Restaurant news

New restaurants, restaurants you may not yet have heard of, restaurants that won’t be back

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Porter, the coffeeshop at the depot, is now Porter-Bandit. Porter re-opened this week after a COVID-19-induced shutdown. And new, starting May 8, the coffeeshop will begin serving tacos from 5-8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. 

The plan is to gradually transition the space from being Porter in the morning (for coffee and breakfast items) to Bandit, purveyor of tacos, from 11 a.m.-11 p.m., says manager Amy Ahrens. But that full transformation may be on hold until “everything is back to normal,” says Ahrens.

When owner Gil Altschul (Gib’s Bar, Grampa’s Pizzeria) launched Porter in 2016, the idea was for Bandit to be a sibling restaurant, located in the former baggage holding area of the depot. But that plan was shelved, and now The Harvey House, a restaurant from Joe and Shaina Papach, is slated for that area. (The space is currently still being renovated, says Shaina Papach, and was near completion when the coronavirus shutdowns hit.)

There is online ordering for both coffee and the tacos at Porter-Bandit. “We rely heavily on pre-orders from online,” says Ahrens, “but we will have some extra food for walk-up.”

You may not have noticed Kosharie, 1437 Regent St., even though the restaurant opened last November. That’s partly because the sign out front still reads “Campus Biryani & Gyros.” The new sign should be arriving soon, says Kosharie owner Fawzy Mohamed, and as soon as it does he has a guy ready to put it up.

Mohamed put a lot of energy into cleaning up the small restaurant space, which he says had previously had “a bad reputation.” After he opened, “every day [business] was better than the day before.” Even now, restricted to takeout and delivery, he says, his business keeps improving. He has regulars.

The menu skews Mediterranean, with the Egyptian national dish, koshari, a highlight. Koshari incorporates different shapes of pasta, rice, lentils and garbanzo beans and is topped with fried onions and  a tomato sauce with a hint of vinegar, says Mohamed. “All my life I worked for American-style restaurants,” he says. “I was not involved with Egyptian food.” He operated two restaurants in New York City before he moved to Madison in 2000, where he’s put in stints at Smoky’s Club and the Madison Club. He has more experience with Italian food, pizza and American standards like fried chicken. At Kosharie, the Philly cheesesteak and the macaroni and cheese are some of his best sellers, but the koshari is also popular. 

“I try to give customers what they deserve, a little extra cheese — if it makes them happy, then I am happy,” Mohamed says. 

Two new Mexican spots opened shortly before restaurant life ground to a halt in mid-March. Garibaldi Mexican Restaurant at 117 S. Butler St. has taken over the space formerly occupied by Blue Agave. Delivery is available through Grubhub and DoorDash or call 608-630-9092.

And Enrique’s Grill is open in Fitchburg at 3050 Cahill Main. Call 608-298-7774 for takeout orders of tacos, tortas, enchiladas, and platters including chicken milanesa. 

Gradually, restaurants that closed immediately after Gov. Tony Evers’ March 17 order prohibiting in-house dining  are coming back with takeout. Palette Bar & Grill is now open for takeout/delivery; call 608-455-8520. Daisy Cafe & Cupcakery is open for takeout/curbside pickup/delivery, call 608-241-2200 or see EatStreet or Grubhub for delivery. The Harmony is open for takeout from 4-8 pm Tues.-Sat.; call608-249-4333 to place your order, or order online.

And the O’so Madhouse taproom is now open for takeout. There will be a limited number of crowlers of specialty beers, 750 ml bottles, 375 ml bottles and cans. The taproom will be open for pickups Wed.-Fri. 5-9 p.m. and Sat. noon-3 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. and hours will change weekly. See O’So Madhouse’s Facebook page for updates.

Restaurants that have closed permanently: Hungry Badger, Lalo’s Mexican, The Tin Fox and Pizza Brutta-Middleton.