Came to Wausau to visit a friend who just move back to Wausau. This is her favorite place. And now it's mine. Don't let the word 'cafe' throw you-- this is fine dining, but in a warm & homey setting. The service was excellent and everything she brought out to us was very good. The fig jam crostini app was a perfect blend of sweet and savory. The Caesar Salad (w/anchovies on top) was the best I've ever had. The braised pork shank with butternut squash ravioli was fall-off-the-bone tender and vibrating with flavor. And now I'm making myself hungry thinking about it. I know there are still a few months left in the year, but this will be one of -- if not THE dinner of the year for me. I'll be back and I'm bringing a bunch of friends with me. Thank you!
Alexis Fernandez
Excellent food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Christopher Murvine
Just excellent, all around — great food and great service.
James, on the piano, is an added bonus.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Haley Kolb
The staff are SO kind and the food is so good! We will be back thank you! 🥰🥰
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amanda Roberts
Excellent food, and even BETTER customer service! I left my umbrella and they delivered it to me after I had already left! ❤️ We reserve a private room for our group of people and had the best experience! Highly recommend! 👍🏻👍🏻
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dale Van Camp
We stopped here during the Wausau Night Markey event. After a short wait, we were seated outside, which was perfect to listen to the music and people watch. I ordered the Chilean Seabass. Wow, it was absolutely amazing. It was cooked in a paper enclosure that kept the seabass very tender and moist. Christi ordered the Ragu Bolognese which was also very good. We had a wonderful experience for an impromptu visit. Our server, Payton, was amazing and offered honest reviews of various dishes. He was attentive and very pleasant. We highly recommend this restaurant for amazing food and service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Project Pretty
The food was absolutely AMAZING! Service was great. But the carrot cake was so good I can’t even describe it other the best mouth orgasm ever!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kathy Pedersen
The food was Phenomenal. The carrot cake was killer. The weight staff was Attentive. The lumberjack pasta was to die for, and the meatballs were the size of baseballs.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kerry Magnuson
food is always high quality. service/timing tonight was unacceptable. On a Friday evening where the dining room was less than 25% full, we waited more than 40 minutes between soup and entree while tables next to us got their food, ate, paid their bill and left. Our waiter came by several times asking if we'd like another cocktail, uncomfortably asked what our summer plans were, asked what we did for a living, but never addressed the wait. When we finally inquired about timing he said he just discovered an error in the kitchen (not sure he would've said anything if we hadn't asked directly) and offered no concession (one of the 4 times he asked if we wanted another cocktail he could've explained the wait and offered a complimentary beverage, but he didn't). Also it was our anniversary that we had noted on the reservation. On previous special occasions we had always been acknowledged. It will be a long time before we return for any special occasion, regardless of how good the food is.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
dennis nisler
Excellent setting, food, and service. An added bonus was the live music, a pianist playing popular songs.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spinach Salad, Sautéed Chicken with Artichokes and Capers
The evening was well spent with my daughter at Back When Cafe . We started with chz curds as appetizer followed by cheese ravioli , Arancini risotto balls , Cesar salad and lava cake with ice cream. The restaurant was cozy with fireplace going . A Gentlemen at the piano this evening . will definitely return!! delicious food ! prices aren’t that bad either .
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Ilike2tri
Great date night. My hubby and I like to do overnight dates in Wausau and stay downtown so we can walk to the fun restaurants. Back When Cafe was the perfect Friday night leisurely dinner spot. We had a drink at the eclectic bar and then enjoyed a bottle of wine with dinner. The restaurant was fairly quiet when we arrived at 6:15, but when we left at 8, it was busy, so I'd recommend reservations if you want to be seated at a specific time. We had spinach ricotta arrancini for an appetizer. Great flavors and served hot with a generous portion. My husband had the pork shank, and I had the salmon. We both enjoyed our meals immensely. There was live piano music which added to the experience. Service was very slow. However, they were training new employees and we were in no hurry and didn't mind at all. We also were charged for 2 salads that were supposed to be included with the entree. We chalked that up to the new server. If you are on a schedule, you may want to go early or try someplace else, but for our relaxed date night, this was perfect.
Michelle Huber
Delicious dinner, wonderful service, great ambiance, and entertainment. To say we enjoyed ourselves is an understatement! We will most definitely be returning!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dale Brown
Piano player makes it fun
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Helen H
Back when cafe is a treat! I got the lumberjack salad that had fresh vegetables, which was delicious. For dessert, I had a chocolate cake that was so rich but so good. The atmosphere is very pretty, with live music, posters, and a patio with flowers. My only complaint was the service, which was a little slow and our waitress got mixed up a few times. Overall a great experience.
Came to Wausau to visit a friend who just move back to Wausau. This is her favorite place. And now it's mine. Don't let the word 'cafe' throw you-- this is fine dining, but in a warm & homey setting. The service was excellent and everything she brought out to us was very good. The fig jam crostini app was a perfect blend of sweet and savory. The Caesar Salad (w/anchovies on top) was the best I've ever had. The braised pork shank with butternut squash ravioli was fall-off-the-bone tender and vibrating with flavor. And now I'm making myself hungry thinking about it. I know there are still a few months left in the year, but this will be one of -- if not THE dinner of the year for me. I'll be back and I'm bringing a bunch of friends with me. Thank you!
Excellent food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Just excellent, all around — great food and great service.
James, on the piano, is an added bonus.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The staff are SO kind and the food is so good! We will be back thank you! 🥰🥰
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Excellent food, and even BETTER customer service! I left my umbrella and they delivered it to me after I had already left! ❤️ We reserve a private room for our group of people and had the best experience! Highly recommend! 👍🏻👍🏻
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We stopped here during the Wausau Night Markey event. After a short wait, we were seated outside, which was perfect to listen to the music and people watch.
I ordered the Chilean Seabass. Wow, it was absolutely amazing. It was cooked in a paper enclosure that kept the seabass very tender and moist.
Christi ordered the Ragu Bolognese which was also very good.
We had a wonderful experience for an impromptu visit.
Our server, Payton, was amazing and offered honest reviews of various dishes. He was attentive and very pleasant.
We highly recommend this restaurant for amazing food and service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was absolutely AMAZING! Service was great. But the carrot cake was so good I can’t even describe it other the best mouth orgasm ever!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was Phenomenal. The carrot cake was killer. The weight staff was Attentive. The lumberjack pasta was to die for, and the meatballs were the size of baseballs.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
food is always high quality. service/timing tonight was unacceptable. On a Friday evening where the dining room was less than 25% full, we waited more than 40 minutes between soup and entree while tables next to us got their food, ate, paid their bill and left. Our waiter came by several times asking if we'd like another cocktail, uncomfortably asked what our summer plans were, asked what we did for a living, but never addressed the wait. When we finally inquired about timing he said he just discovered an error in the kitchen (not sure he would've said anything if we hadn't asked directly) and offered no concession (one of the 4 times he asked if we wanted another cocktail he could've explained the wait and offered a complimentary beverage, but he didn't). Also it was our anniversary that we had noted on the reservation. On previous special occasions we had always been acknowledged. It will be a long time before we return for any special occasion, regardless of how good the food is.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Excellent setting, food, and service. An added bonus was the live music, a pianist playing popular songs.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spinach Salad, Sautéed Chicken with Artichokes and Capers
Restaurantji Recommends
The evening was well spent with my daughter at Back When Cafe . We started with chz curds as appetizer followed by cheese ravioli , Arancini risotto balls , Cesar salad and lava cake with ice cream. The restaurant was cozy with fireplace going .
A Gentlemen at the piano this evening .
will definitely return!! delicious food ! prices aren’t that bad either .
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Great date night. My hubby and I like to do overnight dates in Wausau and stay downtown so we can walk to the fun restaurants. Back When Cafe was the perfect Friday night leisurely dinner spot. We had a drink at the eclectic bar and then enjoyed a bottle of wine with dinner. The restaurant was fairly quiet when we arrived at 6:15, but when we left at 8, it was busy, so I'd recommend reservations if you want to be seated at a specific time. We had spinach ricotta arrancini for an appetizer. Great flavors and served hot with a generous portion. My husband had the pork shank, and I had the salmon. We both enjoyed our meals immensely. There was live piano music which added to the experience. Service was very slow. However, they were training new employees and we were in no hurry and didn't mind at all. We also were charged for 2 salads that were supposed to be included with the entree. We chalked that up to the new server. If you are on a schedule, you may want to go early or try someplace else, but for our relaxed date night, this was perfect.
Delicious dinner, wonderful service, great ambiance, and entertainment. To say we enjoyed ourselves is an understatement! We will most definitely be returning!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Piano player makes it fun
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Back when cafe is a treat! I got the lumberjack salad that had fresh vegetables, which was delicious. For dessert, I had a chocolate cake that was so rich but so good. The atmosphere is very pretty, with live music, posters, and a patio with flowers. My only complaint was the service, which was a little slow and our waitress got mixed up a few times. Overall a great experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Chocolate Cake & Ice Cream
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