I'm going to be visiting your lovely city in a couple weeks, and I'm wondering if anyone knows of a pub/taphouse in town with a large selection of beers. extra points if they have great food too! Thanks!

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Coffee
Best coffee in town?

I don't drink coffee but I'm looking to get a gift card/certificate for a friend who's addicted...

TIA!

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Eid foods?
Any suggestions on where a girl might go to buy good pre-made baklava and/or pita bread? (I'm looking for the thin Levant/North African style pita rather than the thicker Greek/Israeli kind that most US grocery stores have).

(I'm a touch too lazy to make all my own Eid food...)

(x-posted to madisonwi)

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Vegetarian Fare?
I'm eagerly awaiting the comments to the post below about cannolis - I've never actually had one, but they sound good in concept.

I have friends coming into town next weekend, and since they are all vegetarians, I need suggestions on restaurants to take them. We're all poor or semi-poor grad students, so nothing too, too fancy. (Thirteen dollars on an entree is the most I can afford, and really, I don't want to go that high unless absolutely necessary.) Also restaurants don't need to be one-hundred-percent vegetarian, just have a couple veg-friendly options available. I've been to a couple places on State St. that had only one veggie option available. We're open to any type of cuisine, the only restriction being location - downtown/near east Madison or the campus area are best.

Thanks in advance!

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fresh cannolis.
hi all! since everyone in this community is so helpful i figured id ask about cannolis here. my boyfriend has been wanting a FRESH (like, everything for the cannoli made that morning fresh) cannoli for months. any ideas on bakeries that sell them? i know the italian grocery store on regent does, but the filling isnt made that morning, it comes from a big tub. any area of madison works, as long as its fresh. thanks!

xposted to madisonwi

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Liliana's in fitchburg
I've heard good things about Lilian's, but my first (and probably my last) lunch there was horrible.

lets start with..
*Sharp Cheddar Filled Hush Puppies with Cherry Honey Mustard - $7

they were burnt and oil soaked on the outside and bland and very dry on the inside..had one bite and left the rest.

next

Black Bean Soup with Andouille and Lardon Cup - $5 Bowl - $8

Tasted like some one opened a can of refried black beans and scatter a few peices of corn in a bowl..Zero flavor and on top of that it wasn't even hot..barely above room temperature.. took three of four bite because I usually love black beans..then gave up..

and finally
Andouille, Chicken and Blackened Shrimp with Parpadelle Pasta and Red Pepper Cream Sauce - $13

The pasta was over cooked to the point of being mushy...the cayenne was noticeable ( i like hot food) but that and the rue were the only discernible flavors..


final report...
Poorly cooked, under spiced and over priced..
But hey their plating was good. It looked lovely..

Not a fan

I'll go back to new orleans take out for my cajun thank you


well here is there website anyway..
http://www.lilianasrestaurant.com/
If you do go there I sould suggest you make sure some one else is picking up the tab..

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Le Chardonnay
I've seen the Menu for this place online, sounds fantastic! What I'm wondering for anyone who's been there is, what's the atmosphere like? I'm looking for like an intimate place, dim, romantic. My Fiance and I are looking for a nice date spot for the day after Valentine's day.

Thanks!

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Somewhere Intimate & Eclectic to eat?
I need some good suggestions for a nice place to have dinner for a small, intimate, girl's night out. Fairly cheap too. We're going to start out at Ma.Cha Tea House on Monroe St. I was looking at Bluephies, I've never been there, but was looking at it online. Not very intimate, but great looking food, and also on Monroe. Not bad prices. Or something Kinda like Nat Spill. (Just wanted to try something new, I've already been there, but I'd like a place like that)

Throw em' at me!
Thanks!

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Ice cream?
I know that Wisconsin is considered "the dairy state" but since moving here four months ago as a student, I haven't had local ice cream once (just Ben & Jerry's). So here's a question because I'm curious and planning an ice cream outing on Friday (the end of my exams): what's your favorite place in Madison to get ice cream? (Feel free to tell me about favorite flavors too - I'm adventurous but I am allergic to nuts.)

Also, I don't think this community has tags (I haven't found any) but would anyone else be interested in adding them? Or starting a "Memories" section...I think it would make the community more efficient, since some questions are probably asked over and over.

Current Mood: studying

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Fish Fry!
Suggestions for a good fish fry in Madison? We live in Verona, so places on the West Side or even downtown are preferred.

Thanks!

Current Mood: hungry

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I have a ton of work to do for school (sigh) tonight but I'm also fasting, which means I need to eat but won't have time to cook. I'm also new in town and don't know what's available in terms of delivery.

So couple questions for everyone: favorite place to order delivery from? And then more specifically, if you're so inclined: favorite place to order Chinese food delivery? favorite place to order Mexican food delivery?, etc. (And maybe, best-kept secret to order delivery from?)

Also, I live near the Kohl Center if that's any help as to delivery area.

Current Mood: hungry

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all unioned out...
If one were looking for coffee, internet, and a view of water, where would one go?

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Anniversary Dinner!
So I want to take the beautiful woman who's agreed to share her life with me out to dinner for our anniversary. We're both budding foodies, and I'm just afraid Taco Bell ain't gonna cut it. What I'm looking for is in the range of $75-100 for two, upscale atmosphere and, most of all, absolutely delicious. I'm looking Madison local, so as much as I'll file away any Milwaukee recommendations for the future that's too far for a weekday night. Any suggestions you all have to throw out?

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Vietnamese Cuisine
My husband and I went to eat at T&M's Vietnamese, over on Grand Canyon on the West Side the other day and really enjoyed it. He had a stir-fry chicken with cashews (spicy) and I had Pho. Both were excellent.

I've found it difficult to get good asian cuisine here in Madison (especially Japanese! The sushi is just not. that. good.), so I was pleasantly surprised by the fresh flavors in the Pho and the stir-fry. Check it out!

(cross posted to MadisonWI)

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Lao Laan Xang Willy vs Atwood
I've been to the Lao Laan Xang on willy st many times.  It's one of my favorites. 

But they are closed on sunday, so I got some takeout from the Lao Laan Xang on Atwood yesterday while shopping nearby.  Their menu lacks many of my favorites from the willy st location (such as the cliched but tasty Panang). 

I therefore decided to order two curry dishes I've never had at LLX before:  the mango curry, and I think it was called kang phet (yellow curry with pea pods, bamboo, and potatoes).  Both were pretty bland and disappointing.  The mango curry has fresh mango but the sauce is pretty bland.  The other had good veggies but the sauce seemed no better than what I'd get if I took a $1 paste from Yue Wah and added water.  I ordered them 2 stars and 3 stars, both were about like one star at vientiane.  I remember it being a lot hotter at the willy st location in the past. 

Is this normal for the atwood location?  I've had a mango curry at King & I on 2nd street in milwaukee and it was delicious.  This stuff was not even close.

Off day?  What gives?  The last thing I expect when getting a laotian curry is bland.

Current Mood: disappointed

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Where's the best place to get Mexican food around here?
My husband is from New Mexico and is longing for something that tastes like "home" after living in Northern Wisconsin farm communities for the last 2-1/2 years where anything even remotely "ethnic" is completely unavailable.

Somewhere family friendly would be perfect because we have a two year old and are too new to town to have yet found a sitter.

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Summer drinks
I'm not much of a barfly, but...

1) Who's got some good sangria in town, both of the white and red varieties? One I had at Paisan's wasn't bad (though I asked for white and it was darn red and very juicy) but the one I had at Wonder's tasted kind of heavy on the club soda or something.

2) Has anyone been to a place that does a Pimm's Cup?

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Creative juices
This morning at gotham bagels, they had a pineapple juice with mint and a bit of spice.  I like it quite a bit.  Prior to that I had tried their cranberry with lavender juice, also good.

What are some other inventive uses of juice around town?

Current Mood: curious

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Helloooo!
Hi. I'm new to this list but enjoying it so far. I've been a food-obsessed person for over 40 years, and worked in local restaurants for over six years until a couple of work-related knee injuries ended both my dream job and career. Now I work a desk job and dream of running my own restaurant someday.

So, I was wondering if any of the writers on this list are current or veteran restaurant workers. Any gossip? Horror stories? Pleasant surprises? Recipes? Advice on where NOT to go?

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Distinctly Madisonian?
Hello all. I've been living in Madison since February and I've enjoyed some places to eat and could have passed on others. Still I don't get out to eat as much as I might like. Now I've got guests coming in for the weekend and I'd like to take them out to dinner someplace that is wholly Madisonian. By that I mean a restaurant that exists only in the Madison area that you feel represents the city. I'd like something that isn't too expensive (neither I nor my guests are rich enough for that) and the closer to the West Side/Middleton area the better. They're coming up Friday so any leads I would appreciate very much!

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