Madison · United States
The Madison food cheat sheet
One page from Chef Amazing · November 2026
The dish to eat
Beer-battered fish with coleslaw, rye bread, tartar sauce and fries or potato pancakes, served every Friday.
Best at Toby's Supper Club, South side. Get: Fish fry, with a brandy old fashioned
Five places, and what to order
- Mickies Dairy Barclassic · Monroe StreetGet: Pancakes as big as the plate
- Paul's Pel'menicounter · DowntownGet: Pel'meni, potato or beef, or half and half
- Babcock Hall Dairy Storeshop · UW campusGet: A scoop of Babcock ice cream
- The Old Fashionedfor cheese curds · Capitol SquareGet: Fried cheese curds
- The Daily Scoop at Memorial Unionfor ice cream · UW campusGet: A scoop or a hand-packed pint of Babcock
The market
Open-air farmers market. Wisconsin cheese, seasonal produce, baking
In season this November
Farmers' market produce · Friday fish fry · Fried cheese curds
How it works here
Tip: Tip 18-22% at sit-down restaurants, a dollar or two a drink at the bar.
Book: Book the hot places on Resy or OpenTable, often the day tables drop (2-4 weeks out); counters and slices are walk-in.
When locals eat: Lunch noon-2pm, dinner 6-9pm; it gets late only in the big cities.