Swiss and Madison — Restaurant in Mankato

For the sake of this review I feel it’s worth mentioning we visited on Valentine’s Day, which was undoublty busy and some of our experience reflected that.

The good: -The food was amazing, we’re still raving about it -Steak was a perfect medium rare like we requested -Fries were crispy and deliciously seasoned -Mussel pasta was perfectly Al dente and the sauce wasn’t too heavy -Boyfriend had to his remark the “best Moscow Mule in Mankato” -Dining room and bathrooms were very clean, which is always a plus -Valentine’s menu was cute and the valet service and curated decor was a romantic touch

The bad: -We had a reservation for 7:30. We arrived at 7:20 and had no problem being ushered to the bar to wait. However when 7:50 came around and we were seeing walk-ins and other groups being seated, the bartender who overheard us debating checking on the status of our table was able to get us seated at a nearby open table.

-Service was just okay. They were clearly understaffed so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. Our server was very kind and polite, but clearly frantic. However after being seated with menus at 7:50, it took til 8:10 to have our server come to the table. After that, she didn’t return to take our food orders until 15 minutes later (even though we’d had ample time to look at the menu before she visited the first time). We also didn’t receive silverware, so we had to wait a few extra minutes to wave down our server before we could begin to eat.

My recommendations:

I’ve worked in restaurants and utilized apps such Opentable before. It’s easier to keep on top of reservations when you can take a phone number to page the guest when they’re waiting for a table and keep a timer on how long they’ve been waiting. Overall just easier than a paper reservation book.

Overall: Having worked in the restaurant industry and worked being understaffed, I have some grace for the staff which is why overall this was still a great experience for us. Even with the waiting, our food was still incredible and so worth the wait. We look forward to coming back on a weeknight or regular weekend to try our more things on the menu. Although it is a little upscale for Mankato, we are definitely willing to pay for quality, unique food, which is what Swiss and...

Disclaimer: This is based solely on my experiences alone. This review is in no way, shape or form, meant to offend or discourage anyone:

Swiss and Madison, I don’t know where to begin with this one. I will start with, the second to last time I went in there: I met a server named Ashley (I believe, it was a few years ago, excuse me if I am mistaken). We spoke a bit and she was such a good spirit, we had a friendship for a nice minute! How often do you go to a place and find a new friend? Good and friendly service Good menu suggestions Great and fun looking drinks!! -Please drink responsibly, as it is our responsibility to be safe.- The last time I went in there: The last time I went in there, I went with my dear friend after her shift. After our server had said goodbyes and we tipped, her vibe totally changed, she seemed uninterested. So it’s like oh.. was it just for the tip or? It wasn’t busy, just some other upscale people had come in. So I wave “goodbye, thank you,” “Bye.” Okay. However, I still give the benefit of the doubt, she was probably ready to go home. I often disliked working in the kitchen at a previous job so I amn’t too worried. It is my Personal Belief, customer service should be followed through until your customer officially leaves. So that’s where the 5th star is missing. Reread Disclaimer Good food, they always have my favorite, Salmon. It is filled with natural lighting in the day time. I love the colors, the teals really compliment me- and I suppose anyone who goes there haha, not to toot my own horn. Mostly good genuine vibes! God bless and may the love you give be the love you...

I was really excited for Mankato to have another nice restaurant but Swiss and Madison left me pretty disappointed. I normally give a restaurant a second chance before really judging them but I don't think I'll be returning here.

I ordered their buffalo cheese curds and a salmon salad to share to start my meal as well as a cocktail. The salad and cocktail were great. However, when biting into one of the cheese curds, it became apparent that they use the same breading container for their cheese curds that they use for their shrimp as I bit into a breaded and fried shrimp tail. I opted not to finish my cheese curds. I brought it to the attention of the server and she apologized for the kitchen error and explained that they used the same breading. It was pretty gross to bite into but I also wanted to mention this as a warning to anyone that may have a shrimp allergy.

For the main course I ordered the seafood pasta, which arrived with one of muscles missing the meat and with a broken shell. I do not feel like I missed much though as the one that was included was rubbery. The pasta itself was over cooked, as was the singular shrimp. The person I went with ordered their prime rib special and they felt it was under seasoned and tough. After having brought the shrimp tail issue to the attention of the server with no real accountability, we opted not to mention further issues and paid the full bill. Overall the drinks we had were great and the service was fine but the food was...