Goodland Pour House — Restaurant in Madison

We've been to Goodland dozens of times since they opened. We'll probably even go back. That said, if we ever have an experience like we had today (6/25/23), we won't.

We walked up right at 11 AM. There was also a couple immediately behind us. The door was locked, but they unlocked it and let us in. Inside, there was a couple seated at the bench seating on the north wall (two additional people later joined) and the beginnings of a party of 18 around the corner from the entrance. The host gave some vague explanation of why they couldn't seat us or the couple behind us (who later added a mom and her young child) for at least 15 minutes based on the 18-top unless we wanted to sit at the bar. My wife doesn't do high tops and those behind us had a party that would include a toddler. In the meantime, folks trickled in and about four parties totalling 10 people opted for the bar. The folks directly behind us were growing tired of waiting by 11:25 AM. They asked the second individual who was at the host stand and I don't think they got the answer they wanted because they left. I immediately asked when we would be seated and, lo and behold, it was immediately possible. Bear in mind, the north wall bench seating still had only one party of four seated and there were at least four other open tables by this point.

So, being seated by 11:25 AM, as soon as our server came around, we ordered our drinks and food by 11:30 AM to get them on our order as soon as possible. Within a few minutes of placing our order, a couple who had originally been sitting at the bar sat at the table next to ours. We had drinks, a coffee and a mimosa, within about 10 minutes. The individual who took our order was back by the table within 5-10 minutes and asked if we needed anything. That was the last we saw of him until we were finished eating and ready for the bill by about 12:45 PM. We received our food about 12:15 PM. By that point, I had finished my coffee and asked the person who brought our food (the host from the beginning of this whole experience) for a refill that never happened. I can forgive a little bit of the food wait based on the initial parties and the individuals who chose the bar seating who were thus able to order before we did. About 12:30 PM, the folks sitting next to us didn't have food yet and asked to speak to a manager. I didn't listen to everything, but they weren't pleased about how long they were waiting. When their food arrived a few minutes before we left, they asked for salt and pepper. They didn't even get that without asking a second employee.

I realize that having a huge party from the outset might seem overwhelming. At a restaurant, large parties happen and other issues can happen. I believe that every front of house employee in a restaurant needs to be ready to potentially take on multiple responsibilities. I believe it's up to the manager to develop and assign priorities and responsibilities to give patrons the best possible experience. That did not happen.

One plus: The food was good. My wife and I were both pleased with the flavor and quality.

I know it's not easy, but in a service environment, all of the staff needs to be firing on all cylinders and bouncing around their tables checking on beverages, discussing any delays, and seeing to any other customer needs. This needs to be stressed in training and reinforced by management. There were five front of house that I counted including the bartender/manager. Personally, I think there were enough. Would one or two more have helped? Sure. But, given the current labor market, you have to deal with what you have. If you don't, people will stop coming.

Update 11/26/23: it's been a few months, but we visited again today. Food and service were great. We were the only ones here for about 30 minutes. Hopefully, it'll be the same next time....

I've had GPH bookmarked for some time. They have a yummy-sounding menu and all their social media posts have had me drooling. They've gone through a few different chefs/managers/maybe even owners (? Not sure on that one, so don't quote me) in the few years they've been open, but their food has stayed looking consistently tasty. Unfortunately, they're soooo out of my way that I never had the opportunity to stop by until a few weeks ago.

I was attending an event at a nearby high school but decided I'd have lunch here first. The restaurant was about 25-30% full so fairly quiet for a Saturday lunch, but it was cold and gray outside. Someone came out to seat me quickly and allowed me my choice of table, so I went for a nice high-top. Looks like they have a cute patio, which I'm sure is lovely in nicer weather. One drawback is that they share a wall with a cigar place, and the smell does sort of carry. I didn't find it intolerable, especially on the opposite side of the restaurant, but those who are super sensitive might be more bothered. It was also a little dim inside the restaurant. On the bright side, I liked the modern pub decor. It was attractive and comfy without being pretentious.

This spot is kind of known for its Detroit-style pizza. It looks gorgeous in photos, and the flavor combos sound great...but I don't actually like pizza that much, lol. I wasn't feeling super adventurous, so I wound up with the chicken tenders. I was very amused when my waiter brought my food out to me and said, "Here are your tendies, ma'am." Idk, I just got a kick out of it, even though they're called tendies on the menu. It was a nice touch.

Service was overall very nice. Prompt with water, courteous and polite, and very swift to fulfill any requests I had.

On to the food -- I enjoyed it. The price felt a little high ($16-17) buuuuut the portion was massive. Very easily could've split with someone and definitely had leftovers to take home. The chicken tenders themselves were both juicy and crispy and about the right thickness for my preference. They had some kind of quality that made them feel more upscale than standard tenders too; I'm honestly not sure how to describe it, but it was nice. The fries were numerous and extra hot and crispy. I enjoyed dipping both the fries and tenders in some nice house-made ranch.

Overall, I'd definitely come back. I'd probably try something a bit more adventurous next time, but the heart wants what it...

Not our first visit. We have been a number of times since they opened. We have always enjoyed their brunch in the past. We decided that we would give it a try again since they brought Sunday Brunch back. We arrived at 11am right when they opened. There were two parties ahead of us who were seated. One was a party of 18 the other was half of a party of four. At least 9 tables open and that was just booths not the seating on the patio also telling customers they can sit at the bar and eat. We were told it was a short wait for a table since they had the large party. So after 24 minutes waiting to be seated and finally asking when we would be seated and then magically it was ok to seat us. The waiter took our order and we then waited 45 minutes for food to come out. I had the yacht club sandwich. It was fresh and hot which was the only good part of the experience. The manager had no clue how to manage a large party and other diners at the same time. It is absolutely bad planning and managing to delay seating your customers by 20 plus minutes when there are only 2 parties ahead of you and numerous empty tables. The service and the long wait for food was the worst I have seen it since we have been going there. If you want happy customers and people to spend money in your establishment you need someone competent at their job of managing large parties and multiple tables. The brunch experience this am does not give me confidence that you can keep your customers. I know my husband and I were not the only ones who were very disappointed in the caliber of service we received. If I could give no stars i would for the long delay in seating when we arrived as soon as you opened. I hope the owner sees this and makes changes to better serve their customers otherwise you will have a lot of ex customers. UPDATE: We went today Nov 26th. We were promptly greeted and seated arriving at 11 am. Wait staff promptly and eagerly waited on us. I Had the Berry Garcia salad with Salmon on top and substituted ranch dressing for the balsamic vinaigrette. Very happy with today's good and service. I hope they...