Related Posts

• January 21, 2010 -- Madison Restaurant Week 2010 Kicks of January 24 (0)
• October 9, 2009 -- 2009 Dueling Chef Competition at the Madison Food and Wine Show (0)
• October 6, 2009 -- Ya hey, don’t ya know – It’s Lutefisk Season! (0)
• September 12, 2009 -- Green Forest Restaurant Moves In Next Door (0)
• June 28, 2009 -- Daisy Cafe and Cupcakery Serves Up More Than Bakery (0)
• June 28, 2009 -- Liliana’s Offers Tasting Menus, Entertainment (3)

The Africana is located right across the street from St. Bernard’s Church on Atwood. If you are approaching from the Monona side of town you can’t miss the colorful mural painted on the side of the building. We arrived early this evening and found we would have no trouble getting a table. As we ate, the place began to fill up. The service was a bit slow this particular night because the waitress who was scheduled that evening was sent home because of the Swine Flu, something tells us that we will see a lot of businesses challenged this winter with this same problem.  

The interior is painted a deep burnt orange with dark brown accents and colorful drapes on the windows. The tables and chairs have more of a diner feel to them but the seating was ample and we were not expecting “up-scale” décor. In reviewing the menu we found the entrées broken into three “build-your-own” combinations of Sauce, Grilled and Fried dishes. The Sauce dishes included a choice of sauce, side dish and type of meat. Choices of six different sauces are available with recommended side dish accompaniments.  The sauces included Peanut, Okra, Egusi (Pumpkin Seed), Yassa (Onions, mustard and lemon), Kedjenou (tomato, garlic) and Vegetable. Paired with these sauces are side dishes of Rice, Couscous, Fufu (yam) and Attieke (Couscous of Cassava). The meat included chicken, beef, lamb, fish and goat.

The Grilled and Fried entrées comes with a choice of fish or chicken with an onion and pepper and a carrot salad. You also have a choice of side dish which included 3 styles of rice, fries, Alloco (fried plantains) and Couscous.  

One of us selected the grilled dark meat chicken and fried rice the other was more adventuresome and elected the goat with white rice and vegetable sauce. The meal comes with a bowel of vegetable soup whose main ingredient was cabbage with carrots, zucchini and potato. It had a flavorful broth that was milder on the spices than we had expected. Unfortunately the soup was also cold when we got it, which we attributed to the wait staff challenge.

The goat in vegetable sauce was a hearty stew with chunks of carrot, tomato and tender goat meat (and bones). The flavor was quite mild; again without the spiciness we had anticipated. The second entrée seemed to be the better of the two. The dark meat chicken included two legs, two backs and a thigh that were grilled to perfection. You don’t see many restaurants serving the back of the chicken very often. This was always my grandmother’s favorite part (I don’t know why). The skin was crispy with a great grilled flavor and the meat was moist and flavorful. Topping the chicken was a salad of red onion and green peppers with a light dressing that complemented the veggies and the chicken. Alongside were a carrot salad and fried rice with a strong spice profile of cumin and pepper that was what we had expected to be more prevalent in the other dishes. We were quite full from the meals we ordered and did not opt to try any of the desserts (Crepes, Flan, Mango Ice Cream and Chocolate Cake).

Both of us enjoyed our meals and noted that we would definitely come back and try some of the other combinations Africana offers.

Africana, 2701 Atwood Avenue, is open for lunch buffet daily from 11am till 2:30pm and dinner from 5 pm till 9:30pm. At 10 pm Wednesday through Sunday the bar is open until 2 am, with a DJ and dancing on Friday and Saturday. Africana offers nightly specials and catering services as well.

Related Posts

• No Related Post

The Taste of Madison is an event that marks the unofficial end of summer. Through the years the Taste of Madison has been an opportunity for the areas dining public to get to know the local area restaurants. The “Taste” seems to have morphed into a music event with food.

 An event like the Taste of Madison can be a challenge for a restaurant to pull off. Assuming your budget can cover the $900 entry fee, food cost and labor for two days, you are still faced with trying to determine a food item that will showcase your restaurant and get people interested. Add to this the challenge of cooking and holding the offerings in Madison’s late summer heat and keeping the cost to under $5.

All this must be weighed against spending your marketing money in other ways to bring in business. This year it seemed that many restaurants decided to either reduce their marketing budget or find another way to spend it.

If you were to judge Madison’s restaurant scene by the vendors at this year’s event, you would think Madison was located somewhere in the Southeast Asia or south of the border. The event could have been called the “Taste of Crab Rangoon, Egg Roll and Quesadilla”.

Clearly the organizers had some trouble filling all of the slots with restaurants this year. It is hard to understand why you would have scooter sales or basement remodeling at a food event but more than likely you have to do what you can to fill the locations up. If you add to that the “Fair food” tents of cheese-fries, gyros, corn on the cob and deep fried cheese curds, you start to wonder where all the restaurants have gone.

There were quite a few catering businesses with booths this year and it seems that this is a great venue for them to reach a lot of people who may not know much about them. They also have the equipment to cook, hold and serve food at an outdoor event. While the restaurant participation was down this year, there were still a number of interesting items to be sampled.

Did you attend this years Taste of Madison? Leave us a comment and tell us what you thought.

Related Posts

• No Related Post

Related Posts

• October 6, 2009 -- A First Look At Kickshaw (15)
• September 17, 2009 -- Kickshaw American Cuisine To Open In Fitchburg (1)
• June 29, 2008 -- Talula Opens on Madison’s East Side (0)

Mad Diner Ratings:

Service:             
Atmosphere:      
Value:                
Food:                 
Overall Rating: 

Restaurant Details:
546 N. Midvale Blvd.,  441-1090
Open Daily, 11AM – 10PM

Related Posts

• June 28, 2009 -- Daisy Cafe and Cupcakery Serves Up More Than Bakery (0)
• June 28, 2009 -- Liliana’s Offers Tasting Menus, Entertainment (3)
• April 27, 2009 -- Madison and Dane County Area Farmers Markets (0)
• April 1, 2009 -- JT Whitney’s Status Revisited (1)
• February 22, 2009 -- Liquid Assets – The Season of Bock Beer (0)
• February 9, 2009 -- David Bacco Chocolats A Must for Valentines Day (and any other day) (2)
• December 27, 2008 -- 2008 Mad Diner Award Winners Announced! (0)
• October 8, 2008 -- Quivey’s Grove Celebrates Oktoberfest (0)
• September 19, 2008 -- Samba Brazilian Grill Review (6)
• September 4, 2008 -- Lazy Jane’s Cafe – Quick Byte Review (0)

Mad Diner Ratings:

Service:           
Atmosphere:     
Value:               
Food:               
Overall Rating:

Restaurant Details:
1358 Williamson St., 257-5263
Open daily for breakfast and lunch

Related Posts

• June 28, 2009 -- Daisy Cafe and Cupcakery Serves Up More Than Bakery (0)
• June 30, 2008 -- Talula Fills The Niche – Restaurant Review (5)
• June 28, 2009 -- Liliana’s Offers Tasting Menus, Entertainment (3)
• April 27, 2009 -- Madison and Dane County Area Farmers Markets (0)
• April 1, 2009 -- JT Whitney’s Status Revisited (1)
• February 22, 2009 -- Liquid Assets – The Season of Bock Beer (0)
• February 9, 2009 -- David Bacco Chocolats A Must for Valentines Day (and any other day) (2)
• December 27, 2008 -- 2008 Mad Diner Award Winners Announced! (0)
• October 8, 2008 -- Quivey’s Grove Celebrates Oktoberfest (0)
• September 19, 2008 -- Samba Brazilian Grill Review (6)

Mad City Crab House
122 State Street
Madison, WI
(608) 310-6933
Hours:  Open for lunch and dinner, Monday – Saturday

Mad City Crab House has been opened on State Street for nearly a year now,  filling the Madison need for a straight forward shellfish oriented restaurant.  We tried Mad City Crab House for lunch several weeks ago.  We found it to be bright and airy, evoking the feel of the Florida sea shore through the colors and overall decor.

The menu changes often, depending on fresh catches and crab that is freshly available at the time.  Not surprisingly, it is heavy on the crab, with most of the appetizers and other dishes being crab dishes.  On the surface, the prices seemed reasonable, with appetizers ranging from $6.95 for items like Jerk Calamari and Pan Seared Crab Cakes, to $8.95 for Stone Crab Claw Cocktails and for a plate of Oysters by the 1/2 dozen.

 We tried the Crab House Spin Dip ($7.95), a mixture consisting of Dungeness Blue Crab, spinach, artichoke hearts, cream cheese and parmesan cheese, served with garlic toast for dipping.  The dip had a good consistency, creamy from the cheese.  We’ve had better such dip, but this did hit the spot.

You can order your crab by the pound, which we did.  On this trip, we chose Crab Legs ($10/pound), and Stone Crab Claws ($12/pound).  The Claws are steamed in a white wine garlic sauce and have good flavor.

The Legs were served simply, with a side of drawn butter and a slice of lemon.  The legs were messy and hard to eat, as this restaurant doesn’t seem to believe in making the partaking of Crab Legs easy on their diners.  No slits were added to the shells, forcing the diner to wrestle their food into submission.  Surprisingly, no wet wipes are offered with the orders, and weren’t even available upon request, leaving bodily parts that came in contact during the wrestling match smelling of seafood.  If you are out for a business lunch, or heading back to the office after a more casual lunch, this can be a messy and awkward situation.

Overall, we liked this restaurant.  If you have a hankering for simple shellfish at a reasonable price, this fills the niche.

Related Posts

• July 11, 2008 -- Erin’s Snug Irish Pub Gives Up Liquor License? (0)
• June 30, 2008 -- Talula Fills The Niche – Restaurant Review (5)
• April 12, 2008 -- 1855 Saloon and Grill Restaurant Review (17)
• August 23, 2009 -- Madison Locals Tasting Event 2009 benefits REAP Food Group (0)
• April 1, 2009 -- JT Whitney’s Status Revisited (1)
• June 29, 2008 -- Talula Opens on Madison’s East Side (0)
• May 31, 2008 -- Dane County Farmers Market in the Spring (0)

We tried a couple of Mushroom and Swiss burgers along with the BLT club. Both sandwiches were well prepared and the waffle fries were crisp and nicely seasoned. I regret to say we did not sample any of the ice cream offerings that day. It was too cold and my diet wouldn’t allow for it.

If you’re travelling down Hwy 14 south of Madison, you should consider a detour through Oregon and a stop at BrouxNellie’s. I think you will like it.

Related Posts

• No Related Post

Hours:  Sun – Wed, 11am to 9 pm; Thurs – Sat: 11am to 3am

Madison has never been able to sustain a real hot dog joint, much to the chagrin of some of us here at Madison Dining Online.  We’ve often talked philosophically about why that is, and we’ve even identified the perfect spot to open such an establishment (we’re not telling though, because who knows, maybe someday…..).  At least one member of our team is a hot dog fanatic, and makes habits out of touring hot dog joints around the country.

And so it was with great interest that we took a trek to State Street and checked out Mad Dogs Chicago Style Eatery.  Located on Henry Steet in a small, unpretensious building, it looked quite promising from the outside.

Don’t go to Mad Dogs expecting to sit down and have a leisurely lunch.  Mad Dogs is extremely cosy, with no seating to speak of unless you count the three barstools placed under the very small railing built into the wall.  Instead, go to Mad Dogs expecting to get one of the only real, authentic hot dog experiences that you can find in Madison.

The menu consists of your typical hot dog menu; the Chicago Dog ($3.50) was an authentic Vienna hot dog, with onion, tomato, sport peppers, pickle spear, green relish, yellow mustard, poppyseed bun, and celery salt.  In other words not only everything you would expect on a Chicago Dog, but, additionally, everything you wouldn’t expect on one either.  Ketchup is not offered here, though you can put it on yourself if you really feel that you must.

You’ll also find “Naked Dogs”, “Chili Cheese Dogs”, “Maxwell Street Polish” sausage, Italian Beef, Italian Sausages, Taco-styled dogs, and other things on the menu.

The one thing you won’t find is cheese fries.  This is a staple in real Chicago Dog houses, but it appears that this may be a bit too ambituous for Mad Dogs.

Give Mad Dog’s a try if you are into hot dogs and other tubular meat. It’s as close as you are going to come to real Chicago-style dogs in Madison.

Related Posts

• No Related Post

Erin’s Snug Irish Pub has opened on the far East side of Madison.  Located way out in what used to be considered the outskirts of town, but now nestled into the development which has sprung up around American Family Insurance, it seems a natural fit for the area.

A midweek visit for dinner found readily available seating, if not parking.  The bar part of the pub was chock full of the after work crowd, and one can easily see why.  Much time, thought and attention has been given to this establishment’s bar.  Additionally, if you work in that area, the respectable watering holes are relatively few and far between.

But, we weren’t there to drink, we were there to dine.  Well, and to drink, one must confess.

We started out with pints of Smithwicks.  A note to those of you who have never ordered Smithwicks in Ireland.  Sure, it looks like it is pronounced Smith – Wicks.  But it isn’t.  And if you try to order it that way in County Cork, you’ll be booted from the pub.  In the east of Ireland, around Dublin, you can get away with ordering Smithwicks by pronouncing it “Smitticks”.  And that’s the way to order it in the US as well.  As you work your way west in Ireland, and as you consume more and more Smithwicks, the pronounciation becomes more rapid and slurred.  By the Ring of Kerry, you are bellying up to the bar and ordering a “Smcks”.  That’s right, no vowels.  But in reality, that’s neither here nor there, as this is, after all, a seemingly quick review about a Madison Irish Pub.

Erin’s goes out of their way to satisfy the American idealized notion of a true Irish pub.  It actually does a good job of that, living up to the stereotype that American’s have.  They have the right beers, they have the right Scotches, they have the right Irish Whiskeys.  These are all good things.  They also offer flights of Scotch, Whiskey, and a mixture of both.

They even have the right items on the food menu.  Bangors and Mash (well, that’s British, but…), Corned Beef, Shepherd’s Pie and Colcannon all make an appearance.  And American dishes appear as well, to satisfy the non-Irish in the crowd.  On our visit we tried the Shepherd’s Pie and the Chicken.

The Shepherd’s Pie was a ground beef based stew topped with Colcannon, served in a mini-crock.  For those unfamilar with Colcannon, it is a mixture of smashed potatoes, cabbage and kale. 

The chicken was not “chicken”.  While listed as “broiler” chicken on the menu, it was, in reality, a cornish game hen, and it was clear that this had caused the servers flack often.  Our waiter was very quick to point out that this was not a chicken, but a Cornish Game Hen as we ordered, causing us immediately to change our order from “one half a chicken” to “a whole chicken”.  Diners be warned.  It may seem very odd to order a whole chicken, but there isn’t much meat on one half of a Cornish Game Hen.  We thanked the server for the warning.

In an attempt to make the “chicken” more Irish, we asked for a substitute of Colcannon in exchange for the standard mashed potatoes.  Our server readily agreed, but the kitchen did not deliver, and our server didn’t catch it.  The hen was served over the standard mashed potatoes, which were actually fine.

Erin’s has been open for a few weeks now, and we’ll go back.  It is a very good place for a casual, inexpensive dinner, particularly on a cold winter afternoon or evening.  And next time we’ll try the Whiskey Flights.

Related Posts

• No Related Post