I stopped by while in town celebrating my birthday solo; I was feeling a bit lonely but thought it might be weird to ask for attention while out on my own, so I wasn't going to say anything. The extremely welcoming and kind server chatted with me and made recommendations; I had a huge, delicious sandwich and greens with the best strawberry vinaigrette I've ever had. I felt comfortable enough to mention why I was there, and he brought me a slice of heavenly lemon curd cheesecake as a birthday treat. I stopped feeling lame and just enjoyed being celebrated. I so appreciated the kind reception and will happily visit this spot again next time I'm in Madison!
Karl K
Unique food with great service and atmosphere. I had the Mac n cheese. Great cocktail and beer selection. Bar has 2 TVs. Walls are large garage doors that are open in good weather.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Orange Chicken Salad, Mac and Cheese, Street Corn Chicken Tacos
Les C.
Stopped in for 2 drinks & conversation on a Friday afternoon. Great, casual atmosphere, Great mixed drinks & selection of tap beers.Mo Olig was our very congenial & attentive server & just based on his manners, attentiveness & and friendliness, we'll be back! Bought a tee shirt on the way out & the manager was friendly, respectful & kind.*recommend*
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Jerry
Who ever said this place has a great bourbon selection was completely high! No bourbon menu, the selection is average to below average at best. Very disappointing. Will not ever return!!
Spike Hyzer
The food was absolutely amazing, but the service was atrocious on an only slightly busy night. Stopping by to ask if a party wants drinks 30 seconds after they sit down is part of the problem, as no one has had time to even look at various menus, but not coming back again for over 10 minutes is awful service (3-5 minutes is more than enough to look at a menu, probably less than that). The waitress was then inattentive all evening, and when a manager/owner tried to help out, she brought the wrong things. It probably doesn't help that well more than half the staff is morbidly obese and incompetent, but that also seems to be their clientele. It's also VERY expensive for the quantity one gets, even though I was satisfied and full after the meal (my partner was not, however). It's nice looking, but it's also a loud and chaotic venue.Update: the service was much better recently, but the manager raved about the Chimichanga, which was bland and almost utterly flavorless. It's the one item thus far on this menu that should either be eliminated or vastly changed. It's truly terrible, except for the salsa on top (and I got nothing but grisly and awful fatty meat that wasn't as well cooked as the Dip I had last week). I see below that someone else had this recently and thought it was terrible as well.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
John Stansberry
In the past I've rated this place 4 stars, over the years, the food has gotten more and more mediocre, and my rating has gone to 3. On our last visit, a person in our party got some food that they did not like. The beef in a beef sandwich was very dry, even with the sauce on the side. The waitress took offense and became quite rude when a complaint was made about the sandwich. Normally I wouldn't mention a bad plate of food in a review, (it can happen to anyone) but I feel like if the customer complains about quality, the staff should at least hear them out and use it as a chance to correct a possible flaw. The response of the waitress kind of ruined the evening for the whole party. The only saving grace about Bear and Bottle lately is that they are usually not very busy and can usually seat larger parties in a pinch. That is why we went the last time, but after the fact I wish we would have waited to get into a different place.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Kenny Ruhland
A nice ber list, And a spectacular staff.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Friday Fish
Marsann McCants
So the entrance is a little awkward. You have to walk through the bar area to get to the host/hostress station but this isn't the first place to do that set up. Once in we were seated quickly which is rare on a Saturday night in the Madison area. Most places have a 50 - 60 minute wait for a walk-in. The bar area and a good part of the dinning area was filled, very few open seats. Menu had lots of drink and food options. Some drinks with unique and cool names. I ordered the California Chimichanga which comes with Carne Asada, refried beans, cheese blend, jalapneno queso, guacamole, french fries, pico de gallo, salsa verde. To drink I had the Market Margherita. The flavor of the day on this day was pomegranate. As you can see by the picture at first, some of the items seem to be missing from my entree. But not so, you see, that is because all of the items were stuffed inside of the Chimichanga. The soggy potatoes really washed out what little flavor this dish had for me. It was not tasty or spicy. The steak was tender so not a total loss. The drink, pomegranate Market Margherita was not very good either. I couldn't taste the pomegranate or the tequilla. All you could taste was lime. We tried to order desert but they were out of almost everything that sounded like a possible viable option for our table. It was all ok, but I would not likely revisit this restaurant.
Rick Christensen
Horrible bartender, bad service. Didn't know knowledge of the beers he was serving.Host was not welcoming.Was good, not going back
Atmosphere: 2
Service: 2
Amy Lynn R.
I had this salmon and wow it was beyond! I also asked the waitress for recommendation on a beer and she recommended a sour beer. That was top notch. I never would have thought to order that but it was fabulous. The overall vibes of the place were immaculate. Good service too. I would return.
Cool place. Food was average, good. Everything was good, just didn't meet my expectations of such a good name of a restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 4
gwilcx •.
Went here for Valentine's day, great service, nice lighting and a few TV's to peek at during dinner.
Carrie Wolfe
Food is very good. Waitress was very nice and attentive.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Edgar Cuevas
I've been to Bear & Bottle twice. Both times while I was waiting for another restaurant. The first time around I only got appetizers. The experience was really solid overall. I had the nachos and cheese curds. They were solid appetizers.I went back again waiting for the other restaurant and got the same appetizers and was happy with the consistency across two visits. Due to the wait time of the other place, we decided to just do dinner at Bear and Bottle. I got the Street Corn Chicken tacos which ended up being big nostalgic vibes of street corn with an enhanced touch of chicken. My other friend got The Dip he said overall it was solid but the meat could have been a bit more tender. My third friend got the braised venison and loved it for comfort food.Overall, I'd say this place is a great ambiance with a solid beer selection. It appeals to someone looking for a traditional Wisconsin restaurant vibe with elevated ambiance and fusion menu items.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Street Corn, Nachos
Corbin B.
I come here often for the massive bar and tv's. Pretty good food, good staff. This strip mall in the Northside is stacked.
I stopped by while in town celebrating my birthday solo; I was feeling a bit lonely but thought it might be weird to ask for attention while out on my own, so I wasn't going to say anything. The extremely welcoming and kind server chatted with me and made recommendations; I had a huge, delicious sandwich and greens with the best strawberry vinaigrette I've ever had. I felt comfortable enough to mention why I was there, and he brought me a slice of heavenly lemon curd cheesecake as a birthday treat. I stopped feeling lame and just enjoyed being celebrated. I so appreciated the kind reception and will happily visit this spot again next time I'm in Madison!
Unique food with great service and atmosphere. I had the Mac n cheese. Great cocktail and beer selection. Bar has 2 TVs. Walls are large garage doors that are open in good weather.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Orange Chicken Salad, Mac and Cheese, Street Corn Chicken Tacos
Stopped in for 2 drinks & conversation on a Friday afternoon. Great, casual atmosphere, Great mixed drinks & selection of tap beers.Mo Olig was our very congenial & attentive server & just based on his manners, attentiveness & and friendliness, we'll be back! Bought a tee shirt on the way out & the manager was friendly, respectful & kind.*recommend*
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
Who ever said this place has a great bourbon selection was completely high! No bourbon menu, the selection is average to below average at best. Very disappointing. Will not ever return!!
The food was absolutely amazing, but the service was atrocious on an only slightly busy night. Stopping by to ask if a party wants drinks 30 seconds after they sit down is part of the problem, as no one has had time to even look at various menus, but not coming back again for over 10 minutes is awful service (3-5 minutes is more than enough to look at a menu, probably less than that). The waitress was then inattentive all evening, and when a manager/owner tried to help out, she brought the wrong things. It probably doesn't help that well more than half the staff is morbidly obese and incompetent, but that also seems to be their clientele. It's also VERY expensive for the quantity one gets, even though I was satisfied and full after the meal (my partner was not, however). It's nice looking, but it's also a loud and chaotic venue.Update: the service was much better recently, but the manager raved about the Chimichanga, which was bland and almost utterly flavorless. It's the one item thus far on this menu that should either be eliminated or vastly changed. It's truly terrible, except for the salsa on top (and I got nothing but grisly and awful fatty meat that wasn't as well cooked as the Dip I had last week). I see below that someone else had this recently and thought it was terrible as well.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
In the past I've rated this place 4 stars, over the years, the food has gotten more and more mediocre, and my rating has gone to 3. On our last visit, a person in our party got some food that they did not like. The beef in a beef sandwich was very dry, even with the sauce on the side. The waitress took offense and became quite rude when a complaint was made about the sandwich. Normally I wouldn't mention a bad plate of food in a review, (it can happen to anyone) but I feel like if the customer complains about quality, the staff should at least hear them out and use it as a chance to correct a possible flaw. The response of the waitress kind of ruined the evening for the whole party. The only saving grace about Bear and Bottle lately is that they are usually not very busy and can usually seat larger parties in a pinch. That is why we went the last time, but after the fact I wish we would have waited to get into a different place.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
A nice ber list, And a spectacular staff.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Friday Fish
So the entrance is a little awkward. You have to walk through the bar area to get to the host/hostress station but this isn't the first place to do that set up. Once in we were seated quickly which is rare on a Saturday night in the Madison area. Most places have a 50 - 60 minute wait for a walk-in. The bar area and a good part of the dinning area was filled, very few open seats. Menu had lots of drink and food options. Some drinks with unique and cool names. I ordered the California Chimichanga which comes with Carne Asada, refried beans, cheese blend, jalapneno queso, guacamole, french fries, pico de gallo, salsa verde. To drink I had the Market Margherita. The flavor of the day on this day was pomegranate. As you can see by the picture at first, some of the items seem to be missing from my entree. But not so, you see, that is because all of the items were stuffed inside of the Chimichanga. The soggy potatoes really washed out what little flavor this dish had for me. It was not tasty or spicy. The steak was tender so not a total loss. The drink, pomegranate Market Margherita was not very good either. I couldn't taste the pomegranate or the tequilla. All you could taste was lime. We tried to order desert but they were out of almost everything that sounded like a possible viable option for our table. It was all ok, but I would not likely revisit this restaurant.
Horrible bartender, bad service. Didn't know knowledge of the beers he was serving.Host was not welcoming.Was good, not going back
Atmosphere: 2
Service: 2
I had this salmon and wow it was beyond! I also asked the waitress for recommendation on a beer and she recommended a sour beer. That was top notch. I never would have thought to order that but it was fabulous. The overall vibes of the place were immaculate. Good service too. I would return.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Cool place. Food was average, good. Everything was good, just didn't meet my expectations of such a good name of a restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 4
Went here for Valentine's day, great service, nice lighting and a few TV's to peek at during dinner.
Food is very good. Waitress was very nice and attentive.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I've been to Bear & Bottle twice. Both times while I was waiting for another restaurant. The first time around I only got appetizers. The experience was really solid overall. I had the nachos and cheese curds. They were solid appetizers.I went back again waiting for the other restaurant and got the same appetizers and was happy with the consistency across two visits. Due to the wait time of the other place, we decided to just do dinner at Bear and Bottle. I got the Street Corn Chicken tacos which ended up being big nostalgic vibes of street corn with an enhanced touch of chicken. My other friend got The Dip he said overall it was solid but the meat could have been a bit more tender. My third friend got the braised venison and loved it for comfort food.Overall, I'd say this place is a great ambiance with a solid beer selection. It appeals to someone looking for a traditional Wisconsin restaurant vibe with elevated ambiance and fusion menu items.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Street Corn, Nachos
I come here often for the massive bar and tv's. Pretty good food, good staff. This strip mall in the Northside is stacked.