoctions.
Would you tell me a bit about the Generous Pour?
Amanda: It is our rotating house cocktail where one dollar from every beverage goes to a charity of the staff’s choosing supporting different groups and causes in Madison.
What’s the pour this month?
Haley: Currently it’s like a dreamsicle with a citrus shrub that’s made in-house.
Amanda: We use the ends of the oranges, grapefruits, limes, etc. to make the citrus shrub — to use the entire product and not create waste.
Can we get a sneak preview of what’s coming for August’s Generous Pour?
Haley: It’s going to be the #CurrantMood — it has egg white, Templeton rye, lemon juice, currant berry, and when you shake it there’s this light purple foam on top that we dash with bitters.
Pretend it’s Badger game day: What three beers are you bringing to the tailgate?
Haley: The first one has to be Badger Club, obviously.
Amanda: I wanna say Spotted Cow, but everyone is doing Spotted Cow. How about 3 Sheeps Fresh Coast from Sheboygan.
Haley: Light It Up from Third Space Brewing in Milwaukee — we’ve been sold out for a while but we’re finally getting it back this week.
