Walter P. wrote: Try L'Etoile. Its excellent. --spencer
Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
We enjoy the Wild Iris on Regent Street. It is a small place that offers sea food, pasta and generally very interesting flavor combinations. I like their sourdough bread! They have just changed their "no reservation" policy to allow reservations. Reasonable prices. Another good bet is Pasqual's which serves southwestern food. They have two locations, one on Monroe Street (across from a Michael's) and on University Avenue in Middleton (west of Madison). I also like Pasta Per Tutti on Atwood Avenue, a couple of blocks from the Blue Plate Diner. Good Pasta. For a great burger try Dotty Dumplings Dowry near State Street on Fairchild I think. Some of the best sea food in town is at the Blue Marlin. Also more expensive than the options given above.
Smokey's if you want a great steak. It's an institution there, it's on University Ave. They don't take reservations or charge cards but the food is teriffic.
Someone wrote: >Any suggestions for dining nicely in the Madison area over the long >Thanksgiving weekend??? Kafe Kohoutek on Washington St. in Madison. Nice food, nice room. Rich Berkley Univ. of Wisconsin Law School 2231 Woodview Ct., #9 Madison, WI 53713 608-257-2401 [email removed]
My wife and I visited Madison for a few days about a month ago. The following are our food experiences. We had our best meal at L'etoile which we found to be a very special restaurant, knowledgable service, excellent food (interesting without being precious or pretentious) pleasant room and a good wine list. We enjoyed The Angelic Brewery, a lively huge place with good beers and appropriate food, burgers, onion rings, etc. State Street Brats was fine for a quick lunch Hsnus (spelled wrong, but close) on State Street was excellent value for lunch. I would go out of my way to go back to L'etoile for dinner.
One more thing, The Ovens of Brittany is closed as of a month ago.
The Ovens of Brittany-Shorewood (on University Avenue) remains open. The ovens on state street was recently closed. Check with a local before you make grand pronouncements abour open/closed--that kind of thing can and does damage restaurants. If you are looking for a great steak, Try Smokeys, and for the best in Spanish cuisine La Paella takes all honors. I second (third & fourth) the Husnus suggestion, and if a burger is what you are after, it s Dotty Dumplings Dowry! Cris-in Madison -+0 "That side of the moon is too dark" 0+-