This place is a neighborhood favorite and there's ALWAYS a line. Come later in the day to skip the wait! I had the madison plate when I came for brunch. It's a mix of sweet/savory with a croissant french toast, home fries, 2 eggs and sausage with cheese sauce. Generous portions and pretty decent coffee. Their menus are creative with rotating seasonal specials and cocktails for a boozy brunch. If you're a fan of bread like I am, you can buy a loaf of their breads to bring home. My favorite item on the menu so far is their salmon sandwich, which comes with a bright, citrusy mango sauce. (seasonal?) I had it during a weekday lunch, which came with a side of fries and macaroni salad. I live 5 min away, so i'll be visiting often! read more

Cafe Madison - Salmon sandwich - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

Came here 2 times and loved it every trims I came. This place has a nice homey feel to it. Home away from home. Breakfast is amazing here. The Madison plate was my go to the 2nd time around. I love the bacon here. I absolutely loved the Bloody Mary as well. I can't wait to visit my son again so I can come here. The crew here is great. Tried the yelp check in and it was perfect to use. Thank you read more

One of the best breakfast I ever have. The place is nice, easy street parking, good service and price. read more

This gem is so trendy. Everything from the music playing and artwork to the amazing food and lattes! I got the caprese omelette with cinnamon swirl toast and a chai tea latte. Everything was amazing, but the toast was to die for! read more

This place is super good. But always very busy and it's small inside, so if you're looking to eat, make sure you call ahead and make a reservation. Can't wait to visit again soon!!!!!! read more

My favorite brunch restaurant. The food is always fresh and delious. Customer service is always good. read more

Cafe Madison - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

We were told about a 20 min wait n it was accurate. Excellent covid protocol. We waited in the car n they called us in when table was ready. Tables distanced nicely. Friendly waitress. Nice hot coffee, we had banana bread French toast w whipped cream and egg white avocado omelette. Everything tasted fresh n was very good. Cute place, clean n clean bathroom too. read more

Cafe Madison - Banana bread French toast w whipped cream and avocado egg white omelette w rye toast - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

Cafe Madison is my all time, favorite brunch spot in Albany. If you want consistent food, fun specials and great service, go here. I have been here more than I've been to any other restaurant in Albany but this review is based on my most recent visit. Furthermore, this review is for the location on Madison Ave. I came around 10:30am on a weekday. I've waited for a table here on the weekdays before so I was happy to be sat right away at a small booth near the back. Our waitress came over and got our drink orders. Bae and I both ordered a hot toddy off of their drink menu, which I believe was a special. It was ok but it was seriously the strongest hot toddy I've ever had. So it was actually great. I ordered crab cake bennie with dill onion toast and bae ordered the hash breakfast with dill onion toast as well. One of the many charms of Cafe Madison is that they make several varieties of homemade bread. They are all amazing and you can buy whole loaves of them to take home. Anyway, I'm weird about poached eggs so I ordered my eggs over easy. This crab cake, though....was so fucking good. Crab cake game mad strong. It was really crispy on the outside and soft and sweet on the inside. Fucking masterpiece. The home fries were also amazing, as always. Pan fried bites of potatoes with plenty of herbs. Perfectly cooked and seasoned. I can also speak to the corned beef has which resembles hash out of the can (and very well may be for all I know) but they cook it on a flat top and put this cheese sauce on it. Ow. Mah. Gawd. YASSSS. FUCK YAS. Love that. Service was excellent, as always. I've been a regular here for years so one of the servers who I'm friendly with, Cris, came over and we bantered about the poll I recently posted on Facebook. It was a poll comparing brunch at Cafe Madison and Iron Gate (which I also love, just not as much as Cafe Madison). Cafe Madison won (obvi). This place gets really busy on the weekends but you can use NoWait on Yelp to save a place in line. There is also another, newer location in Loudonville that has a really fun, steampunk kind of vibe with a slightly different menu. I have eaten there once and it was consistent with the location on Madison Ave. read more

Ate here twice in one weekend. Excellent food. Great service. If you want fluffy eggs come here. Inventive and varied dishes that all looked good. Also- real maple syrup. This is not your typical diner breakfast. read more

Cafe Madison - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

Love the food. If you are near the area you should check it out! I had some time to kill, so I stop by grab the bite to eat and it was wonderful definitely would recommended to someone else! read more

It was decent. They had a nice hostess, and our waitress was great. The food was just okay. I got an omelet, ordered as eggwhite with no cheese. It was brought out as a regular egg, I'm not sure if it had cheese. But I sent it back as I had paid extra for egg whites only. What came back was a watery mess. I wasn't sure I really trusted anything from the kitchen, by then. So I just had a bloody Mary, which was excellent. My boyfriend had eggs, pancakes, and sausage. He loved it. I tried a bite of pancakes, and they were really good. I would return. read more

Awesome meal again at Cafe Madison. Love the French toast, bacon, and fresh fruit. Recommend this place highly. You won't be disappointed.

Great food and great service! The atmosphere was very eclectic! We love coming here for breakfast.

Everything about this place is to die for. The set up is very intimate and almost felt very much like being home. The service was quick and everyone was very attentive. The menu options are perfect for anyone , vegan, vegetarian or meat eater. I went with vegan aside from egg whites. THE FOOD WAS AMAZING !! Thank you for the experience. I will be coming back when I visit again. We need you guys in New Jersey read more

Cafe Madison - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

Definitely one of my favorite, if not my #1, spot for brunch in Albany. Listen, the place is small and loved so expect a long wait, it's worth it. I've never really understood people who complain about wait times, you're more than likely there with someone so enjoy that person's company in the meantime and have a little patience for what you want. What Café Madison has started doing is using The Pourhouse next door as an overflow waiting area, which is a great idea! There is plenty of seating in there, the bar is open, and you get complementary coffee while you wait. They've also recently upgraded beyond the pen and paper waitlist so you feel comfortable walking away from the restaurant since you get a text when your table is ready instead of having to listen for your name being called. Anyway, on to the food. It is DELICIOUS and SO vegetarian friendly. They have the greatest weekend specials with the most creative themes. This past weekend was "Dad Jokes" and I had excellent "Money Doesn't Grow on Trees! Savory French Toast: Dill onion bread dipped in a tomato and balsamic egg batter, topped with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and balsamic. They always have a sweet crepe selection that calls my name and the times that I give in I am not disappointed. Most recently I enjoyed some peanut butter and chocolate crepes which I'm still dreaming about. If I'm not ordering off of the specials menu I stick with a create your own omelet which comes with toast of your choice (choose the cinnamon swirl, trust me!) and some of the best home fries I've ever had. I also really love that Café Madison partners with other local businesses and collaborates their menu items with things like Cider Belly donuts and Berbben and Wolff's seitan Oh, and I would highly recommend their specialty drinks---alcoholic or not. I always accompany my breakfast with a cappuccino. If you're in Albany, suck up the wait time and have breakfast/brunch here, you won't be sorry! read more

Absolutely amazing food! French toast stacker was so delicious! Kelly was my waitress and she was super kind and so great!

I came to Cafe Madison on a Saturday morning around 9am to the beat the rush with two friends. We didn't get seated until an hour and a half later, although it was supposed to be a 30 minute wait. The waiter wanted to seat us in a 2 person booth, and add an additional chair knowing that would be uncomfortable, and the plates of food would not fit on the table. Our food and drinks came out within 15-30 minutes of being seated. One order came out wrong and the buttermilk pancakes and butter I received was cold. I ordered the Super Breakfast that came with a good sized portion of food (one sausage, eggs any style, toast, pancakes, home fries). The home fries were decent. The toast we were given were cold. As this being my first time at Cafe Madison and hearing good things about this restaurant, I was extremely dissatisfied. The food was not to the level I thought it was going to be. We were also being rushed out of the restaurant so they can seat more people, which I found extremely rude after being there 45 minutes top (most of the time waiting for the food). It will be very unlikely I will be giving my money to this business again. read more

I would not consider 5* an error here. Café Madison is an institution, and although they recently revamped the menu - the raspberry oatmeal pancakes no longer get pride of place! - it has been consistently a stand-out brunch spot for years. Those pancakes, by the way, still excellent although I think that the batter has changed to have less texture and oatmeal character; not the direction I would have chosen. The menu in general hits all the expected high-carb, high-calorie notes: the 'French toast stacker' easily defeated my teenage track-running son! Coffee is good (phew!) and rapidly refilled, service friendly, nothing bad to say. Perhaps a bit generic brunch-y, but very likely to exceed expectations and send you off happily sated. read more

Love this place! Have been here for brunch a few times and figured it's about time to write a review. Though this place is totally packed on the weekends, we strolled in at 10 on a Thursday and were seated right away. We started with two Irish coffees. Our bartender was amazing, I wish I knew her name so I could give her a shout out. She was so friendly and patient with our indecisiveness and gave us some great advice on what to order. The Irish coffees had a splash of baileys and whipped cream, sooooo yummy! For our main dish, my friend got the Tuscan crepe with vegan maple sausage and I ordered a vegan breakfast burrito but substituted the Daiya cheese for real pepper jack cheese. Both dishes came with sides (fries and a pasta salad with the crepe and homefries with mine). Though both dishes were tasty, I think I liked the crepes more. Regardless, it's awesome that they have so many veggie and vegan options here and I don't think you can go wrong by ordering anything on their menu. If you're in Albany, brunch at Cafe Madison is an absolute must! read more

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Just finished lunch with my hubby- there was a line so we sat at the bar- everyone working there was super friendly and fun to chat with! The California Chicken burger sounded awesome but I was really in the mood for a burger- not a problem! The Burger was Amazing!! So Juicy I needed a napkin just to eat half! The pesto is house made an fresh!! We will come back again!! Oh and they have great gluten free bread!! It was toasted nicely and held up when eating the burger! read more

Absolutely delicious food!! I got the Bayou Omelette and my daughter got the chocolate chip pancakes, both were fantastic! We did have a 30 minute wait during Saturday Brunch but it was packed! We were able to hang out at the Madison Pour House which was nice since it was down pouring outside and limited wait area at the cafe. The staff was friendly and attentive, very much look forward to visiting when we are in the area again! read more

Cafe Madison - Chocolate Chip Pancakes with a little of everything (Kids Menu) - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

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We got there and asked for a table for 2 at 10:30, we were told 15 min wait and didn't end up getting a table until 12:15.... so that was annoying, then when we got seated we ordered drinks (adult coffee) and what came was not what we ordered. I ordered salted Carmel and got a banana creme something that was terrible... and worse than that I found a long black hair in my coffee cup about half way through it.....!!! Don't order the pancakes, I got strawberry ones and the strawberries were thrown on top and burnt. Not good. My fiancé got their eggs Benny grilled cheese which looked really good though. read more

My wife and I visited on Saturday morning. There was quite a few people there, so they put us on a list. We waited for about 20 minutes, and I started to notice people getting seated before my wife and me. My wife, inquired of this tattooed guy who I suspect was the manager, and he was quite dismissive saying' your next . We watched as he seated other people again as we wait. So, we left. It was interesting to note I heard him ask about other couples as he suspected they went next door to juniors. Very unprofessional guy this tattooed fellow, we will not be back. There are too many other eateries to put up with this non sense. read more

You can order anything here and it will come out spectacular and delicious. I love the banana bread French toast. The Mediterranean omelette and the chicken sandwich are also delicious. My family and friends love this cozy joint. Coffee is actually really yummy and their drinks are delicious. I also want to say that their service is super friendly and helpful. 10/10 recommend. read more

This morning I decided to go to the Madison End Cafe for a sumptuous breakfast. They didn't disappoint. I got my usual mimosa. Hit the spot! Some very pleasant conversation with the incredible staff. Relaxing. Calm. Hungry. I tend to get the same thing, because it is delicious, and I never make bacon or pancakes at home.. My breakfast dish du jour is the oatmeal blueberry pancake, with a side of bacon. Irresistibly delicious. I eat slowly just to savor every morsel. This place is breakfast nirvana. They do have a lovely place outside for alfresco dining, but the weather didn't cooperate. And in addition I wanted to point out what I alluded to in my review. Catlin, Lexi, and Mario are the trifecta in the hospitality industry. Simply wonderful and consistently wonderful! This is just a tremendous neighborhood place to go. Can't say enough. Just feel like a welcome guest. Isn't that pretty great. I think so. The hospitality industry is not an easy place to work, and since covid there have been many restaurant closures. It has been a rough couple of years. Summer is almost here so lets get out there and drop a few dollars. Wishing you all a wonderful happy and healthy summer of 2023! read more

I went for dinner to Cafe Madison recently, with low expectations. At the time, it felt like a 4* review, but that was probably from the exuberance of great company and plenty of wine. Not to mention the low expectations. Looking back on the experience with a cooler head, I'm going to give it a very solid 3* mark. The devil, as they say, is in the details. First detail: Wine glasses. Cafe Madison has plenty of wines by the glass, and even more by the bottle. I'm constantly amazed at some of the crap wine "nice" restaurants put on their lists. The Vintners Reserve Zin bottling from the otherwise great Ravenswood winery comes to mind. But I'm willing to overlook that. What I am less willing to overlook, is the thickness of the wine glasses. If you are going to mark the price of wine way up, at least let me know that the money is being put to good use on quality glassware. Second Detail: Cheese Selection. One cheese was fantastic and one cheese was mild, but fine. The Manchego... the FREAKING Manchego... the national cheese of Spain... aged sheep milk cheese that is perennially a favorite... TASTELESS. Absolutely tasteless. Like they bought it at BJs or something. The cheese plate also came with Carr's black pepper water crackers. Which just so happened to overwhelm the flavor of every single item on the plate. What were they thinking? Third Detail: Undercooked Gnocchi I ordered the Hangar Steak, rare (expecting medium-rare which indeed was what delivered). It came atop gorgonzola gnocchi, which were regrettably under-cooked. The "robust mushroom pan sauce" was robustly salty. Not inedibly so, but the whole dish was certainly over-seasoned. Still it was the coarse snap of biting into the gnocchi that really killed it for me. It's too bad, because I give them serious props for having hangar steak on the menu. It's a fantastic cut of meat, and you don't see it much around these parts. Fourth Detail: Dessert Presentation. How can you say no to "chocolate pate"? Next time, it will be much easier. As far as I can tell, they made chocolate ganache (aka chocolate mixed with cream) and chilled it in a loaf pan. Then served four thin slices propped up with a mound of whipped cream, and a small sprinkling of fresh berries. It was a lot of cream. Not even counting the cream in the chocolate. But it was the sloppiness of the cutting that really irked me, or maybe it was just the decision to serve the mangled piece of "pate". If it weren't for the gnocchi and the over-seasoning, the hangar steak would have been a relative bargain at $18. Other entrees are significantly more expensive. Ultimately, my entree was tasty. And I would go back and give them another try. Especially if it was a nice evening for sitting out on the patio. And relaxing with some hangar steak and a bottle of rustic red. read more

Ever since the new "manager" took over the Madison Ave location this place has been awful. I haven't left a review yet on this... until today. It's beyond disappointing to stand with a huge line of people in the doorway waiting JUST to put their names in while the "manager" stands in the doorway doing NOTHING. The few employees there running around like crazy while she kept her back to the lengthy line of people never once turning around to acknowledge everyone waiting. Nobody else taking down anyones names. Rude to the one person who got her to acknowledge them. Everyone in the line waiting asking each other what was going on since nobody was doing anything and she was standing there ignoring waiting customers while high-fiving staff (for a job poorly done?.) And before you think, well I'm sure they were crazy busy so it happens... they weren't. This place is not run efficiently like the old manager and employees ran it. When you can get in, they love to drop a check on you before you're done, run away and then give you attitude if you dare ask for anything else. Most of the time they won't so much as look at your table until they see a credit card, because they are done with you. The attitude at this place has always been pretty high like they're doing you a favor serving you, but it's gotten out of control. Go next door to Kismet and save yourself the agitation, great food and far superior service. read more

Nope. Sorry Cafe Madison. It's a real shame when both the service and the food betrays you in such a lovely restaurant. The ambiance, dark with whimsical accents, suggested to me that the place was run by folks who were serious about good food served well. And perhaps Cafe Madison is so run, but they really fouled things up when I stopped by. The attention by the waitstaff was so sporadic and jumbled that I am still not sure who was my actual server. I wish someone would've stepped up with a little more authority, since I waited about fifteen minutes to place and order and about twenty minutes for the check. Between the periods of waiting was a brief few minutes during which I ate a skimpy and furnace-dry frittata, served up with unbuttered wheat bread. I hate it when my stomach is filled with profound disappointment instead of hearty and nourishing brunch, so I certainly hated that frittata. The other Yelpers love this place, so either the good people of Albany are far more forgiving than I am, or I just came on one of their worst days. In either case, I'm not coming back. read more

Out of state visiting Albany, I'm so glad I stumbled on this cute spot! Food was incredible and service was fast and friendly. Would definitely recommend the caprese omelette and breakfast sangria. read more

Cafe Madison - Caprese omelette, cinnamon toast, sangria, chai tea latte. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

First of all. This place is a really happening joint at opening time on a Sunday when all the other places are closed,because of Sunday? Hello . So first the place is nice sized very cool atmosphere and already filled up with Youngbloods. Coffee is OK ok not too strong, their menu has nice Vegan breakfast options. The employees are very helpful. The loaded breakfast burrito is spicey and tastey. The tofu scramble with add on vegetables are sautéd in oil, are very good and are plentiful, homemade style bread very good and the meal was tasty. The home fries are a little too oily and salty but when you are hungry who cares. So overall, the place is a food heaven in a sea of closed restaurants ( Sunday morning) and the food is very good and will not disappoint. The only bad is, no SOS option. read more

Excellent breakfast. I had an omelette which was delicious, whole wheat toast that was the best and home fries. Others in the party had oatmeal banana walnut pancakes- large pancakes that were unable to be finished. Last had eggs with corned beef hash which was excellent. Waiter very efficient, frequent refills on coffee and very attentive-even though very busy. Obviously overall excellent! Highly recommend and will definitely return. Prices reasonable quality priceless. read more

We have been going to Cafe Madison for years, however it feels like since they have been in their new location things have really slipped. the hostess did not even look at us and continues to have a conversation with another staff member. The place was not busy, less than half full with a lot of staff standing around twiddling their thumbs and talking to each other. The server showed up about 5 minutes after we sat down, the coffee finally arrived and it was lukewarm at best. we requested real cream instead of the non-dairy product at the table, sorry, didn't realize it was an inconvenience to request something. The food finally arrived, the waffle that my companion ordered was raw in the middle. the second one, guess what, raw in the middle. i ordered the egg burrito, was supposed to be accompanied with salsa and sour cream, had to ask for it. Added on the guacamole for $3, it was maybe a tablespoon and it was very dark, indicative of being old or not covered. The potatoes, never that great to begin with, but now you have to pay an extra .75$ if you want peppers and onions. Don't start nickel and dimeing people and charging for every little extra thing. When we got the bill, we were charged twice for the waffle. Seriously. Like I said, been going here since the place started out as Qualters, then to Madison End Cafe and now Cafe Madison. Won't be going back anytime soon. I hope the owners see this and take action to correct course before the place goes off the rails. read more

I chose this spot to have brunch on my wife's birthday and while there was an hour wait we were NOT disappointed. The food was amazing and we were able to get a table inside so it was cozy and warm. They were out the banana bread for the banana fofana french toast but she their regular French toast and added bananas etc and she was in heaven. I got the seafood Florentine omelette with extra shredded cheese on top and OMG. We can't wait to go back. read more

Cafe Madison - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

Breakfast - This is one of the best breakfast spots in Albany (if not THE best). They always have some inventive seasonal specials. One of the best specials I ever had was the sweet potato crepes. The crepes were light and fluffy and filled with chocolaty & nutty decadence. They also always have some twist on traditional eggs benedict and stuffed french toast. Lunch - I've only been here a couple of times for lunch and always get the Delaware (crab cake) sandwich. It's just really tasty, lots of crab meat, and only $8. The restaurant itself is adorable, the bathroom is probably the nicest bathroom I've ever been in, and the waitstaff is always friendly and talkative. read more

we have been coming here for years and we are so thrilled that Jay, the cook, has returned to the Madison Cafe. The food was so delicious! while he was away the quality of the food suffered and we weren't sure we would keep going, but as long as Jay is there, we will be coming several times a week! read more

Meh. I don't know. I feel like Cafe Madison has taken on the whole manufactured demand business model and, quite frankly, that doesn't work for me. We showed up well before they opened and got on the list and still waited for HOURS. When we were notified that we were ready we moved from the bar next door to Cafe Madison where we waited for ANOTHER HOUR. Sorry, but this isn't a Michelin-starred restaurant. Fun fact: most Michelin-starred places aren't disrespectful to their patrons' time. The food is great. The coffee is great. The bathrooms could use a scrub. But, honestly, great brunch is readily available all over Albany - and most places take reservations. Especially since we live in Southern Vermont it's, at a minimum, a five hour ordeal. And, quite frankly, not worth it. If I lived in the area it might be a completely different story. Although the fact that you're alerted that your table is ready and then still wait an hour is nothing short of obnoxious. I'll pass on the next suggestion to brunch here. read more

Great place for brunch in the Capital Region. Came here with a group of 5, were seated immediately on a weekday around 8 AM. The atmosphere here is very cozy and makes for a nice romantic weekend brunch. I ordered the berry crepes which were stuffed with Brie and berries. It was exquisite! Everyone else enjoyed their dishes as well, it was a great experience overall. Service was decent, although nothing out of this world, which may have bumped it up to a 5 star review. Just one last thing, I was actually very impressed by how nice the bathrooms were here for such a small place. read more

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Cafe Madison has so much promise. And there is so much to like about the place. Amazing specials. Great cocktails and some of the best special pancakes around. But they just don't always get the basics right. Several visits I had to send my poached eggs back because they weren't cooked correctly. During our most recent visit we waited an hour for our food and by the time it came we had to just box it up and go. We had two babies with us. They had tons of staff on and they were all hustling so I don't know if the kitchen staff all slept in that morning but they seemed like they were behind from the very start. We arrived at opening and placed our order as soon as we were seated. With all that in mind, an hour is just wayyy to long to wait for food. And many other tables got their food before us. Perhaps we were forgotten about? It's very rare I would give such a poor review on a local place that I truly have so much love for, but they need to get it together. They can and have been better. read more

Never stop being awesome Cafe Madison! Just go here. For brunch, for lunch, for the love of God... Just go. You won't be sorry. read more

Cafe Madison - All you need are chocolate chip oatmeal pancakes and a mimosa for brunch and your whole day is a million times better. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Albany, New York

Our group had to split up because two large groups were just seated recently. The staff made every effort and got us seated across from each other and made it a non issue. The food service was incredibly fast with a fully packed restaurant. Delicious food! Do yourself a favor and get the cinnamon swirl toast. read more