The staff is amazing. I've been going here for years. I love this place. It might sound odd, but get the burger and fries, so good. Waffle fries ?Update: Sadly, there has been a change in the menu, they no longer have waffle fries ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Daniel Dreifort
Math. That’s what I want to do when I’m out on a date. If you see an item for $18 on the menu, how much do you think it’s going to cost you? First factor in the 4% surcharge Madison puts in the smallest text at the bottom of their menu. Then calculate the sales tax on that and the price of food. And on top of that choose whether or not you’re going to tip on tax and service fees and choose the appropriate tip-rate for that. Stop hiding anti-consumer fees in small print and just raise your damn prices.Also, train your staff better. Staff came to our table 3x the whole time we were there. Once to take the order, once to refill the water before the food arrived although they inexplicably only filled one of the glasses. And then again to bring the food. Halfway through the meal with nothing to drink I went in and audibly put the empty glass down on the bar surrounded by at least five “workers“ not working. Grabbed two fresh glasses of water. Still, nobody came out to check on anything. After a while, we’re done. Want to combine food into one box and leave a poor dining experience. I go in again and ask them to bring a box and the check. I mention that nobody had come to check on us, One of the many employees standing around the bar exclaim that she is just one person and is handling lots of tables.Take from that what you will, both times I went to do their jobs for them there were many people congregating at the bar doing nothing.If I go back to Madison it will be to humor a friend.Also, I’m tired of this place and their sister restaurant advertising things on the menu that they don’t deliver.Madison: if you don’t serve maple syrup, stop listing maple syrup as what comes with the items. The artificially flavored garbage you are serving has no maple syrup in it.If somebody convinces me to go back to one of your restaurants and you’re misrepresenting the items you serve I’ll report you to the CA FDB.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 1
Vy Le
Everything we ordered was amazing and our waitress, Leah was really friendly and attentive. We highly recommend the skirt steak and the burrata. The restaurant also looks very modern and has great live music (it’s a little too loud). The only down side was the pork chop, it was pretty meh and I couldn’t get through the porky smell
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Ariana Cano
The vibe was awesome, drinks were good!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Clatoru
Very good churros waffles!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Christine Reilly
Absolutely fantastic! WOW. Drinks, appetizers, entrees, and desserts… all so delicious. Third night in San Diego and by far the best dinner! So many flavors and all paired to perfection. I highly recommend the kabobs and gnocchi!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Waffle Churro Sticks, Gnocchi with Shrimps, Brie, Mr Nice Guy
Krupa Patel
The vibes are great but the service has definitely gone down hill. There was one waitress serving almost half the restaurant and we waited way longer than we should to even order, get our drinks, food, and check. The food is great but portions are quite small for the amount we are charged.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Recommended dishes: Waffle Churro Sticks
Christopher Garrett
The ambiance of Madison is beautiful. The wood paneling and decor is great. The food and service was decent although the food portions were a little small for the prices. We waited a long time for drinks, but the restaurant was crowded. The restaurant is incredibly loud and could benefit from some acoustic paneling. We were celebrating a birthday and our waitress was so nice to accommodate us and gave us a sparkler dessert. The only annoying thing besides the loudness was at the very bottom of the menu they state “4% hospitality fee due to the rising costs of labor in California” … just build the cost into your prices- you don’t need to advertise you don’t want to pay your workers a living wage. We know you are passing the cost on to your costumers.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Antonio Vargas (VagabondDragons)
Lovely hidden gem in University Heights! The food is delicious and the creative cocktails well balanced.Keep coming back for their Chicken Shish Kabob, next timeI ought to try their Osso Buco ?.Hanna is a terrific host, awesome personality and friendly demeanor, delivered a high quality service despite a busy buzzy evening!Highly recommended!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jorge Alberto Gutiérrez Topete (Bibi)
Great food and cocktails... Waiter service inside the bar is not up to the level of restaurant.
Madison is one of my go to spots for brunch. I love the open airy feel of the place. The entire place has such great character and I love sitting in the main dining room (although it’s hard to hear even the servers). We learned that they have jazz on Sunday evenings and Tuesdays. I’m interested in coming back to check that out.Parking: Always come early to do a few laps around the blocks to find parking, especially on the weekends
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Chilaquiles
Simone Mineo
Amazing drinks! Good food. Tuesday night Jazz, very
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
tvkyum
I am from Ventura and didn't know the street or the restaurant. It's excellent! Of strongest note was the excellent service by our cap-wearing server. He explained menu items and was super prompt in helping when wine spilled. He contributed to a great evening- I wish I could remember his name.
I had high hopes for this place but they did not meet expectations. Mt wife and I had brunch reservations this morning through Open Table. First tip, no parking anywhere close by. Be prepared to park on the street in a residential neighborhood and walk a couple blocks. Then the hostess was the rudest hostess that we have ever encountered, no smile, no friendly warm greetings, just a snappy "what's your name!" The restaurant was empty. Only one table out of 25 was filled. Not sure why we even needed reservations. Although all the tables were empty, the hostess deliberately sat us at the only table in direct blinding sunlight. We asked to move tables. Then the hostess brought up another party and asked us to move tables again so the other party could sit at our table, the hostess did not sit them in the blinding sun. Strange. Then the hostess sat all the customers next to each other although the rest of the restaurant was empty. We ended up having to listen to the vacant vapid conversation of some trust fund kids whining about daddy's money. While 20 other tables sat empty. Get a new hostess. Thankfully, the waitress was absolutely the opposite from the hostess, friendly and smiling, engaging in conversation. The menu was sparse with choices and "no substitutions" the menu had maybe ten choices for entrees. With such a limited menu, maybe they should allow substitutions. I ordered a Bloody Mary and chilaquiles. My wife ordered a hot chocolate (off menu) and the basic breakfast. I was waiting for my drink and The waitress said the Bloody Mary was waiting for the garnishes. When the Bloody Mary arrived, the garnish was 2 olives. I was waiting for 2 olives. The chilaquiles were okay, the carnitas on top were too much and bland, just tasted like roasted and shredded pork. My wife's meal was okay, the breakfast potatoes were bland and the hot chocolate was more like a mocha without the coffee. We still tipped very well because the waitress made up for the rude hostess
N2Food
This is an absolutely stellar restaurant. We appreciated the novel open-yet-warm interior and the warmly professional servers, but the star is the fabulous food. Every single thing we ate was phenomenal: the crisply delicious portobello fries, the citrus salad (minus onion per our request), pistachio pesto pasta, chicken piccata, and my extraordinary cioppino (the best I've ever eaten). Our dessert was their sensational churro waffle. We will definitely be returning!
The staff is amazing. I've been going here for years. I love this place. It might sound odd, but get the burger and fries, so good. Waffle fries ?Update: Sadly, there has been a change in the menu, they no longer have waffle fries ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Math. That’s what I want to do when I’m out on a date. If you see an item for $18 on the menu, how much do you think it’s going to cost you? First factor in the 4% surcharge Madison puts in the smallest text at the bottom of their menu. Then calculate the sales tax on that and the price of food. And on top of that choose whether or not you’re going to tip on tax and service fees and choose the appropriate tip-rate for that. Stop hiding anti-consumer fees in small print and just raise your damn prices.Also, train your staff better. Staff came to our table 3x the whole time we were there. Once to take the order, once to refill the water before the food arrived although they inexplicably only filled one of the glasses. And then again to bring the food. Halfway through the meal with nothing to drink I went in and audibly put the empty glass down on the bar surrounded by at least five “workers“ not working. Grabbed two fresh glasses of water. Still, nobody came out to check on anything. After a while, we’re done. Want to combine food into one box and leave a poor dining experience. I go in again and ask them to bring a box and the check. I mention that nobody had come to check on us, One of the many employees standing around the bar exclaim that she is just one person and is handling lots of tables.Take from that what you will, both times I went to do their jobs for them there were many people congregating at the bar doing nothing.If I go back to Madison it will be to humor a friend.Also, I’m tired of this place and their sister restaurant advertising things on the menu that they don’t deliver.Madison: if you don’t serve maple syrup, stop listing maple syrup as what comes with the items. The artificially flavored garbage you are serving has no maple syrup in it.If somebody convinces me to go back to one of your restaurants and you’re misrepresenting the items you serve I’ll report you to the CA FDB.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 1
Everything we ordered was amazing and our waitress, Leah was really friendly and attentive. We highly recommend the skirt steak and the burrata. The restaurant also looks very modern and has great live music (it’s a little too loud). The only down side was the pork chop, it was pretty meh and I couldn’t get through the porky smell
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
The vibe was awesome, drinks were good!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very good churros waffles!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Absolutely fantastic! WOW. Drinks, appetizers, entrees, and desserts… all so delicious. Third night in San Diego and by far the best dinner! So many flavors and all paired to perfection. I highly recommend the kabobs and gnocchi!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Waffle Churro Sticks, Gnocchi with Shrimps, Brie, Mr Nice Guy
The vibes are great but the service has definitely gone down hill. There was one waitress serving almost half the restaurant and we waited way longer than we should to even order, get our drinks, food, and check. The food is great but portions are quite small for the amount we are charged.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Recommended dishes: Waffle Churro Sticks
The ambiance of Madison is beautiful. The wood paneling and decor is great. The food and service was decent although the food portions were a little small for the prices. We waited a long time for drinks, but the restaurant was crowded. The restaurant is incredibly loud and could benefit from some acoustic paneling. We were celebrating a birthday and our waitress was so nice to accommodate us and gave us a sparkler dessert. The only annoying thing besides the loudness was at the very bottom of the menu they state “4% hospitality fee due to the rising costs of labor in California” … just build the cost into your prices- you don’t need to advertise you don’t want to pay your workers a living wage. We know you are passing the cost on to your costumers.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Lovely hidden gem in University Heights! The food is delicious and the creative cocktails well balanced.Keep coming back for their Chicken Shish Kabob, next timeI ought to try their Osso Buco ?.Hanna is a terrific host, awesome personality and friendly demeanor, delivered a high quality service despite a busy buzzy evening!Highly recommended!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great food and cocktails... Waiter service inside the bar is not up to the level of restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Restaurantji Recommends
Madison is one of my go to spots for brunch. I love the open airy feel of the place. The entire place has such great character and I love sitting in the main dining room (although it’s hard to hear even the servers). We learned that they have jazz on Sunday evenings and Tuesdays. I’m interested in coming back to check that out.Parking: Always come early to do a few laps around the blocks to find parking, especially on the weekends
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Chilaquiles
Amazing drinks! Good food. Tuesday night Jazz, very
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I am from Ventura and didn't know the street or the restaurant. It's excellent! Of strongest note was the excellent service by our cap-wearing server. He explained menu items and was super prompt in helping when wine spilled. He contributed to a great evening- I wish I could remember his name.
I had high hopes for this place but they did not meet expectations. Mt wife and I had brunch reservations this morning through Open Table. First tip, no parking anywhere close by. Be prepared to park on the street in a residential neighborhood and walk a couple blocks. Then the hostess was the rudest hostess that we have ever encountered, no smile, no friendly warm greetings, just a snappy "what's your name!" The restaurant was empty. Only one table out of 25 was filled. Not sure why we even needed reservations. Although all the tables were empty, the hostess deliberately sat us at the only table in direct blinding sunlight. We asked to move tables. Then the hostess brought up another party and asked us to move tables again so the other party could sit at our table, the hostess did not sit them in the blinding sun. Strange. Then the hostess sat all the customers next to each other although the rest of the restaurant was empty. We ended up having to listen to the vacant vapid conversation of some trust fund kids whining about daddy's money. While 20 other tables sat empty. Get a new hostess. Thankfully, the waitress was absolutely the opposite from the hostess, friendly and smiling, engaging in conversation. The menu was sparse with choices and "no substitutions" the menu had maybe ten choices for entrees. With such a limited menu, maybe they should allow substitutions. I ordered a Bloody Mary and chilaquiles. My wife ordered a hot chocolate (off menu) and the basic breakfast. I was waiting for my drink and The waitress said the Bloody Mary was waiting for the garnishes. When the Bloody Mary arrived, the garnish was 2 olives. I was waiting for 2 olives. The chilaquiles were okay, the carnitas on top were too much and bland, just tasted like roasted and shredded pork. My wife's meal was okay, the breakfast potatoes were bland and the hot chocolate was more like a mocha without the coffee. We still tipped very well because the waitress made up for the rude hostess
This is an absolutely stellar restaurant. We appreciated the novel open-yet-warm interior and the warmly professional servers, but the star is the fabulous food. Every single thing we ate was phenomenal: the crisply delicious portobello fries, the citrus salad (minus onion per our request), pistachio pesto pasta, chicken piccata, and my extraordinary cioppino (the best I've ever eaten). Our dessert was their sensational churro waffle. We will definitely be returning!