If 2015 was the year of the multi-tapline pub in Madison, 2016 may have been the year of the doughnut. National chain Hurts Donut moved into what had seemed to be an irredeemably cursed Middleton location (originally home to the Blue Spoon Cafe, most recently to Max’s Farm Table). Hurts opened to long waits for its elaborately glazed novelty doughnuts.
Mornings, housemade doughnuts are in the glass case at Field Table, a seasonal food temple that opened on the Square. And Dough Baby came to State Street with fantastical concoctions like cheesecake doughnuts from L’Etoile pastry chef Kristine Miller.
Doughnuts...is there anything they can’t do? Well, in 2017 they’re going to have to rise to the occasion. Oh sugary tori, we need you more than ever.
Triumphs
Red, the intimate sushi spot that opened quietly in 2011 in the former Haze (remember the Haze, the American/Asian barbecue joint from Justin Carlisle and Dan Almquist?), moved to splashier quarters in the revamped AT&T building on West Washington Avenue. Red is poised to pioneer fine dining in this overlooked quadrant of downtown.
The original Sun Prairie Salvatore’s Tomato Pies moved to bigger digs too, with of-the-moment industrial chic decor and an expanded menu that’s not just pizza. Entrees from spaghetti and meatballs to Arctic char make this a destination.
Lucille, the pizza emporium from Merchant owners Patrick Sweeney and Joshua Berkson, proved an irresistible draw for both pizza and cocktail lovers.
Field Table brought a touch of haute hippie to the Square with more than just pastries — a macrobiotic bowl joined other healthy fare and locally sourced meats on a carefully curated menu.
And the relaxed yet bustling Robin Room set a new standard for cocktails. Bartender Chad Vogel’s homey lounge opened in late February.
Trends
In a remarkable ramen renaissance, Ramen Kid on West Gilman Street and Ramen Station on South Park Street both opened early in the year. And Morris Ramen, a new venture from chefs Matt Morris and Francesca Hong, opened on King Street in December.
Pacific cuisines ruled on the near west side. Miko Poké, serving Hawaiian raw fish salads, opened in part of the former Bluephies; Everly, a California concept restaurant, took over the rest.
Unsurprisingly, beer-focused eateries continued to launch. Rockhound Brewing Company opened in a new mixed-use building on South Park Street. The Lone Girl Brewing Company opened in a rapidly revitalizing downtown Waunakee. Another outlet of the Mr. Brews Taphouse chain came to east Madison at 5251 High Crossing Blvd.
Lucky’s on Regent Street moved down the block to the restored Foreign Car Specialists to become Lucky’s 1313 Brewpub, but no beer is yet being brewed on-site — that may start by the end of the year. Meanwhile, Sconniebar took over the former Lucky’s.
Many new fast-casual spots are moving into the ground floors of student high-rises. Some are homegrown — Cafe Social opened in the new Uncommon apartments on South Bedford Street. More are chains; Salads Up and Glaze Teriyaki opened on the street level of the Hub.
Thwarted potential
Noosh, featuring Sephardic Jewish cuisine from Laila Borokhim of Layla’s Persian food, opened to good reviews but closed soon after due to a dispute with the landlord. Borokhim hopes to keep the concept alive as a food cart. McGee’s, which features Southern-style food, took over.
Porktropolis in Sun Prairie closed just a few months after its move to a larger space. 43 North closed its doors for good this fall after a series of plumbing problems. Surco Peruvian’s brick-and-mortar restaurant on Cottage Grove Road couldn’t withstand the long reconstruction of that thoroughfare and closed, though its food cart remains. The Wiener Shop on West Gilman also closed in part due to ongoing construction. And Feiler’s Supper Club threw in the towel in January. Its site had become a virtual no-man’s land in the reconstruction of the 12/14 and 18/151 interchange.
The Bayou closed, as did Takara on State. Bellini, the long-running Italian restaurant in a decommissioned church at 401 E. Washington Avenue called it quits; it was the last remaining restaurant operated by the Gargano family, a dynasty in Madison Italian cuisine.
El Bolillo, a modest and too easily overlooked Mexican spot on Monona Drive, sadly, closed. The Beach House, a longtime fish fry favorite on the shore of Lake Waubesa, also closed.
Transformations
1847 at the Stamm House, painstakingly restored in 2015 and serving a stylish menu from chef Nick Johnson, closed midyear for a retool. It reopened as a classic Wisconsin supper club; Johnson ended up at Black Locust Cafe, itself a re-creation of the A-OK coffeehouse in Robinia Courtyard.
Porter, the latest venture from Gil Altschul of Grampa’s Pizzeria fame, opened at the depot on West Washington Avenue, an area seemingly full of potential but which has not sustained a restaurant since the demise of the Hotel Washington in 1996 (despite brief stints in the depot for Crandall’s and Cafe Kahoutek).
608 moved from State Street to Fordem Avenue and became more of a sports pub. Its old site at 212 State St. was taken by Cask & Ale, a fine whiskey bar that also serves barrel-aged cocktails.
Chez Nanou, the French bistro on Willy Street, changed hands and is now La Kitchenette. Buraka is back, at last, in the old Jolly Bob’s.
Blair Street BBQ closed; Five Star Korean BBQ opened. Banzo Shük opened in the old That BBQ Joint (which moved down Willy to larger digs in 2015).
Cafe Domestique, catering to bicyclists, opened near the bike path, next to Batch Bakehouse.
Get Some Burritos is now Tres Amigos. Inka Heritage is now Angkor Wat, a Cambodian restaurant; meanwhile Estacion Inka (an offshoot of Inka Heritage) opened in the old Taco Bros. on University.
The Spot closed and is now a second location for La Taguara, Wisconsin’s only Venezuelan restaurant. Macha Teahouse, which closed on Monroe Street in 2014, reopened on East Johnson Street. Longtime Mediterranean favorite Bunky’s closed as a standard restaurant, but still operates on Atwood Avenue as a catering kitchen and private event room.
Alterations
Further east, Om Fusion breathed new life into a former Chinese buffet. Mr. Torta opened in the old Papa Bear’s BBQ. Jeng’s, a short-lived Chinese place, became La Rosita Mexican Buffet. The Breakwater Monona opened in the former Bourbon Street Grille. The Off Broadway Drafthouse is a revamped pub on the site of the South Bay Lounge. Lagartos opened in the long closed Talula’s.
On the west side, Pasqual’s Monroe Street closed; a second Bloom Bake Shop is slated to move in. A second location for Rising Sons Lao-Thai restaurant opened in the former El Burrito Loco. Suwanasak Thai closed; Chang Hua Garden opened.
The former Maharajah on Odana reopened as Tandoori Grill. Marrakesh closed; it’s now Lalo’s, a Mexican restaurant. Kangchen Indian in the High Point Shopping Center became Haldi Masala. In Middleton, Cold Fusion is now I Love Tacos. Amber Indian opened in a former Chinese takeout in the Parkwood Plaza shopping center. Taqueria Lupe opened in the old Palmyra.
In Fitchburg, after a total gutting and renovation of the former Veranda, Me & Julio opened; just down the road, the former Casa del Sol was remodeled into sports pub The Thirsty Goat.
Chain restaurants that called it quits in 2016 included the Flat Top Grill, Abuelos, Uno Pizzeria and Grill-Mineral Point Road and the Hometown Buffet. On the other side of the ledger, Madison got a second Chick-fil-A.
Deviations
Madison’s AJ Bombers, the social-media-savvy hamburger joint out of Milwaukee, closed (although a sign in the window characterized this change as just “moving to Wauwatosa” — a distance of 75.5 miles).
The original Athens Gyros in the Trader Gus Shell station in Westport moved temporarily to a truck parked next door while a brick-and-mortar restaurant is being built. The Shell is becoming a Kwik Trip.
The storefront once known as the Baker’s Window holds the record, I think, for housing the most restaurants in a single year. A Taste of the Caribbean opened there briefly before a hot dog joint known as the Fountain Express replaced it just as briefly. A soul food spot called Sweet Tea is now operating out of the 122 State St. space, and is well worth a visit. Act quickly.
And in December, the Sushi Tora awning finally came down. The venture long slated to take over in the former Electric Earth Cafe (original projected opening was February 2015) on West Washington finally “closed” in December — if you can say that about a restaurant that never actually opened.
