Chris Hynes
This could be the age of the tiny restaurant. Certainly mid-century supper clubs with their many rooms and leather-padded captains chairs mark a different dining age. Smaller and nimbler are hallmarks of ours.
The great small restaurant is always large enough. It is more than a takeout counter. It’s a home-away-from-home, a vacation experienced in an afternoon, a restorative tonic for under 10 bucks. It’s a place to linger and converse with a friend. Or to linger alone, sip coffee or a drink and read a book. Or to slowly enjoy a meal, mindfully — or with nothing on your mind at all.
There’s a snug, almost fairy-tale quality to these small eateries, and when you dine in them, you may have a sense of being part of a fortunate group, the knowers of a secret.
Humble Sweet & Savory Pies
This two-table pie shop near West High could be considered more of a cafe than a restaurant, were it not for the emphasis on savory dishes — in hand pies, other pastries and quiches — and hours that take it just to the edge of an acceptable Midwestern supper hour (it’s open until 6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday).
The bright, terrazzo-floored space (it was once a barber shop) could make you feel as if you’ve suddenly been transported to some other city — New York or Boston, San Francisco or Portland. Get a cup of Just Coffee (the Madison company roasts a house blend for the shop that’s also called Humble). Pair it with a savory galette (an open-face tart), like a recent offering combining goat cheese, rosemary and grapes, and feel perhaps less than humble that you’ve discovered this near-west side-street getaway.
Chez Nanou
You may be surprised that this Williamson Street bistro seats 20 — it seems even smaller and more intimate. And speaking of feeling as if you’re in another country, you’re quite likely to be greeted in French, and hear musette music piping in from the kitchen. Red-and-white checked placemats and lace curtains complete the setting.
Leave your cares at the curb and indulge in a Montagnarde crepe, filled with prosciutto, brie and a sunny-side-up egg; accompany it with a glass of French cidre. Don’t bother to resist the lure of the lavender crème brûlée, with its crust of caramelized sugar. And don’t split it with a friend. Order one for each of you. You won’t regret it.
Paulius Musteikis
Layla's Persian Food
Layla’s Persian Food
Layla’s is small, all right, with just four tables and another couple set outside in warmer weather. Everything at Layla’s seems homemade, not just the food — and I mean that in the best possible way.
The real charm of Layla’s comes from your close contact with the cook herself, Laila Borokhim, who will warmly greet visitors and explain the Persian dishes she’s made — before she assembles them in the small back kitchen and delivers them to your table. It’s the closest thing you can find to dining with a host family during a semester abroad.
In fact this dining room feels like a place you’d encounter during a hostel-to-hostel trip (it’s fitting that the Madison Hostel is in the same building, on South Butler Street).
It’s hard to go wrong with anything on the menu, and I’d always feel comfortable ordering a daily special. From the standard menu, the ghormeh sabzi (slow-cooked lamb) and the tangy fesenjoon (chicken in a rich walnut-pomegranate sauce) are dishes unique to Persian cuisine.
The Victory
To keep cold air outside in winter and the A/C inside during summer, a velvet curtain hangs right inside the front door at the Victory. It may have a practical purpose but it can feel, as you part the drapes, like it’s functioning as a gateway to another world — possibly Brooklyn, N.Y., where this shop was in business before owner Patrick Downey moved to Madison. Or perhaps the Atwood Avenue of an earlier era. One of the first things visitors here will notice is the tin ceiling.
The place boasts seven tables and a small counter area. Pick up the daily copy of The New York Times and order a coffee (the shop features Anodyne beans and precision pour-overs). But the Victory is about more than just coffee. Order one of the excellent panini from the chalkboard menu of a half-dozen and settle in with the goal of becoming a regular.
As with the best kind of small restaurant, the Victory is the kind of place born to create regulars.
Lao Laan-Xang-Williamson Street
Paulius Musteikis
Lao Laan-Xang-Williamson Street
This small storefront on Willy Street has a large front window, a dozen or so tables, and walls painted a deep terra cotta that enhances the small space’s warmth. It’s bright and cheerful at lunch; at night, the window’s neon “open” sign suffuses the whole dining area in pink. The restaurant’s second location on Atwood accommodates larger crowds; choose the Willy location for a date night or get-together with an old friend.
Indulge a little at the start of your meal with the crispy, flaky fried spring rolls (opt for the Lao sausage if you’re a meat-eater), and then get your fill of veggies with the steamed vegetable Phra Lam with homemade peanut sauce. A choice of meat, tofu or shrimp comes with the broccoli, mushrooms, beans, zucchini and carrots.
Sophia’s Bakery & Cafe
Newcomers to Madison could be forgiven for thinking Sophia’s is closed. It’s open only on the weekends. There’s no voicemail message on the phone. And it doesn’t have a website. Those in the know just go.
A hodgepodge of tables and chairs is crowded into the small, low-ceilinged space; all attention is on the kitchen. Sharing a table is the norm; nobody stands on ceremony. Pancakes, waffles and blintzes are the order of the day. If you see lemon pancakes on the chalkboard, it’s a wise idea to order them.
The Beach House
The Beach House, just off Hwy. 51 in McFarland, isn’t all that small compared with some of the other spots mentioned here. Somehow it comes across as small, though, or at least smaller than you might expect from the size of the parking lot.
The Beach House combines the best of the Wisconsin lakeside tavern with some diner attitude and a few more tropical beachy notes — quite a feat for a place that also draws ice fishers and pond hockey enthusiasts. Like other small restaurants, it uses what space it has to transport diners to a slightly different time and place.
Eat in the small bar area or opt for the somewhat larger dining area. Both offer good views of Lake Waubesa through large picture windows.
The big draw here is walleye, and even more specifically, the weekend walleye and eggs. Walleye comes pan-fried, deep-fried or broiled; eggs and potatoes are made to order.
