Bar Corallini — Restaurant in Madison

We read such good reviews that we had high hopes, but sadly they were diminished not long after we arrived. We sat at the cocktail table area and were told by the hostess that our server would be right over. No. It took almost 15 minutes with no service, for us to ask the host hostess where our server was. When the server finally came over, she didn’t even apologize for the wait and to be honest seemed annoyed. It seriously probably took another 10 minutes just to get a glass of wine and a beer. Meanwhile, I saw some people walk up to the bar area and they already had an appetizer before we barely got our drinks. We finally got the fritters we ordered for an appetizer and they were disappointing. No flavor at all and way too heavy. They should’ve been lighter. They were more like an arancini. Both mine and my husband’s dishes (when they finally arrived) were less than ideal too. The shrimp scampi had way too much going on, that it overwhelmed what should’ve been a really simple dish. Everything I read online about shrimp scampi (it has very few ingredients). The one my husband had, they overkilled it, with unnecessary additions. So much so, you couldn’t really tell what flavors you were getting and yet it’s still lacked something. My rigatoni Bolognese was decent however, the pasta was way too al dente. It could’ve easily been cooked another minute or two. I honestly think I make better Italian food at home and I’m not even Italian. I don’t think the chef knows what garlic or salt is. Other than the hostesses, the service was absolutely terrible. We just happened to be up in Madison for the day, but I don’t ever plan on going again. Complete waste of time and money. I don’t know where they get all the good reviews. Probably from people that have never been outside of Wisconsin, or have no taste buds. Disappointed is an...

We received a Food Fight gift certificate for Christmas and to be honest, our past experiences with the group have been patently underwhelming. So we were in no hurry to use it. We made reservations at Johnny's Italian for our anniversary and my wife reminded me that we still had the certificate, so we made reservations at Bar Corallini for the following night to use it. We arrived 30 minutes early to check out the bar, were promptly greeted and offered a sparkling or flat water, which was unexpected and a nice touch. It took us a bit to decide on drinks; I opted for a classic OF and Mrs. B. a Grey Goose and tonic with lemon. The GG was served with freshly squeezed juice and the OF boasted of in-house syrup. Our Mixologist, Dylan, was cordial, knowledgeable, friendly, and professional and put together two VERY nice drinks. The tonic was pretty flat, but the fresh squeeze made up for it, according to The Boss. We moved to our table 30 minutes later and we're served by Max. Max was prompt, attentive, but never intrusive. He offered us complementary Sparkling Wine, which we indulged before our meal. Again a nice touch. Rose ordered the Rigatoni Bolognese and I, the 8 Finger Cavatini. Both were delicious, though the Cavatini was a bit stingy on the shrimp. The Bolognese on the other hand was generous and packed with flavor. One of the best we've ever had. No, it was the THE best. The place fills up quickly around 6:00, and it's easy to see why. Food, service, atmosphere, everything about it was enjoyable and memorable. Parking is a bit of a challenge, especially when the Volvo from Illinois took up two spaces. Imagine that. Kudos to the entire staff and a special thank you to Dylan and Max for their...

Bar Corallini has a pretty awesome bar setup. I love the negroni focus on one of their drink tabs, it reminds me of my time overseas. The food was fine. Our margherita pizza had great flavor, the dough was pretty chewy, but still edible. The orecchiette was the standout, I loved the chili for a bit of heat and the noodles were al dente for a good bite.

However, my experience was tarnished by one of the bartenders being overly protective of her counterpart. I'll be the first to admit that my friend and I were talking about the Polish heritage of the other bartender too much, but we just had a general interest. We do not care that they were both foreign, I personally love that, especially in Central Wisconsin. What I didn't like was how she expressed those feelings, it came out forceful and almost threatening. This didn't stop with our party, when people would order dishes she had a similar attitude just explaining menu items. I never asked which country she was from, but I knew she wasn't Polish, as she made a point to correct me, even though I never referenced or cared where she was from. But this could be a disconnect in how we communicate, maybe she's from a more direct country. I'm just glad the other patrons were oblivious to her being condescending and rude. I wouldn't come...