It’s Madison Restaurant Week, organized by Madison Magazine.  Participating restaurants feature three options of three course dinners, all for just $25.  Some restaurants also choose to offer a three course lunch for $15.  Restaurant week runs from July 27 - August 1, 2008

We sampled a number of restaurants last time, and enjoyed each and every one of them.  This is a great chance to try that new restaurant you’ve been thinking about, or revisit one of your old favorities.

• Here’s the list of partipcipating restaurants for this event:
• Blue Marlin*
• Café Continental
• Capitol Chophouse*
• Captain Bill’s
• The Continental Fitchburg
• The Dardanelles
• Dayton Street Grille at The Madison Concourse Hotel and Governor’s Club
• Eldorado Grill
• Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar
• Fresco
• Harvest
• Inka Heritage*
• Johnny Delmonico’s
• Le Chardonnay
• Liliana’s Restaurant
• Lombardino’s
• Mariner’s Inn
• Ocean Grill
• Osteria Papavero*
• Pedro’s Mexican Restaurant
• Quiveys Grove Stable Grill*
• Quiveys Grove Stone House
• Taqueria Guadalajara*
• Taste of Asia*

(The starred restaurants are also serving lunch). Find out more, including what each restaurant is serving by going to Madison Magazine.

Please bear with us as we migrate our site to a brand new design. We know that there are going to be problems along the way, and we ask for your patience!

Nominations Now Open

The 2008 Mad Diner Award Nominations are now open!

Madison Dining Online is holding our Second Annual Mad Diner Awards! Nominate your favorite Madison area restaurants now!  The final elections will be held this fall, and they’ll be based on your nominations! 

Don’t wait, Cast your vote here!

The Wisconsin State Journal reports today that Erin’s Snug Irish Pub has given up their liquor license.  As this is an Irish Pub, this seems to insinuate that Erin’s is no longer planning on being in business.

We haven’t heard that Erin’s was closing - Anyone out there have any info on this?  If so, add a comment and let us know.

Edit:  A helpful Mad Diner notified us that Erin’s is not going out of business.  There seems to have been a snafu with the license, which should be resolved shortly.  Read the comment here.

Other establishments who have given up their license include Prime Table Restaurant on Monona Drive and Pelayo’s Mexican Restaurant on South Stoughton Road.

The Angelic Brewing Company (which hasn’t been a brewery for years) closed their doors abruptly last week.  No word on a replacement establishment as of yet!

Talula Has Opened

Madison’s Far East side should be brimming with dining hope.  Talula has opened, and we’re excited.

First, by way of explanation, I am a Madisonian, born and bred.  I grew up on the North side.  Having said that, I’ve lived on the East Side for my entire adult life.  Most people who aren’t from around these parts don’t understand that there is a difference between the North side and the East side of Madison.  But that’s neither here nor there.  My real point is that I know this building and the restaurants that it has housed very well, and long before it was pink.   I knew it when it was The Pig’s Ear.  I knew it when it was CJ’s.  I knew it when it was, briefly, Mexicali Rose (who left the pinkness as a lingering mark on the landscape).

But enough reminiscing.  Now it is Talula, and we hope that it stays Talula for a very long time.  Co-owned by a former co-owner of Fyfes Corner Bistro, that fact alone has us watching this new place closely.  We’ve been to Talula three times now.  The first time was to stop in for a drink and check it out.  Unfortunately it was far too busy for the drink, but we still checked out some of the changes. 

The next time we went, we chose a Sunday evening in hopes of avoiding any large crowds.  We were successful in that endeavor.  While the restaurant was busy, it wasn’t packed to the gills.  We settled into our booth after the hostess graciously agreed to our request that we be seated next to a window rather than tucked away next to the bar area where we were initially lead.  Special seating requests didn’t seem to create the least bit of turmoil.

Talula's Menu

The dinner menu is small but varied.  Those familiar with Fyfes will immediately recognize the very strong influence that it had on Talula’s menu.  Appetizers range from Atlas Crab Cakes ($12.95) to Spicy Edamame ($4.95).  There’s also a noteworthy Artichoke Crostini ($9.95) and a Talula Snack Platter ($11.95), consisting of assorted cheeses, fruits, crackers and Deviled Eggs.

The Round of Drinks

But we ordered drinks, skipped the appetizers and went right to the meal. 

Selections include salads, pasta dishes, a hefty selection of sandwiches and a rather small selection of entrees.  Entrees include Filet Mignon in a Pink Peppercorn Cognac sauce ($25.95), Marinated Skirt Steak with a Citrus Beurre Blanc ($20.95), Tenderloin Kabobs ($19.95), Chicken Breast with Teriyaki Mushroom Sauce ($13.95), Cioppini (Fish Stew) ($19.95), Pork Loin with Cranberry Port Sauce ($13.95), and Salmon with Raspberry Coule ($17.95).

Each entree comes with a choice of a house salad, a wedge salad, or soup.  They are also served with the seasonal vegetables or “Spiced Corn”.  We chose to order the Tenderloin Kabob and the Sunday Evening special, Roasted Chicken ($10.95).

I firmly believe that the way to test a restaurant is to order their chicken dish.  Things can go spectacularly wrong when a restaurant attempts to prepare chicken.  It is with pleasure that we report that the chicken was very good and Talula passed the “Chicken Test”.  Well prepared, moist, tender, and filling, this special was very “down home basic”, but it hit the spot.  The Tenderloin Kabob was a very good cut of beef, and it was also moist and tender.  The grilled zucchini and squash was perfectly, crisply cooked.

Talula's Chandalier

As we dined we were entertained to see that some things will probably never change.  The extremely awful chandelier which has been there since The Pig’s Ear days was still in service, and still as awful as ever.  But at this point it must be considered kitschy tradition.

We left Talula happy, and eager to return to try out the patio for lunch.

And so we did.

Talula Patio Seating

The patio is a pleasant place to relax on a nice day.  It doesn’t have the best view, facing a large expanse of blacktop parking lot to the front, and a busy Highway 51 to the side.  But still, in a city surprisingly void of outdoor dining, we’ll take it.

There are many sandwiches and salads on the lunch menu.  It would be hard to not find something you would like to order.  We chose to start with chips and salsa ($4.95) while we waited in the bar for a table to open up outside.  It didn’t take long, and we moved outdoors to enjoy our Applewood Smoked Bacon Cheeseburger ($8.95) and our Basil-Marinated Chicken Sandwich ($8.95).

 The sandwiches were substantial, served on a ciabatta-style bun, with a mound of perfectly cooked French Fries (a side salad was another option).  Both sandwiches were served piled high with grated cheese, which was a refreshing change from a traditional slice.  If possible, there was perhaps too much cheese.  Is that possible?  We’ve never been faced with making that call before.

With the solid menu, the good food, and smooth and efficient servce, we’ll be making Talula a routine stop in our dining repertoire.  We hope that the East Side adopts this restaurant as a new neighborhood tradition.  It beats most of the alternatives within many miles.

Talula
802 Atlas Ave. (off Cottage Grove Road)
Madison  608-441-1977
Hours: 11 am-10 pm Mon.-Fri., 4 pm-10 pm Sat.-Sun.

Talula
802 Atlas Avenue, Madison (off Cottage Grove Road)
441-1977

Talula has opened on Madison’s far east side. Occupying the spot that was the long-time CJ’s, followed by the short-term Mexicali Rose, Talula’s still maintains the pink building and the patio seating (hold-overs from the Mexicali Rose days).

We stopped in for a drink on a recent Friday night to check the place out, but it was far too crowded for even that. So we scoped out the changes made to the interior (good improvements!), and noticed a very familiar face - Keith Blew, recently of the dearly departed Fyfe’s Corner Bistro.

We loved Fyfe’s with a passion, and we have already carved out a spot on our calendars to check this place out. Check back for the full review, and if you’ve already tried the place, leave a comment and let us all know what you think!

(Updated review can be found here.)

We here at Madison Dining can be found roaming the Dane County Farmers Market each and every Saturday morning.  Hit the circuit by 6 AM and you’ll more than likely bump into us.  We’re the ones gulping the coffee down like it is going out of style.  Here are just a few of photos of a recent journey around the square:

To see more Farmers Market photos, as well as a recipe for Spring Green Salad Milanese (inspired by a first course at Lombardinos!) visit Madison Dining Online’s sister site, Cooking Out of the Box.  This site is dedicated to local Farmers Markets, CSA programs, and the challenge of cooking with locally grown, fresh, seasonal produce.

Sure, the title of this entry may seem a bit startling, but we believe that the fairly melodramatic societal commentary that the opening of the Tilted Kilt has created is worthy of such a proclamation.

We couldn’t resist. We went to visit the Tilted Kilt within days of opening to see what the fuss was about. And we found a restaurant which certainly may be a bit heavy on the clientele testosterone, but which also serves food that stands up to the test, for the most part.

First, to explain: One reviewer was male, one reviewer was female. This may create some balance to the views expressed (though the female did write this review).

We arrived at the Tilted Kilt around noon, only to find the parking lot packed to the gills and the curbs along the street lined, amusingly, with pick up trucks, work vehicles of all kinds, and midlife crisis-styled sports cars. Spilling from the doors was a line of gentlemen of all ages and shapes, patiently awaiting admittance into the restaurant. There was no end to the male species of diner, but the female persuasion was very under-represented.

When questioned, we were told that there would be a 25 minute wait for a table. We decided to take our chances by looking for a quicker seat at the bar, and we snapped up a couple of the few remaining vacancies.

Tilted Kilt Beer Selection

The first thing we noticed were the beers on tap. Selections ranged from Sam Adams, Killians Red and Coors Light, to more specialty beers like Capital Maibock and Amber, Spotted Cow, Blue Moon, and a Tilted Kilt label, produced by Leinies. The second thing noticed was the intermingled sounds of cackling men and Black Sabbath music.

But everyone seemed to be having fun in a very socially acceptable way.

Tilted Kilt Uniforms

So, do we start with the uniform critique, or with the food critique? Oh, what the heck, lets get the uniform critique out of the way first. By now everyone knows that the female staff dresses in very revealing push-up bra style tops and plaid skirts so short you hope that the server doesn’t drop anything that requires bending over to pick up. Errrr. Well. I don’t know if I speak for my fellow diners with that hope, but as the female reviewer on duty, I know I was pulling in favor of the dignity of the women. (photo taken from the Tilted Kilt website)

As my male reviewer-counterpart commented, ” The cleavage and belly button piercings are just fine so far….”. He also described the uniforms as being from the “Adam Ant 1980’s Music Video” period. From the female point of view, I do need to comment on the fact that while the women’s uniforms were shorter than short, the male bartenders, also in kilts, were covered to the knees. This smacks of discrimination for the female diner, to me.

Now that we’ve got that obligatory commentary out of the way, we’ll move on to the food. The menu is your typical sports bar sort of menu, with a somewhat forced Irish twist. The French Dip is corrected to be called the Irish Dip, and you will find other superficial nods to the British Isles along the way.

Tilted Kilt Meatloaf

We ordered the meatloaf with mashed potatoes and the fish and chips. The meatloaf was actually very good. It had sauteed peppers and onions atop, with the “loaf” meat loosely packed and flavorful. The mashed potatoes were borderline “instant”. Thin and relatively bland, a lot of improvement could be had there.

Tilted Kilt Fish and Chips

The fish and chips were a pleasant surprise. With a very good taste, and flakey inside, this fish exhibited none of the doughy, greasy tendancies that many deep fried fish plates tend to have. As a “British Isles” fish and chips afficianado, I smugly looked around for the malt to pour on the fish and the fries. I was surprised to find it…. until I went to pour it and found that the plastic coated safety seal had not been removed before I arrived on the scene. No fears, I can open a bottle.

Tilted Kilt Garlic Fries

When we placed our order, we had asked that the fries that came with the fish be replaced with garlic fries. Once served, and without a bit of garlic in sight, we reminded our bartender of our request for garlic fries. He looked closely at our basket of fries, agreed that they weren’t garlic fries and came back, good-naturedly, with a basket of garlic fries. To our chagrin, there was no difference. It became apparent that we had actually been served garlic fries to start, though we didn’t know it due to absence of garlic. Still, the fries were crisp and were some of the better fries I’ve had lately.

The gentlemen sitting next to us at the bar provided excellent company along the way. They had consumed a cheeseburger, which they said was acceptable and fit the bill. They were somewhat bemused by the fact that we were taking pictures of food instead of scantily-clad Colleens. They rapidly reached the conclusion that we were there to review the food and threw out some of their observations (positive as well).

Interior View

So, long story short, suck it up, Madison. The food is good for what it is , and if people want to go to the Tilted Kilt, let ‘em go. If you are offended by Wisconsin midriffs (because like or not, some of the midriffs we saw WERE products of a long Wisconsin winter), don’t go. If testosterone bothers you, avoid this place like the plague.

But, if you just want to go to a place with a solid sports bar menu, and if navel gazing at the servers doesn’t offend you, then by all means, go to the Tilted Kilt.

I still want to see the male staff in skirts several inches shorter, however. It is only fair.