A large and diverse art fair on the square around the capitol. We found things at various price…read morepoints and bought several pieces. The one issue is that being mid-July and held on asphalt streets, it was scorching HOT. The benefit to being near the Capitol building is that it is open so you can go inside and cool off, use the restroom etc (though the ingress/egress was ridiculously inaccessible, which for a government building is just nonsense.) Given how hot Midwestern summers now are, perhaps consider shifting the schedule.

We stopped here for something to do because we were in the area and it was a nice summer day for an…read moreoutdoor activity. The square has a lot of restaurants and bars in the area so we would do a couple things before moving on. AFOS is basically an outdoor event where artists from all styles show their work and hope to sell some so they display and show it all off. It's free to enter as a prospective buyer and walk around looking at some neat art works. It's like a mini outdoor museum and some of it is really neat to look at. This is definitely a cool stop if your in the area when it's happening.

This old theatre has a quirky charm to it. They have a massive concessions stand. The seats are…read morevery comfortable. This theatre is small so there are no bad seats. There is a parking lot and a good amount of street parking available.

The Barrymore Theatre is a 971-capacity live music venue on the east side. It was originally built…read morein 1929. It is to me the most important place in the Schenk-Atwood area. The Barrymore has had a history as diverse as the current entertainment on its schedule. It is an independent, community-based theater, owned by a nonprofit corporation. These are dying in America, so let's support the one we got. There is something here for everyone at least once a year! Not a big picture taking gal so no evidence to support this claim but I'd venture to say nothing about the theatre appearance has changed in my time. Who knows when it last did. And that's what you need to know so you are coming with right expectations and not "corporate" ones. This is a no frills joint, an old school theatre where your focus is on the entertainment. I get my pre-show chow down the block and simply enjoy amazing acoustics for all of the live music I have witnessed at The Barrymore. This setting does really well to beautifully showcase a man and his guitar. We will see how it does next month with a man and his guitar and a piano! Truly we should be thankful to share an intimate room with some of the best musicians of our generation. We need The Barrymore for hosting them and to continue to make the sound superb. The venue hosts a variety of entertainment too, which I appreciate though it's all live music for me. It's worth looking at their schedule to find something to attend if you are in town for a long weekend or more. Visitors should stop here for a Madison experience. There are Barrymore ticket sellers around town so if you want to buy a physical ticket in your neighborhood, you can do that. Huge plus.

We had not been to this festival since we moved here a few years ago right before covid. This year…read morewe made a point to attend on the Friday evening to see a comedy troupe. It was quite good. Fortunately it was in a tent since it did rain. The food choices were pretty decent and the prices were typical for these type of festivals. There were a number of musical acts we would have liked to see but the next two days were blazing hot and sunny and this park has virtually no shade. The bigger stages were in the sun so even though we stopped on our bikes we did not stay. I know this park is in the neighborhood and thus why they hold the event here but they should really work on planting some trees for not only a more attractive park but to help make a setting more conducive to a summer festival.

I'm very excited to provide this review while you still have two days to enjoy the fun…read more This has always been a fun, FREE fest but the previous venue was a series of dirty vacant lots. This year, the venue is the lovely new Central Park on the near east side. What a difference! There is grass, real restrooms and great food and drink! There's a nice selection of beer (including Capital Brewery) and a surprisingly good red for $6/glass. I've become such a wine snob I was really excited to taste this decent, affordable wine. I also appreciate that beer and wine can be enjoyed throughout the grounds and not limited to a fenced garden. Food options are plentiful, including the usual suspects: Lao Laan-Xiang and Jamerica. There's also a fried catfish place and Dobhan kitchen. I'd love to see more French, French colony or Creole food options. Those are hard to find in Madison, but even a crepe stand would be cool. I do love that Gail Ambrosius is there with her French truffles, chocolate dipped frozen bananas and assorted sorbets. If she hasn't run out of Mexican chocolate sorbet, buy it immediately! Also, I had Curd Girl fried cheese curds with their homemade ranch dressing. Good lawd! Outrageously good! The music is the real reason to attend the fest. They bring in some great French, Creole and African bands for the main stage, which we enjoyed. Check the schedule or just show up. You can't go wrong. If you like to sit, there are a few chairs around, but it's best to bring your own lawn chairs. I also really liked the night club vibe provided by DJs in la Bistro tent. It was packed and FUN! What a great way to bring some diversity to the music scene. Bottom line: Great music Excellent new venue Great drinks Great food (even though not enough French inspiration) Limited parking, so bus or bike is best BYO chairs See you there!

This past weekend I attended the Great Taste of the Midwest for the first time, and also…read moreparticipated in the Funk Factory Geuzeria Pre-Party. After having a blast at both events, I can say I won't be missing any future ones! Perfect weather in a large space of Olin Park in Madison, WI with nearly 200 breweries pouring almost 1400 beers. Many breweries have their brewers there pouring flagships and some of the rarest beers you can try.  Funk Factory Geuzeria Pre-Party | The biggest of the Great Taste Eve events is the FFG & Friends Pre-Party where Funk Factory and some of the greatest names in Mead and Beer pour beers you wouldn't be able to have on a normal basis. Some highlights for me: Won't You be my Neighbor by 1840 Brewing A Flanders Red packed with tart cherry flavors, oak tannins, and a malt reminiscent of fresh baked sourdough bread. IOWA8 by Funk Factory Single barrel Lambic spontaneously fermented for 2.5 years. Super complex tart, barnyard, and fruity notes. Sepulchral by Eighth State Brewing A Baklava inspired Imperial Stout with Ji-Roz Baklava, Toasted Walnuts, Roasted Pistachios, Brazilian Vanilla, and Cook's Island Vanilla. Tasted like liquid Baklava, but not syrupy or thick (appreciated). Great Taste of the Midwest | I tried MANY beers and it would be impossible to list them all (thanks Instagram word limit), but I will call out some of the highlights for me: Toppling Goliath Stouts (Assassin and Mornin Delight)  Two bucket list stouts. Mornin Delight tasted like a beautifully balanced mocha and Assassin had tons of bourbon / fudgy chocolate flavors. Revolution Straight Jacket (2018) One of the smoothest and most complex Barleywines I've ever had. Notes of stone fruit, toasted coconut, molasses, and vanilla. McFleshman's Brewing 10 Paces Kriek A Lambic aged in French Oak Cabernet barrels for 1-3 years referemented on a blend of tart and sweet cherries for 6 more months.  The Explorium Brewpub's Blueberry Cheesecake A Berliner Weisse with lactose, vanilla, toasted almonds, and late season Michigan blueberries that tastes exactly as you would hope - blueberry cheesecake. Alarmist Turbulent Dynamics Everything you could ever want in a Hopped Lager.

2018 was my first year attending the Great Taste of the Midwest, and I have to say it was quite an…read moreexperience that no craft beer lover should miss. For those that are not familiar, Great Taste of the Midwest is the second longest-running craft beer festival in North America. GTMW brings together over 190 brewers in a scenic location overlooking Lake Monona while providing some great views of downtown Madison and the state capital. Ticket sales can be challenging, as they are typically released the Sunday after Cinco De Mayo at select locations in Madison, however if you do not happen to live in or near Madison you can enter their mail order lottery for tickets. Should you be lucky enough to secure tickets you will encounter a massive selection of craft beer, great food, and fun entertainment. One of the best things about GTMW is that despite the size the festival never felt like it was too busy, lines were tolerable and I never seemed to wait more than 5 minutes max for a refill, although most brewers you could easily walk right up to without a wait. Most of the 190+ vendors are setup and spread out across 6 massive tents, with each holding anywhere from 20-40 brewers. In addition there are several larger brewers with their own smaller tents scattered around the festival too. My favorite tent/vendor had to be the 0.005K Endurance Run tend from New Holland Brewing Company, finally a race I can enjoy, lol. The food selection was good, however the highlight for me was the bacon on a stick, which was thick cut back served on a stick. Seriously it does not get much better than that. Food prices were very reasonable too. The entertainment was scattered around the 6+ tents, and seemed to lean more towards folk music which seemed to pair up nicely with the festival. Overall I enjoyed my time, and look forward to attending another Great Taste of the Midwest in the future.

tl;dr YOU LIKE BEER?! YOU LIKE CHEESE!? YOU FROM WISCONSIN!? You'll probably want to attend…read more A Madison friend couple of mine host all of us wild and rambunctious MKE folk at their place (god bless them and their trust in us) every year for this event. It has more than 100 different breweries present and a handful of delicious local cheese artisans. The $50 price tag for general admission is well worth it when you get a 2 pm to 6 pm free range with unlimited sampling and the signature tiny tasting class. If we're being honest, it is way less cheese and way more beer. I would say I got around 4 samples of cheese vs so-much-beer-you-definitely-need-an-uber amount of beer tastings. But, it's totally worth the ability to try a brewery you'd never normally happen across and to try samples of a beer (stout, lager, sour, IPA, etc.) that you might not normally have the willingness to pay for a full glass of. The environment of the convention center is also a delight - you get to see: 1) Extravagant pretzel/snack necklaces (if you don't know about this, have you ever even really been to a beer event before?) 2) People wearing balloons with really long strings on them so their friends can spot them from across the event space 3) People screaming "OHHHHHHH" when you hear someone break their sample glass in a nearby radius 4) Live music and drunk people dancing, playing lawn games, etc. It's really great time, I've been going for years and will keep going. Eat (a little), drink and be merry.

My boyfriend and I along with some friends have attended the Isthmus Beer and Cheese Fest for the…read morelast 3 years and each year has been a BLAST! We always stay at a hotel close by the Alliant Center in Madison, Wisconsin (where the Isthmus Beer and Cheese Fest is held) and we have so much fun eating great cheese and drinking great craft beer from all over. This is an event every beer and cheese lover should attend! It has the perfect of both worlds all in one event!

The Bur Oak is a fun spot to catch music - great lineup of bands, perfect acoustics, nice seating,…read morefull bar, etc. Check it out!

Lacy is amazing and kind and makes the best food. Thanks Lacy!!…read more We've been many times and it is consistently good!!

We had wanted to see their show since we first learned about them right before covid. We never did…read moreget over to the Glass Nickel for a show but we saw they were performing at the Fete de Marquette so we made sure to go. I am guessing this was not their regular show but a shortened version since they were doing three different performances at the festival on this evening. The troupe was quite funny. Of course improv can be hit or miss especially when trying to engage with a big crowd that was moving in and out of the tent (many were in the tent avoiding the rain). We definitely had a many good laughs. We now plan to go to one of their regular shows.

I am surprised more people haven't reviewed this show. I attended the all ages show a few weekends…read moreago with my two children (7 and 9) along with a few coworkers and their kids. We purchased tickets ahead of time which was good because it was a sold out show. The venue is interesting (basement of Glass Nickel Pizza), it was small so space was very limited. I suggest arriving early so you can order something to eat and a drink. They do have a full bar in the basement during the show as well. My kids LOVED it. They had a few different acts, and each time they asked for either an idea from the audience or had a few people (kids) come up and help in the act. My son was super excited to be picked for the last act of the night. Most of the skits were hilarious, but there was one or two that was more funny for the adults as my kids were too young to catch on to why it was funny. We plan to be back!

First time to the terrace at 8 pm on a Friday night. It was jam packed and I have never seen so…read moremany people in Madison since moving here. Nice sunset view with colorful tables and chairs. Insane long queues for food/beer. Opted for a shorter line at Babcock dairy. Kinda pricey but WISC card gets you 5% off. Was lucky to find street parking. Great way to start the weekend.

Compared to the ugly Brutalist predecessor from the 70s this newer place is an absolute palace…read more Too bad this building wasn't here when I was an engineering student back in the day. I have mainly visited Union South on football game day's Badger Bash which is much fun. The marching band plays and the Bloody Mary bar is a big plus. There are a number of food options and the large SETT for eating and drinking. I have seen but not used the conference facilities and ballrooms but it looks to be a very nice setup. I know there are many recreational options like a climbing wall but again nothing I have used as an alumni. It is not the Memorial Union with it's iconic Ratskellar and Terrace but it is a great university resource.