Cordial — Restaurant in Madison

This place is great! Focusing on a welcoming, service-first vibe, the bar tenders are all exceptionally well trained, and seem to genuinely enjoy figuring out what you like, then giving you whatever your heart desires. Unless the cocktail is batched and on tap, they'll gladly do substitutions for you (and their selection of liquor is truly worth the trouble, as they keep several different brands/flavors of every major liquor around)... The menu rotates seasonally, with a focus on affordable classic cocktails. They don't leave our N/A friends hanging, either, with a good selection of tasty concoctions for the DD. Prices are reasonable considering the upscale nature of the bevies, and the atmosphere is relaxing though somewhat dark. This isn't a bad thing, but I've been known to use my cell phone's lamp to read the menu if I'm sitting at a table, here. There is food on offer, but it's snacks only. This is a place more about socializing with lubrication than food, but it's an energizing stop on any...

My husband and I have stopped by twice, once on a Thursday and once on a Friday. Our experience on Thursday was great - Jenny was our bartender, and she made amazing drinks. The lavender lemonade was great, and they have a cool NA gin.

Friday wasn't as great. The service wasn't quite as good, and my husband and I thought Jenny made better drinks. I ordered a sweet NA gin old fashioned both nights and got totally different drinks. On Thursday it had tons of muddled fruit, and was a classic old fashioned. On Friday there was no fruit and it didn't taste like a typical old fashioned. Both drinks were good, but SO different. I added a picture of the old fashioned I received on Friday. We'd go back, but will likely avoid Fridays. The music was loud, and it was difficult to...

Adorable, delicious, feel good, just the right amount of fancy. Only one regret - not photographing our cocktails!! What the.. not like me at all. All four that we ordered were expertly crafted, stunning to look at, and absolutely treasured on the tastebuds. Our seats were welcoming and warm on a winter evening, every inch of the place was clean and well organized, the beautifully restored bar trim was just so comfortable on my forearms (sounds weird when I write that but it's a sign of a great bar), the highlighted Rustic remnants were especially lovely, and the bartender/owner was simply incredible. Not surprising given her history, but just so friendly, professional, and perfectly suited to run a cool Park street bar. ...