Leopold's Books Bar Caffè — Attraction in Madison

A bookstore, café AND a bar? Don’t let your dreams be dreams.

If you’re a fan of books, this is the place. The foundation of Leopold’s is to celebrate reading. The design, lighting and drink options sit delightfully atop it. From the moment you walk in, you are wrapped up in the coziness. The air you breathe in is filled with stories: ones being read, others being told and more waiting to be discovered.

My friend Hilary has found paradise in this establishment. She is an avid bookstagrammer (@hilareads_) and soon-to-be librarian. She could not wait to bring me here.

We grabbed seats on the couches and chairs just off the bar and someone was by to take our order swiftly. Hilary asked if a drink that used to be on the menu could still be made and the response was an enthusiastic, “I can make that for you!” Her Paloma, my añejo highball and our other half’s coffee were brought out to us not long after. We chatted and enjoyed our drinks before getting up and browsing the bookshelves. They are organized by region, which is so cool. Alongside the books are wines from the respective regions. I mean, come on!

When you go to the bathroom, you will cross over to the Rocky Rococo’s to use the ones within. A really nice touch on an already amazing experience. I cannot believe this used to be Greenbush, they have done an incredible job with the...

Leopolds is a bookstore, cafe, and bar.

They have an excellent seating area downstairs that you can reserve. Not many people take the opportunity to do it, it’s free but you must spend around 50 dollars an hour, as a group, on drinks. Though I’ve never had them come down and tell me we’re not spending enough. They’ve also slightly expanded into the old restaurant next to it since it closed which has vastly improved its seating. It can be really busy at times.

Their bookstore is utterly fascinating. The books are high quality social commentary’s and every book I’ve read from them (on my 3rd right now) has been high quality and unique. They way they sort their books is also unique as they do it by geographical region moreso than genre and author, but it’s very neatly categorized in the fashion they do it.

Their drink menu nearly always changes. The traditional coffee drinks never change and they do have a “classics we love” for their alcoholic drinks that is good. The best drinks are always the ones that rotate based on the season.

The staff is very knowledgeable about their drink selection and is willing to provide guidance if you’re not sure what you’ll like. They’ve even offered for me to try a drink and if I don’t like it they’d trade it for...

An absolutely fantastic gem and unique spot in Madison. A caffè (correctly spelled!), bookshop, bar, and event space, I enjoy spending any part of my day here. Ample space to work in the daytime, and a lively atmosphere at night. Without question this is the best bar in Madison, incredibly decorated and with immaculate vibes. Staff are incredibly friendly and personable. A few points bring this place short of a five star review. While the cocktail list is intriguing, none of the cocktails are particularly mindblowing, and quality is inconsistent and varies greatly between bartenders. Most of the cocktails are pretty good, but they do tend to run sweet and lack a certain balance. Professionalism and skill seems to vary quite a lot between individual bartenders, with some spending more time chatting to their friends than focusing on doing their jobs. The shape of the bar also leads to confusion when it's busy of where to place an order, and staff can be quite slow when making cocktails. That being said, the bartenders are all super friendly so it's hard to be too annoyed. But in a small town filled with trashy college bars, this place is an incredible place to hangout any time of day or night....