Madison, WI Eats?

I expect to be in Madison quite a bit during September and October for performances of a musical I composed. Anybody have any recommendations for LTH-worthy dining? I prefer off-the-beaten-path or ethnic (I'm a native Ethnican). Surrounding area a possibility. Gracias, y'all.

Here are two current active threads about Madison:

Now that's what I call breakfast-Mickey's Dairy Bar/Madison
Madison (Dane County) Farmer's Market [Pics]

Between links from those and the search feature, I bet you can find a lot more here... Or try a google search for site:lthforum.com Madison...

Ahh yes my old stomping grounds. Where do I start? Not sure so instead ill just list every place worth trying and a brief description. Hope this helps.

Pel Meni- This State St. shack was actually started by a freind of mine who spent time in Alaska and while there started making pel meni (russian dumplings). This is a small storefront and they offer pel meni in 2 ways, meat and potato, done 2 ways, traditional (lots of butter and sour cream) and their verison which is vinegar, curry powder, hot sauce and cilantro. I always ordered a large($7) half and half done their way. This place is excellent for lunch.

Tornado Room- This no frills steakhouse is usually packed with everything from students celebrating to families in town visiting or politicans discussing scams over steak. This is a real meat and potaots type of place, you cant go wrong with the bone in ribeye. Also if you sit at the bar they slang a top notch steak sandwich which is only about $9 and worth even more.

New Orleans Takeout- This place has 2 locations and they both serve up some of the best cajun food outside Louisiana. The owner is a former resident of Nawlins and he brought with him recipes from as far back as his great grandma. You really cant go wrong at this place, everything is good. The fried oyster po boy and Deb's BBQ'd shrimp are big winners as is the Mardi Gras combo.

Great Dane Pub and Brewing- Located downtown, the dane offers up some of the better brew in the state, try everything although my favorite is their old glory pale ale. If you want to eat the Dane does upscale barfood thats above average. They have one of the better pot pies ive eaten as well as daily specials. This is the best place to drink and eat.

Real Chili- The owner of this Milwaukee original has opened up a spot on State St. They offer Chili done with the spaghetti or just striaght up, with all the fixin's and the result is perfect for a cold winter day. Alot of love goes into the chili as the owner drives up from Milwaukee to make it himself. They stay open late so its a great stop on the way home from the bar.

Himal Chuli- Madison has a very diverse dining selection and the fact that their are 2 himalayan spots on the same block proves this. Himal Chuli is the more upscale one of the two yet it is still resonably priced. They make a mean chai and their momochas--little dumplings -- are a culinary treat. I usually took girls on dates here.

The Stamm House- Actually located in Middleton, this place has been around for 150 years! so you know its good. To go alonhg with the best oinion rings ive ever had they offer a fish fry that is also one of the best ive ate, ever. they also have a killer chicken and dumplings special served once a week, I forget what day. This is the palce to go if you want to get a locals feel of dining.

Guantanamera- An authentic little corner of Havana in downtown Mad Town, and it’s a bargain, home-style Cuban meals, delicious, abundant and very reasonably priced. This place was def. on my weekly radar. Dont miss Yolanda's home made hot sauce, it is out of this world and maybe the best condiment ever, period.

Chautara- The other Himalayan restaurant on State St. this one is better for take out, they also slang the dumpling which are like crack as well. I forget what thyre called but the veggies in batter should also not be missed. This place was on my weekly radar.

Essen House- Gernman food and beer that will satisfy the largest appetites. Grab a boot filled withh beer and start chugging you probaly wont remember your night so eat whatever looks good.

Ians Pizza- If pizza is your thing, give this place a try. They offer slices of innovative pizza like, mac and cheese or steak and potato. The choices are endless but they change daily so check it out and im sure you can find something you like.

Myles Teddywedger's Cornish Pasty- Another great snack place. Located downtown this place cooks up some top notch pastys that dont cose an arm and a leg. A half is easilyt enough for one and its only a little more than $3. They also offer breakfest pasties, these are pretty good too but I always got a steak and potato.


Nick's Restaurant- This place is an old neighborhood greek favorite and the inside hasnt changed in 40 years. Most people dont know this but their feta cheeseburger is by far the best burger in the city. I cant vouch for anything else because I ordered the burger every time.

Saz- Run by Husnu (who also runs Husnu's across the street) this place serves up mexican and med food. The lamb kebab and daily specials are always good and very reasonably priced.

Weary Traveler- This Willy St favorite serves all the local hippies both vegan and meat eating. Home of "Bob's Bad Breath Burger" (adorned with garlic and onions, of course, as well as cream cheese), this is easilyt the second best and most unique burger in the city. As far as barfood goes it really doesnt get any better than this, in fact to call it barfood isnt fair its top quality restaurant food served in a casual atmosphere for a greta price. The grilled grouper sandwich is the best seafood find youll find in Mad Town.

Campus Biryani and Kebab- some of the best bargain dining around. Order one of the biryani dishes, which comes with, fluffy rice and your choice of mutton, chicken or mixed vegetable and you'll be stuffed for next to nothing.

These were all off the top of my head, ill probaly think of more later in the meantime I hope this list works for you.

Germuska wrote:Here are two current active threads about Madison:

Da Beef wrote:Ahh yes my old stomping grounds.

Wow, that pretty much covers it. I'll have to spend a few extra days just trying all these places. Thanks, Germuska and Da Beef.

I just moved (back) to Madison for a one year job stint and I've been meaning to post on a few of my favorite places (I keep meaning to gather pictures but I've been a bit lazy about it).
Anyway, for now I'll just add a few suggestions to what's already been thrown out there:
1. Vientiane Palace Thai/Lao
151 W. Gorham St.
Most of the food here is just 'O.K' but the curry squash dish is transcendant. If you get this for take-out, make sure they give you a plastic bag because it tends to leak through the paper carton they put it in. They also have excellent fried wonton (I'm not usually a fan but they were delivered to my table by accident once and I got hooked).
2. Maharaja 6713 Odana
This Indian restaurant rivals some of the best places on Devon. They have a very extensive menu which includes Southern Indian stuff (Dosa, etc.) on the back page. There's another branch on the East side but I haven't been.
3. Marigold Kitchen
118 S. Pinckney
Great little sandwich cafe off the capital square. The same owners recently opened a bistro (Sardine) on Willy street but I haven't yet tried it.
4. Sophia's- tiny storefront bakery/brunch spot on E. Johnson--only open Sat and Sunday mornings. They have great omelets and waffles, communal tables, good coffee (you order at a counter and serve yourself coffee and stuff). Lots of character + great fpod.
5. Michael's for frozen custard--I love the turtle sundaes.
6. If you're doing any cooking while you're there, Madison has a great Asian/pan-ethnic market called Yuh Wah right off the beltline at Park Street. They have an incredible produce selection (durian, fresh galanga, dragon fruit, lots of stuff I don't recognize, alas, no mangosteen yet) and a wide variety of central/south american, asian, middle eastern food products. The farmer's market also has (of course) great produce (lots of asian veggies--long beans, japanese eggplant, rau rum, etc.), but also meats, cheeses, specialty foods, fish, eggs

Well, it turned out I was in Madison for only about sixteen hours, but I managed to hit two really good places. Monday being Labor Day, I didn't have too many choices for dinner. Tornado Steak House, next to my hotel, was closed. Down State Street, Chautara was open and doing brisk business, so I popped in there for dinner. Per Da Beef's suggestion, I ordered dumplings (called Momo IIRC), which were like Nepalese kreplach, served with a spicy tomato/coriander/onion relish. Delicious. My entreé was a sort of stewed chicken alongside some spinach and basmati rice, also quite tasty. All in all, an excellent choice.

Tuesday morning, my co-writer and I drove over to Mickey's Dairy Bar. There, we journeyed back to the 1950s, gorging ourselves on huge, fluffy blueberry pancakes, smoky bacon and crisp fried potatoes. It's everything Vital Information says it is in his post; I wasn't hungry again until dinner.

I'll be back in Madison at least a couple more times between now and December, and will try to report back on my dining experiences.

Chautara Restaurant
334 State St
Madison, WI 53703

Mickey's Dairy Bar
1511 Monroe Street
Madison, WI 53711
Cash only

I'd like to highly recommend Cocoliquot for a slightly higher end Madison dining experience. This is a one-year old dining spot that also makes fine chocolates. Here's a brief summary:

To start, because it was a one year anniversary, all diners recevied a shot of champaigne in a mini-chocolate cup. Next, they brought an herbed foccacia that was crispy on the bottom and rich and chewy in the middle. One of the best I've had.

Appetizers includes a nice mussels in cream sauce, french onion soup (too salty), a nice melted cheese dish with a sweet fig sauce and a basic, but well done, fois gras dish.

Main dishes: gnocci in a creamy sauce splashed with truffle oil (very rich but very delicious), pheasant pot pie (didn't taste) and a short rib dish (my son had this and wasn't giving out bites).

To finish, you could either order a dessert or, sushi style, mark off which chocolates (all made on premises) you wanted from a list of 20-25. The ones we had were quite good, but unfortunately, most are suprisingly milk chocolate, which only a few dark or bittersweet. The cider caramel was outstanding.

The cooking was bold and flavorful, if occassionaly lacking some finesse. The room was modern and comfortable, and service, well it's Madison; is anybody in that town not friendly?

Cost was $200 for 5 including one bottle of wine and dessert.

Jonah wrote:I'd like to highly recommend Cocoliquot for a slightly higher end Madison dining experience.

Perfect timing! I'm headed back to Mad City right after I vote tomorrow morning. Last trip, I visited the Tornado Room (great steak and shrimp, just OK everything else) and, thanks thaiobsessed, Vientiane Palace. Vientiane was very, very good, but their idea of "spicy" isn't, at least for non-regulars. Next time, I'll ask them to set it on stun.

Had beers at Hawk's; food looks interesting, too. Maharaja is definitely on the radar for later this week.

I cant speak for Cocoliquot, but if you dont have to eat at Hawks there is no reason to do so, the food is average at best. Problem is if your going to eat in that area there is not much better as far as burgers and beer. Dotty Dumplings is a better option for bar food as is the Great Dane and BW 3's is there if you like them, but the options stop there. If you have a car the best place in the area (its in Middleton) is Quaker Steak & Lube, a racing themed restaurant with spots in Pennsylvania, Ohio and the south. Funny name aside this place slangs some mighty fine wings and the sauce selection tops B-Dubs. If you dont want to stay and eat they do a fast drive-thru service that gets you in and out.

My favorite fine dining restaurant in Madison is Restaurant Magnus, I havent been in over a year but my previous visits during my time spent there were always satisfying.

http://www.restaurantmagnus.com/

http://quakersteakandlube.com/default_in.html

Is the Original Rocky Rococo's still around?

A couple of notes from today's trip to Madison:

1) The ice cream store that is part of the University of Wisconsin College of Agriculture and Life Sciences reopened a couple years ago. It has expanded to include a snack and sandwich bar in ADDITION to a dairy store and soda fountain. The ice cream is pretty good and worth a trip.

I would like to say that the BEST college dairy that I have been to is at BYU. Utah State and University of Missouri-Columbia also have good ice cream stores.

Back to Babcock Hall. While my wife and I were enjoying our ice cream, I noted a sign directing us to the second floor observation deck. We hesitated as the building was sort of quiet and we were afraid of getting locked in the building. We did go up and were able to look at the various research labs and the the dairy plant. They had a 15 minute video on cheese making that was quite excellent and better than the films we saw at Tillamook (OR) and Simplot (ID).

Getting to Babcock Hall is tricky. We ALWAYS get lost even with Mapquest and Yahoo directions.

Turn right on Babcock drive which is immediately before the break-off of Campus Drive and University Ave. Then a quick left on Linden.

Babcock Hall Dairy Store
1605 Linden Drive
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, WI 53706-1565
Store Phone: (608) 262-3045
Message Phone: (608) 265-4039
FAX: (608) 262-6872

Hours:
9:30 am-5:30 pm M-F
10 am-1:30 pm Sat


2) Lunch was at Husnu's which advertises itself as a Turkish and Mediterranean restaurant located on State St. in Madison, close to the University. We have eaten there two times and always received above average food. Entrees between $8-12.

The yellow pea soup was on the spicy side and flavored with a mild curry flavor. The salad was a variety of greens served with a minty yogurt dressing. The lamb rib chops were juicy and flavor filled and served with asparagus, potatoes, and a delicious rice pilaf.

The place serves alcohol and has friendly and attentive servers.

Husnu's
547 State Street
Madison, Wisconsin 53703-1010
ph: 608.256.0900


Has anyone tried the Irish Pub on the Capitol Square?


One more note. A number in the University / Capitol Square areas close down between Christmas and New Year's.

Anyone have any experience at Vin Santo? I have a dinner there in a couple weeks.

Vin Santo Trattoria
7462 Hubbard Avenue
Middleton, WI 53562
(608) 836-1880
www.vinsanto.us

--

I have not been to Vin Santo, but my Dad wants to try it out, he likes to think he is Italian.

I haven't seen anyone mention L'Etoile. I've heard going things and was planning on eating dinner there when I'm in town for a couple of days in September. Any experiences?

shea wrote:I haven't seen anyone mention L'Etoile. I've heard going things and was planning on eating dinner there when I'm in town for a couple of days in September. Any experiences?

I have pics and an over-due report...until then, quick answer, we were not wholly impressed. There were a few good things, including a Wisconsin cherry daqueri, but mostly it was just average stuff.

I have to concur with Vital I. I ate at L'Etoile about a year ago and just didn't find anything impressive. Nothing was bad, mind you, but some pretty average cooking. The place I really liked was Cocolicot (could be spelled wrong). Contemporary food, and they make their own chocolates, which you can order for dessert.

I will offer a dissent about L'Etoile. I had an amazing meal there a few weeks ago, consisting almost entirely of local meat and produce prepared in relatively simple forms. A cornmeal crusted halibut server with chanterelles in a white-wine/sweet corn sauce was particularly memorable.

Here's a thread on L'Etoile. http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=4402

I had a truly great meal there in June, and when I saw happy_stomach's post contained therein after the fact, I didn't even bother posting, because I had so many of the same things. I'd recommend them without hesitation. If you search for "L'Etoile" there are many threads that mention it.

Sweet Willie wrote:Anyone have any experience at Vin Santo? I have a dinner there in a couple weeks.

Wanted to report on my dinner at Vin Santo.

small place, 10-12 tables at most, Amanda the bartender was spot on with watching the pre-dinner drinks and making sure they were kept full.

STAND OUT appetizer: Calamaretti
Calamari pieces lightly sauteed with olive oil, garlic, and lemon, with just a touch of red sauce and balsamic. The red sauce had some slow burn heat, one of the best red sauces I've had. A hunk of bread and this dish would have made me a very happy man.

othe appetizer: Mussels al’ Vin Santo
Mussels steamed with garlic, tomato, fresh herb and wine. broth was not as rich as I would have liked, mussels a bit on the small side, but I like most places that serve mussels.

My main course: Gnocchi al Verde
Spinach and potato gnocci topped with gorgonzola cream sauce. Sauce was more cream than gorgonzola

While we all shared the appetizers, the others in my party did not really seem like they wanted to share their main courses so I can't comment on those.

My wife and I ate at L''etoile about 3 weeks ago, and we liked it. I am always a bit wary of any place that gives so much background on every ingredient, but that is their shtick, and I knew that going in. I had some boutique strip steak that was remarkably good considering the lack of fat in the grass fed meat. My wife had a very fresh and flavorful halibut filet. We ordered a very robust Chinon rose that went well with both. I had the 7 cheese tasting, and some were familiar but others that the server recommended were very interesting. We went on a slow Monday night which may have contributed to our service, which was very attentive and friendly. With dessert, I ordered a flight of 3 ports and my wife had 3 dessert wines. Although they were supposed to be tasting portions, we basically had 4 oz+ pours, which is a lot for these kinds of wine. Fortunately we were walking to our hotel. Overall, we were very happy, but the great service was a big part of the evening, and on a busier night it might not be the same.

-Will

This past weekend I had brunch at Marigold Kitchen. I should have been going to this place for years, all of the food was fantastic.

I ordered the duck confit hash with over easy eggs (only available for Saturday brunch) and it was simply amazing. The duck was delicious, the red potatoes were left in big chunks, or even whole, and the seasonings were tremendous. The hash smelled almost like stuffing, making me think there is some sage, and other "fall" type herbs in there. It was served with a french greens salad, with a vinaigrette that was also good. I only looked up from this dish to accept bites of food from other people. I wanted to order a second plate as soon as I finished the first. I think my favorite part of it was that it was a delicious breakfast dish that, most likely I wont be making at home anytime soon. I don't often (or ever) make duck confit, maybe I should. This dish is a steal for $10

The wife ordered their french toast with berries and pastry cream. I'm not sure where Marigold got their berries from but the strawberries were ripe, fresh and delicious. The sweet pastry cream that is drizzled around the plate make syrup almost unnecessary but also goes well with the real maple syrup that they serve. The french toast itself was also great.

My Mom ordered a scrambler with andouile sausage and some other things, that I did not try. I did try her "Marigold Potatoes" and I thought those were great.

On the way out I picked up some pastries too, that I believe are made in house. The peanut butter-chocolate brownie was one of the best I have ever had. Not too much peanut butter, not too much chocolate, and it was a nice moist brownie. I thought the blueberry scone with lemon glaze was excellent, not too dry. The highlight might be the macaroons (coconut not Parisian), they taste like an excellent little candybar of coconut with just enough chocolate drizzled on them.

I hope to make it in the for lunch someday, but that is kind of tough with work and all, maybe the next time I have a day off. I might also be back for breakfast this Saturday.

Marigold Kitchen
118 S. Pinckney St., Madison, WI
608.661.5559
www.marigoldkitchen.com

Just a couple of things to update -

Cocoliquot will be closing as of the end of this month to become the new location of Sushi Muramoto's downtown store. It's doubly a shame as Coco was one of my favorite lunch spots. (One of the best burgers in town, rather easily. Made from beef ground from trimmings in house with several wonderful choices of toppings.) And... Muramoto is just entirely unimpressive for sushi - which is sadly something that I've come to find somewhat universally true in Madison. (Would it kill them to buy some otoro? C'mon!)

also -

Saz has since closed and reopened as Maza, an Afghan place owned and in some way connected via family to Kabul. We had dinner there the other night, it was simple yet tasty and quite affordable.

Speaking of family ties - Chautara and Himal Chuli are also owned by the same family, and I've been lead to believe that certain kitchen tasks are shared between both restaurants.

That's a bummer about Cocoliquot. Had a delightful meal there once, and another time stopped in for chocolates for dessert. Recommended it to a friend who went there several times with his student daughter.

Jonah

Going to Madison 1 week from today. Can anybody recommend a good restaurant for a fish fry? We were thinking about hitting the State Street area, I have zero knowledge of Madison though

Thanks

Dave

I was in Madison last weekend. It's a great town.

We've been to Old Fashion, the homage to Wisconsin supper clubs in the square (next to L'Etoile) before, but never for brunch. I highly recommend this meal. Perfectly fried walleye with eggs, Willow Creek ham, etc.

bluesman,

Friday fish fry's are thee thing in Madison and on a busy weekend it can be very hard to secure a spot to dine. Im no longer a student there so I couldn't tell you if its goin to be a big weekend (Halloween, any home football and basketball game, Mifflin St. block party, graduation) what am I saying? theres a reason Madison has more bar's per capita than anywhere, every weekend is a party.

As far as finding a good fry along State St, that you wont wont be able to do. The closest option you have is the Great Dane and unfortunately their fish fry is one of the few things I wouldnt recommend there, but if your near them, go in for some beer, it will be packed on the weekend but the bar area is large and you can usually get a spot at some point.

Also near State St. and the capitol building is Brocach (Gaelic for Badger Den) and they dont do a fish fry but they do have fresh Harp battered fish that I found to be some of the best around. The Tornado room is also near where you will be staying and I remember they had a really good pan fried lake perch with white wine reduction glazed with red onions or something like that. Yummy.

Back to the traditional fry's, I would recommend:

Avenue bar- They give you a selection of Perch or Walleye and its good, cant say great but its worth eating if your in the area. The wait here is a guarantee. Probably the best fry in your vicinity. They also do a boil but I have never tried it, not when fried is an option anyway.

Fitzgeralds (Middleton)- This place was my go-to spot on Sunday after a long weekend of partying. Where else can you get a prime rib dinner for $11.95 in the drive thru?!?!?!? They also have a good Friday fish fry.

The Stamm House (Middleton)- This place was my favorite spot to dine at in Madison. The feeling and atmosphere of this place during a Friday fish fry was awesome. We tried to make it a monthly ritual to eat here before going out. Great fish fry, amazing onion rings and many cold spotted cow, does it get any better in Wisconsin? Im not sure it does.

http://www.greatdanepub.com/

Zach's Avenue bar
1128 E. Washington, Madison, WI
608-257-6877

http://www.brocach.com/

http://www.apartmentrenting.com/tornado/

http://www.foodspot.com/fitzgeralds/index.html

http://www.explorewisconsin.com/stammhouse/

Da Beef wrote:The Stamm House (Middleton)- This place was my favorite spot to dine at in Madison. The feeling and atmosphere of this place during a Friday fish fry was awesome. We tried to make it a monthly ritual to eat here before going out. Great fish fry, amazing onion rings and many cold spotted cow, does it get any better in Wisconsin? Im not sure it does.

I recently ate at The Stamm House and found the food very underwhelming. The fish was greasy and the batter had no taste. Not only that, but I was the only customer for much of my dinner until another couple came in. Maybe I hit it on a bad night, or maybe it's a place that's past its prime. It certainly is a cool looking place, but I was so disappointed in the food that I didn't even save the pictures I took.

That's too bad, I havent been here in three years but it wasnt like that back when I was a visitor. I actually never found Madison to be a good fish fry town, seems like you got to go to the outskirts somewhere and find a supper club in some small lake town thats been doing it the same way forever.

Maricques in Green Bay is the best fry I have ever been to. They are not very welcoming of out of towners, especially one's in from chicago for the Bear's game but we managed to get in and be served amazing perch that I still im trying to find anything close that compares to it. I found it on the classicwisconsin.com webpage.

I don't have any recommendations for a fish fry, but I was directed towards this blog recently:

http://www.madisonatoz.com/

Some people going around and eating at a bunch of Madison places in alphabetical order. Not "great" reviews, but they usually link to other reviews and to the Ithsumus' information on the restaurant.

Two years down the line from JLawrence's post, I'll second the recommendation for Husnus.

Yesterday my daughter & I did the UW-Madison 'dog & pony' prospective college thing, the info session and then the walking tour in below zero windchill, and we were pretty frozen at the end. What a pleasure, having done my LTH homework, to stagger into Husnus on State St., indeed, to 'warm our bones beside the fire'...

Started with Turkish chai tea with cardamom seed and an appetizer platter of tabouleh & hummus. Tabouleh was very coarse, more like a Pita Inn Jerusalem salad, but delicious nonetheless. Hummus was very good as well, and the whole platter was sprinkled with feta cheese & parsley.

The chicken curry was a large leg & thigh surrounded by halved red potatoes, green beans & carrots on a bed of rice pilaf studded with either raisins (my opinion) or dates (daughter's) in a light tomato curried gravy. Lamb couscous included tender chunks with cauliflower, and green beans, potatoes & carrots also. Each entree was served with a smoky yellow pea soup which was very nice.

Had to get back on the road to Chicago, so there wasn't time for dessert, but the $30 bill reminded me of why I love ethnic food in college towns. Haven't examined Madison's cuisine any further (and I hope to if daughter attends), but I gotta think its breadth rivals any in the Big Ten, even Evanston.

Husnus
547 State St. (that great street!)
Madison, WI