The Continental Opens in Fitchburg
By MadisonDining.com on Mar 09, 2007 in New Restaurants
The Continental
2784 S. Fish Hatchery Rd.
Fitchburg, WI
608-661-4161
The Continental has opened in the building which formerly housed La Paella. This new restaurant is run by the same people who operate Cafe Continental in downtown Madison. We’ll be checking it out and we’ll let you know what we think. If you’ve tried it, let us know by either leaving a review here, or by adding a comment to this entry.
Been there, loved it. Will return. Excellant food, delicious desserts. Owner came out to our table and greeted us. Wonderful experience.
I went a few weeks ago and was quite dissappointed. The octupus was cold and extremely rubbery and my pasta was bland (though, the homemade noodles were good). The service was great and the ambiance was nice. Because I went when it first opened, I will try again in a few months hoping typical ”opening” errors have been fixed.
I’m not sure where these people have been, but the Continental we have our Corporate Events at EVERY month, treats us like Kings and Queens. The staff is always attentive, the food is superior, and the guests always have a fantastic time!
We took a chance and are VERY glad we did! We highly recommend it!
Well, when you have corporate events spending all that money, you’re more likely to get treated like a king or queen. So don’t boast here. Go there on your own and see the service!!!
I like the atomosphere of The Continental but was dissapointed in the food and service. Bad, bad, bad service. They don’t seem real concerned with keeping the customer happy. You may have a good thing going downtown but don’t bet the rent on your Fitchburg location!
Love the patio but hate the service. Nobody bothered to mention to us that it was happy hour (i overheard another server telling the table near by) beanwhile, I had left money on the bar to cover a glass of wine (at full price) but it was 1/2 price for happy hour. I mentioned to both the server (she said she would do something about it but never did) and AGAIN to the bartender Tom who stated, “you went to the patio before I could give you the bill” and when I mentioned that nobody told me about happy hour he said “well everyone that comes here during this time knows about happy hour”. Didn’t offer to make things right and I was so mad I didn’t ask for money back which I should have since he ended up w/ a seven dollar tip. To top it off, confusion amongst wait staff meant we waited for 15 minutes on patio before someone came to us and we got our second glass of wine AFTER our meal was already finished (it was ordered w/ food). Service mistakes happen, it’s how you address it that makes or breaks the deal. In this case, it wasn’t addressed at all.
I love the Continental. The food is wonderful and I like the laid back feel. I’ve returned again and again.
My husband and I enjoy going to ‘Cafe’ Continental’ downtown. Last year we decided to try the ‘Continental’ in Fitchburg. Unfortunately our first experience wasn’t positive. We did however give it another try last weekend and I have to say we were very impressed. As soon as we walked in we were warmly greeted and seated immediately. Our server was friendly and helpful and our wine and appetizers were brought out shortly after ordering. Our main meal was delicious and the portion sizes were very generous. And then there was dessert…….If you are looking for a great vibe (the atmosphere was relaxed but classy), great service, wonderful food, an excellent wine selection and delicious desserts, then this is your restaurant. Our server mentioned to us that the ‘Continental’ is under new management. We will definitely be going back.
I am sorry to hear that many of you had a bad experience there. I just ate there last night and Jim Schiavo greeted us right as we walked in. The service was excellent, even the bartender was a great help. When we were leaving Jim told us that they will soon have menu items available that were from Antonio’s. We also offered a suggestion of having the mushroom crepes as an appetizer and he told us whenever we want them to just let them know and we can have them with any meal. I can’t wait to go and try the items from Antonio’s. I never had a chance to eat there before they closed so I am looking forward to Grandma Schiavo’s recipes. We will definately be going back also.
I love The Continental in Fitchburg. My lady and I go in at least once on the weekends for drinks and dinner. The service is always prompt and friendly. Its nice to have a service staff that isn’t pushy or annoying. Amazing food, you can tell some thought goes into it and the specials are always a good choice!
Can’t wait for Valentine’s dinner!
Mayabe it took a while to organize, but my husband and I just ate there and found not one thing to complain about. The service was good the food great.
We received a gift certificate for our 50th wedding anniversary.
I don’t know what all of those before us complained about but we had a great experience, and we have eaten in restaurants all across the country and Europe so know a good meal when we get one
Great people. Great Atmosphere. GREAT FOOD. Recipe for success. Whenever I have people in town, I take them here, never disappointed.
Highly recommended!
June 20th, 2008:
It was my wife’s birthday so we took her and her parents and brother and sister in law out to eat here. The waitress did not tell us any specials and when our calamari came it was way over cooked so we had to send it back. After that we waited about 30 minutes for our entrees and never saw the waitress, so I went to ask the man at the front if we could get served and he said we would just have to wait. I told him m wife read on the internet that their service was not the best, and he told me I was not welcomed back. he told me to go eat on the internet and came unglued. I went back to the table and we finally got served after which we paid and tipped and were leaving.
On the way out the owner came over and said it was good to fire a customer once and ahwile and that he was firing me “Mr. Internet Man”. At that point he started to physically get us out of the restaurant and used a lot of swear words.
The net is that this is a terrible managed restaurant.
As the server of Jack’s table last night, I would like to clear the air of this situation. First of all, their table of 6 had reservations for 6 pm; however, they showed up 45 minutes late. (All while we held their table during the dinner rush). While it is true that their calamari was overcooked, our owner gladly replaced it with a fresh dish himself and made sure they were satisfied. During this time, i checked on their table twice, offering more water, drinks, etc, making sure their appetizers were fine. About 10 minutes after Jack approached our owner complaining that their food was taking too long, their tables orders came through (they had 2 separate steak orders, prepared medium and medium well). Take into consideration this was the dinner rush and we have a 80 + person patio filled, as well as 3 separate dining rooms.
As an apology, the owner offered an after dinner drink sambuca to the entire table, which they promptly refused. I brought them their check and cleared their table. On the check, the man had written “the service was terrific but i’m leaving 15% anyway.” As a person in the service industry, i depend on the kindness of others to pay my bills. Please don’t leave snide comments on a check. I apologize if you weren’t given the absolute perfect service, but i also had other tables and duties to juggle. As i recall, your bar drinks and water were always full and, while you were waiting for your meals, i tried to give you some space as i could tell it was a special occasion.
First of all our reservation was for 6:30 PM not 6 PM and the whole section of the restaurant we were in was empty. The second point is that I wrote the service was “terrible but I’m leaving a tip anyway” not the word “terrific”.
Our biggest mistake was going to this restaurant after reading all the poor reviews on their service and the unprofessionalism shown by the owner Jim. Since the majority of the letters on this site say the same thing I’m saying I don’t feel it is worth the debate. My only point would be if you want to have an enjoyable dinner out I would pick another restaurant to go to.
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went last night. wanted a Manhattan. asked what kind of bourbon they had. Jim Beam. That was it. OK. had an old fashioned instead (bad). Sat down for dinner looked at the wine and spirits list. Makers Mark, Wild Turkey and Woodford Reserve were all listed (Southern Comfort was listed too; who the heck thinks that is bourbon?) My wife had a Ketel One Citroen cocktail and he ran out while making the cocktail; He just left the cocktail short and served it. Then he went downstairs and got another bottle. Next cocktail had a normal level. I was totally put off by the bar experience. Awesome food and service though. I’ll just cocktail at Liliana’s and then go over to the Continental after.
I’d never been to the Continental before, and was expecting to have a poor experience based on all of the comments here. They may be well-deserved, but in the interest of fairness, my happy hour experience was just fine. Not amazing, not life-changing, but fine and serviceable. I had a bruschetta-type appetizer, which was quite good, and my wine was very good. Service is definitely strange there- hard to put your finger on it, but there’s a noticeable vibe that’s slightly uncomfortable….
I’ll go back again, as it’s convenient to my office. Otherwise, eh.