Late Night Eats - the good , the bad and the hard to find

Yes we have not been asleep at the wheel. It just seems harder to get time to write and share with everyone the things we love. Well how about late night eats, mostly in Madison, but we have a few others. We look for those places we can get a nice drink and good nosh when the evening is done. Our favorites are Sardine (the bar menu), Tornado Room (the late night bar menu), Green Bush Bar (Pizza) and in NYC I love the Blue Ribbon. All of these have great wine lists, cocktails and wonderful service.

Sardine - Serves until 12 or 1 am depending on the night. Two killer burgers, a high end hot dog, a sopresat sandwich with house made hot gardinera. And the best bartenders in the city of Madison. Serving great Mojitos, Cosmos and wine by the glass. Always ask for a taste of wine before buying and ask for a recommendation - Gabe, Nate or Bobbi always have a good idea of what is hot.

Tornado Room - crowded, a hopping bar menu is not even available until after 10 pm. Killer wine selection, good scotches and whiskys. But the best $7 beef tenderloin sandwich anywhere and an amazing $5 jumbo shrimp cocktail. The service is professional but can tend toward serving the younger crowd a little more quickly....

Green Bush Bar - the best pizza in Madison. Serving until 11 or 12 depending on the night. Stay away if these is a Badger game of any kind. The bar is located in the basement of the Italian Laborers hall and is small, charming and a killer place to finish the evening due to the massive selection of scotches, bourbons and Irish whiskys. The pizza is sublime a cracker thin crust with just the right amount of toppings that you never feel stuffed.

Blue Ribbon - serving in GV until 4 am this is the place to eat serious food if you fly into NYC late. They have the best oysters on the half shell, and are know for the bone marrow with oxtail marmalade. Both ends of the spectrum succulent and decadent - and dam yummy. Also they have the best hanger steak when paired with an amazing bottle of pinot will delight any one. The service at Blue Ribbon is always spot on and very courteous and friendly.

So get out an about after the music stops to grab a late night bite that is sure to send you to dreamland with a full tummy and satisfied soul.

Pizza Night!!!!

When we want the best pizza in Madison we head to the basement of the Italian Labors Hall to Greenbush Bar. They serve the best super thin crust with just the right amount of toppings and have a stellar wine list too. Last night was Monday night an evening that is usually a slow one but with the Lady Badgers playing and everyone out because the temps were warmer it was a zoo!!! We chose not to wait for a table but bellied up to the bar and had a glass of wine while we waited for our delicious pizza - a large with sausage, mushroom and banana peppers - yum! The pizza here is not super filling so you can share a whoel pie and not feel stuffed but really satisfied with the flavors and texture. It was so busy that they had run out of Cabernet, Tempranillo and Zinfandel - wow we settled for a Shiraz that was very nice just right with dinner. One of the best things about the Greenbush is that they serve until late - 11 PM they are part of our late night dining club ..more on that in another post. Service is usually friendly and prompt -even on a busy night the bartender did a very good job of keeping everyone happy! So if you wan to try the best thin crust in Madison - head over to the Greenbush Bar - open after 4 PM - except on Sundays they are closed.

In a special side note - Greenbush Bar has one of the best and most affordable selections of Scotch & Irish Whiskys and Bourbons in Madison. If you can't find it here it is not in the city of Madison. And the prices - pretty unbelievable too.....go have a drink and relax!