50 Best American Restaurants in Madison

“I love this restaurant when visiting Madison. My most recent visit I had the rigatoni vodka pasta which I really enjoyed. Taylor was our waitress and she was awesome! She was very attentive, checked on us throughout the meal, and truly made our visit a lot of fun! She is so personable and we loved our conversation with her. If you get the chance to have Taylor as your waitress, take it. She is worth asking for!!“

“Good food and great service. What’s not to like?“

“Food was very good. Workers hustle and are friendly.“

“We had an amazing experience at DelecTable on Friday. All 11 courses were interesting and perfectly executed. A great meal and a lot of fun.“

“Love the charming European Grand Cafe vibes. An abundance of outdoor seating is available. Our server was very attentive and had great recommendations for drinks and food. One of the smoothest bloodys I have had. Food was absolutely delicious! What a great spot for brunch and enjoying a view of Madison.“

“I wish I had taken this photos of the food before I dug in. Delicious chilequiles, and even better ranchos huervos. The food is extremely fresh and flavorful. It's a unique take on something I've seen in every form, but they get it right with little surprises in every bite. Do yourself a favor and get the orange juice. The fresh sweetness really helps stabilize the slight spice and heaviness of the food.“

“Such an amazing experience! Our server, Lily, was absolutely wonderful—so friendly, attentive, and full of great recommendations. We ended up trying the deviled eggs and the banana sundae based on her suggestions, and both were SO good. Everything we had was delicious, but the incredible service really made the experience even better. If you’re in the area, definitely stop in. Highly, highly recommend!“

“I got the woodsman pizza which tasted delicious, a little oily for me. The service was fast, efficient and the hostess welcome us kindly. Because it’s was a weekday they were not busy at all. Definitely a place I would go back, I like the atmosphere too, inside it has a red decor and with the candles looks cool. Also the price is great!“

“Best burger I have had in LONG time. All the stars. Thank you!“

“Took my daughter to this 60’s inspired cocktail style restaurant, to celebrate her birthday. We both agree that the overall vibe was sensational. The staff was amazing with our waitress being kind and courteous, as well as prompt with service. The menu is rather eclectic with various options, so there is something for everyone. The design of the place is thoughtful with the music matching the vibe. I am excited to see what the future holds for Lola's!“

“My favorite go to when I’m in town! Drinks and eats are the best!“

“Delicious food, good drinks, and a great service. One of my favorite places for Sunday brunch. Highly recommend!“

“We were in town for a show and swing in for their Tuesday chicken sandwich special. Probably one of the absolute best chicken sandwiches we’ve had. We planned on splitting a sandwich but after a minor mishap, chef ended up making us each a sandwich and my oh my it did not disappoint. Great service, fantastic craft cocktails and delicious food this place will be on our Madison list of places to frequent when in the area.“

“Not stop-sign red. Not barn-side red.
Not Wisconsin-maple-October red.
I mean tuna red. Roe red. Glow red.
Somehow the sea slipped into Madison,
borrowed a bowl of rice, and learned to roll instead.

Tuna cut clean with a ruby-red sheen,
salmon burns orange beside avocado green.
Slice, rice, precise, nice. Roll, roe, bowl, whole.
Dip, drip, chopstick grip, let soy take control.
Little edible mosaics, rolled tight for the soul.

Soft beside crunch, cool beside heat,
sweet meeting salty where rice meets the sea.
Then comes wasabi. Easy there, friend.
One dab too deep and your sinuses ascend,
then ginger sweeps through and resets you again.

There’s something delightfully backwards in play:
Wisconsin has no ocean, yet here comes the spray.
No gulls. No surf. No saltwater mist,
just chopsticks gone fishing with a flick of the wrist.
One piece. Two pieces. Three cease to exist.

Then someone asks, “Want another roll?”
Dear friend, that is how they swallow you whole.
So when Madison supper needs something instead,
get raw, get rolled, get remarkably fed.
Follow the ruby, the roe, the roll. See RED.

Peace. Piece. Peas.

Mr. E & Justin Thyme“

“Ive been going to the Bonfyre for years and I really love the place. For the past year it has been infested with gnats or fruit flies or whatever they are. . You cant take a sip or a bite without waving them away. Its annoying as hell and gross. Its not a one time thing, I go there often and its not getting better. This afternoon I stopped in for a couple of beers and some calamari appetizer. I love their calamari! I used to, today I got a massive plate of breaded bread. And swatted flies away the entire time. I'm not giving up on Bonfyre but if they cant fix the bug problem soon I'm done. I stopped by Badger Tavern before going to Bonfyre, the parking lot was packed as was the entire street so went to Bonfyre. Bonfyre was pretty empty. The atmosphere at Bonfyre should and could be a 5 star...get rid of your bug problem!“

“I've eaten all over the world, this is one of the best restaurant experiences I've had in my life. It's not fussy and rehearsed to the moment, instead down to earth, delicious and free flowing with a 90s hip hop soundtrack and laughter abounding. Run do not walk to this restaurant.“

“We were visiting Madison for a business trip. Kelly at Morgan's shoes suggested we go here for oysters. We had the most amazing dinner, oysters on the half shell and wrapped it up with an unbelievably good coffee and date ice cream 😋 Our experience was so good we decided to go back a second night! Oysters and dinner were fantastic! Too full for dessert Such a beautiful location, great service and delicious food. Highly recommend 👌“

“We always enjoy going to Dave and Busters. Our favorite games are there. The manager is very nice. It's a bit pricey but worth for a good date night!! The food is good!!! The drinks are good too!!“

“Good drinks menu but the food was so-so. Flavors unremarkable. No information on the menu for those who are lactose or gluten intolerant which is easy to flag on menus these days. And the random delivery of small plates, which was to be expected, could have been a little bit more even for our table of four. And worth letting us know, when we order, which dishes might take quite a bit longer to prepare and deliver. Nice ambiance and good lighting. 3/5.“

“We ate here last year for Valentine’s Day! Amazing ambiance and food. Highly recommended to all 10 out of 10 stars“

“Our table ordered a mix of breakfast and lunch plates. All were delicious! The staff were very friendly. Seated quickly, got to order right away, and the food came fast. We all enjoyed watching them fuel up a plane and take off! Kids loved their paper planes too. ✈️ Plan to be back!“

“Always consistently good food and great customer service!“

“Best breakfast buffet for a hotel. Not free though. Nice workers. Nice decor. Inside the Doubletree Hotel so very convenient.“

“We had an absolute blast here with our dogs! The covered, dog-friendly patio was perfect—especially when it started pouring rain. We stayed completely dry and were able to enjoy our visit without missing a beat. The staff were some of the friendliest people we've ever met and made us feel so welcome. We happened to visit while Wish Upon A Wiener was hosting a pop-up, and it was incredible! The hot dogs were huge, absolutely delicious, and have officially become my new favorite. This place is an absolute must-visit, and we'll definitely be back!“

“Great friendly staff in an awesome atmosphere to enjoy any games. great food as well.“

“😍🌮🍔🥪🍟Tried a few things already and brought other people there. Everything has been good and the wait staff are awesome“

“This was a great experience during restaurant week. The food was so good - my main dish was ahi tuna, but all 5 of us enjoyed our 3 course meals. The waitresses were very kind and the meal came quickly. It was a very quiet space for being so expansive.“

“This was a really neat hole-in-the-wall that is connected to the neighboring bar. You order at the counter and your food is delivered to you. The menu is on the small side, but everything I tried was quite good. Not much atmosphere for itself, but the bar it is connected to has tons of wisconsin dive bar atmosphere.“

“Thank you Lily and Tip Top for hosting some weary travelers with amazing food and a dog friendly patio. We had the best food, and the patio was like an oasis, beautiful!“

“Heard from friend's that the Friday Fish Fry was worth checking out, and they were right. I had a platter with two pieces of cod, one piece of walleye and one piece of perch. The entree included a small helping of fries, a small serving of coleslaw and tartar sauce, plus a choice of potato, so I chose the homemade potato chips. My companion had the two piece cod dinner. Our dinner also included complimentary warm bread and butter. I particularly liked the chips and the flavor of the perch. We each had a drink so the meal came out to about $40 before tip. Neither of us left feeling hungry. Highly recommended.“

“Excellent soup and salad bar“

“Been too long. Pesto chicken flatbread (and the service) was awesome. Great lunch spot!“

“Been there a few times and their staff have always been super nice. Place is relatively new and very clean. Honestly my go to place for some comfort food in Madison!“

“I want to recognize the outstanding service of Chrisi! Second day at her work and she has given us the best service ever from all the time we've been here to eat! Her attitude was amazing, always smiling, recommending deserts despite being busy! Food was delicious but BRAVO for her!!!!!!!!!!!!!! La Brioche is lucky to have her as part of the staff!!!!! Thank you again for making our brunch so bright!!“

“Had a tater tot appetizer with guacamole and the side bar burger. Brad had the loner burger that was not a lone. It was a lot to eat so will be having some of this for lunch tomorrow. Yummy!!“

“We Decided to try today while out on a motorcycle ride. We Arrived and walked in and were immediately greeted by staff. The atmosphere was nice and friendly. The staff was friendly. We ordered our drinks and food. We got the Prime Rib Sandwich with onion rings and the Philly Cheesesteak sandwich with fries. Both of the sandwiches were amazing. Very tasty and juicy upon first bite to the Last bite with the right amount of meat and vegetables/mushrooms with it. The fries were just right...not to crispy. The onion rings were a tad overdone and really crispy. Overall the food and drinks were 10/10. We will be back.“

“Our son just moved to Madison so we’re looking for local places to frequent, Slice’s is definitely on the list! Delicious food, friendly staff, good prices. Did the Friday fish fry and it was fantastic.“

“great food, and even greater people“

“We absolutely love this place! Homemade everything! Our new discover in our new neighborhood and never disappointed!
The corned beef hash, chicken fried steak (not those Sysco discs) seriously wonderful food and the best wait staff ever!
Thank you for all the effort!“

“College visit with the daughter and we dined here with friends on Saturday 28th Sept and being originally from the UK, and seeing the fish and chips were haddock (not cod) I immediately had to have them and they were the best fish and chips this side of the “pond” having put up with 12 years of “just ok” fish and chips, these were amazing. Not only were the fish and chips good, but every dish was a winner. I am now praying my daughter gets into the college as I will be a regular here.“

“This is a grill located in the holiday inn at American center. The staff is friendly and drinks were good. They have a thin crust pizza and pitcher deal. Service was good and this is a convenient place to unwind if you don’t want to leave the hotel.“

“Grabbed a quick bite before event. Food was okay. Service was fine but bar can get busy which slowed things down. As it got busier seemed like hostess was losing track of which tables in bar area were actually open or not because you had to leave your table to go to the bar to order.“

“Best Madison dive bar, hands down!“

“Went on a Wednesday afternoon, since I was on campus for work that day and wanted to try something new. They had the special of buffalo chicken wrap, grilled or crispy. It was SO good. I’ve been thinking of it since 😂! The had generous amounts of chicken on it, which is always nice. The service was excellent too. Definitely will be going back when I’m on campus again. 😋“

“Amazing fish tacos today!!“

“Made a date out of coming here for my girlfriend's birthday, and both of us share the sentiment that this may be one of the best restaurants in Madison!

Our server, Ellie, was absolutely amazing. She is incredibly knowledgeable, and gave us recommendations on her own favorite things to try. That, paired with the frequent check-ins on how we're doing, made for a very enjoyable time here.

Regarding the food, I wish I took photos of everything (the photo of the Field and Berry Mocktail+vodka should suffice as a tell for how beautiful everything is)! I got their seasonal burger (which had a fun green chile spread), and my girlfriend got the cavatelli, both of which were stellar. Our cheese curds and 'bread and spread' appetizers were out of this world also.

As if those things of note weren't enough, Graze sources all of their restaurant ingredients locally, showing us just how much they care about the Wisconsin community. We'll definitely be back, the seasonally rotating menus will certainly excite us every time.

Give Graze a shot if you haven't gone, it's worth it 1000%! :)“

“We stopped at this Madison WI Culvers on our way to Rockford today and our 16mo made friends walking around the restaurant after we ate. The manager was so nice to her, gave her 2 stuffies and meal cards for our next stop through! Thanks, Ana! We'll see you again in a few weeks. :)“

“I’m perpetually impressed with the quality of food at Dextie’s. The staff is like family. Incredibly professional, personable, and friendly.“

“how can you go wrong, awesome menu, lovely bartenders & great cooks... I'd be surprised if you have a bad thing to say here“