Main Street Cafe — Restaurant in Madison

I have dined at Main Street Cafe regularly since I moved to Madison in 2007. I've taken out of town guests (family and friends) to the restaurant. My daughter & I have enjoyed her annual "back to school" lunch at the Main Street Cafe since she was in Kindergarten because she loves the food & trains, and I used to enjoy the food. However, I will no longer patronize the restaurant as of today. Why? Because I don't want nor need to hear the political opinions of a server/waitress while I am eating. I ate lunch on the patio today. As we concluded our meal with a phenomenal waiter*, a waitress explained the price of upcharges to premium side dishes to diners seated at the table next to us. She then proceeded to tell the diners to blame the price increase in Main Street Cafe's prices "on the president [of the United States]." I've never witnessed such appalling and unprofessional conduct from a server in my entire life! Why would a "professional' discuss politicians with patrons of the business? Had I been seated at that table and placing an order, then I would have informed the manager of the issue and left the restaurant. I'm not paying to listen to political opinions whether I agree with them or not.

The quality of the food has diminished greatly over the years. My "blackened" salmon salad was subpar today. The salmon was baked (not blackened as I ordered) and extremely dry. I tasted my daughter's meatloaf and it was bland -- completely tasteless with the exception of the cheese on top of it. The last time that we dined there, I ordered the Poulet de Normandie and the cornbread base was burned at the bottom. I had to cut it off the burnt section to eat it. I didn't complain because I understand that everyone can mishaps in the kitchen from time to time. In any event, I was able to salvage the dish by cutting off the burnt section. Therefore, I thought that I would give the restaurant another chance after many years of fond memories dining there with family and friends, but I will never return after today. Unless you want a side of politics with your bland entrée, then don't bother dining at Main Street Cafe.

*I do not recall our waiter's name, but he is a slender white male with brown hair. He has worked there for many years and has consistently been a professional & personable server when we were seated in his section. Unfortunately, I don't remember names well. The hostess and lady operating the cash register (manager or owner maybe?) were...

Came here about two weeks ago for the first time for lunch with my mom. This place has a cool history -- it apparently used to be a jail! -- and is located in the quaint little downtown of Madison. We parked a little ways off and enjoyed our walk over. More of the jailhouse/historic vibe is inside the restaurant, but they have a nice patio and it was a beautiful day so we opted to sit outside.

We were seated quickly. Service was super personable and pleasant across the board. Their menu is interesting; it almost reminds me a bit of a tea room meets your mom's kitchen. Some French inspired stuff and warm, homey goodness. The desserts all sounded super yummy (strawberry pretzel salad!!) but we were too full to order any.

I ordered the poppyseed chicken casserole with the hash brown casserole, while my mom had the poulet de normandie with green beans. Both entrees came with a yeast roll.

Food was good! I definitely got the better of the two entrees. Creamy, cheesy, comforting stuff. Despite hearing amazing things about the hash brown casserole, I didn't like it that much; it had a flavor I didn't expect that didn't work for me. Maybe mustard? That's my best guess. As is often my problem with hash brown casseroles, it also tasted a little undercooked (vaguely wobbly, watery potatoes). The yeast roll was a highlight, though. Super pillowy and soft. My mom's poulet was decent, too. Neither of us were expecting the slice of melted cheese on top, and could've done without it, but overall she enjoyed it. The green beans were also okay. Ultimately, I'd say the food didn't totally bowl us over (hence 4/5), but we both agreed it was good enough that we'd definitely come back, especially given the lovely service and fun...

My husband and I went to this beautiful establishment looking for a new experience. We'd visited nearly all of the restaurants in the area and figured we'd look for, and support, the locals.

After calling to ensure we'd get seating, we left home excited about the new experience. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the host who let us know there was seating available. A manager walked over and quickly "corrected the greeter" by letting him know there were no seats available for us (without ever looking up at us). My husband, who'd just spoken to him, let him know he'd told him moments ago that they indeed had seats available. My husband's and my phone etiquette doesn't match our appearance. After realizing the error, we were seated and given water. Eleven (11) minutes later, a waitress walks up, continues looking down at her pad, never mentioned her name and says, "You need more time to look at the menu?". We told her no, placed our order, and we asked her if we could place a drink order. Without a thank you or another word, she walked away. After noticing the people around us who had arrived after us were eating or already leaving, we asked that our food be made to go. We were told the party of 12 would get their food first and there may be a wait. I asked that the order be cancelled. Someone came out to tell us the order was being boxed up. We got up to leave and our order was plated then had to be put into a to-go box. We weren't apologized to, we left hungry, and while the restaurant is unique and beautiful, the waitress and a few others made the experience horrible in nature. Never again. I'm highly dissatisfied and disappointed that such a lovely historic restaurant would have such heartless customer service for their first...