The menu at this restaurant located in a renovated 1855 building utilizes ingredients from Twisted Willow Farm. Plates range from “almost famous” meatloaf and baby-back ribs to Asian BBQ Atlantic salmon.
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A fine-dining, farm-to-table restaurant right on Capitol Square. One of downtown Madison’s most celebrated chefs at the moment is Tory Miller (2012 James Beard Award winner for Best Chef: Midwest) who took over L’Etoile when chef-founder Odessa Piper retired in 2005.
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The best seat in the house is at the kitchen counter, where you can watch your crab cakes, chopped salad and NY strip with Delmonico potatoes being prepared. The leather booths offer a little more privacy, and the bar, live entertainment and a nifty bar menu. Other standouts: fried surf clams and herb crumb-crusted halibut.
Menu of small and large plates, including scallops and a burger. Dim sum cart offers a selection of dumplings.
You’ll find morel mushrooms on occasion. And lots of rich preps of duck, lamb, beef and fish. If you don’t mind a little heat, the few seats at the kitchen counter (in view of the chefs) are the most entertaining spots in the house. Read more…
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Founded by James Beard Award-winning chef Sanford D??Amato; owned by JBA winner Justin Aprahamian. Unsurpassed for service and impeccable food. The global cuisine incorporates products from a long list of Wisconsin farms. The chefs prepare everything in-house, including butchering, preserving and canning. Elk, duck, fresh fish are all good choices. Offers surprise tasting and exploration menus. Desserts (a dozen offerings) is compulsory.
An easy little east-of-Oakland spot to roll into for apps at the bar or a more organized affair in the cozy white-tablecloth dining room. Beer dinners are becoming Tess’ claim to fame. The cozy, private garden patio makes a lovely setting for a summer night.
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Former Eddie Martini’s chef Jason Tofte offers up diverse shareable plates – such as friend chicken drumstick and meatloaf and mashed potatoes – in a warm, informal setting.
When Jason Tofte helmed the kitchen of Eddie Martini’s, he suited up in a white chef’s coat, cooked on the line and rarely ventured out to chat with patrons. That changed when the 18-year Tosa steakhouse vet left to run Waukesha’s The Steaming Cup with his wife, Cristina. The Cup came with a sizable built-in clientele, and serving up lattes with hummus wraps required interaction with customers. Read more…
With a wide variety of delicious Asian cuisine, Benihana definitely makes for a special night out. Some delicious offerings include specialty sushi rolls, sashimi/nigiri, steaks and chicken, seafood and house specialties like the hibachi supreme.
When it comes to Chinese lunch buffets, China Gourmet is renowned for the freshness of its selection. Food is prepared in smaller batches and replenished often. Crab rangoons, mu shu crepes and steamed chicken dumplings are just a few of the terrific options not to be missed.
Open For Lunch, Outdoor Dining, Food Truck,
Group Parties, Open For Lunch, Reservations Taken, Sunday Brunch,
The Swingin’ Door Exchange inhabits a red-awninged space under one of the city’s most majestic venues, the Grain Exchange Room. The dig’s first incarnation as a bar – called the Exchange Tavern – began in the 1930s. The owner of the neighboring barbershop took over the place in ’67, renaming it the Swingin’ Door. Nowadays, the Door still gets its patty melt and Friday fish fry on, but it’s rolling with the times – packing in a hodgepodge of the hungry, from bike couriers to number-crunchers. Read more…
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Entrées (meat or veg-based) are served on a wafer-thin, spongy pancake made of teff. Here, diners are encouraged to eat with their hands. Utensils are optional. The beef and lamb stews are especially good.
In an inconspicuous- looking storefronton Wisconsin Avenue, people are doing the unthinkable – eating without utensils.
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The cuisine is inspired by chef/co-owner Gregory León’s interest in the Iberian Peninsula. Menu changes often and might include rabbit, pork, beef or fresh fish. Read more…
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Friday Fish Fry, Open For Lunch, Outdoor Dining,