Laurel Tavern sits on Monroe Street and backs up to Wingra Park/Lake, which makes for a great stroll before or after stopping by! This spot is a true local tavern from decor, furnishings, exterior, service, locals lining the bar, old school arcade games and classic tavern food. I swung by recently after grabbing a coffee across the way, then wandering around Wingra Park for a bit. Figured I worked up a thirst, so we bellied up to the bar and had a few Spotted Cows! While we did not eat, we browsed the menu and gawked at a few plates that came by. Food looked decent and as we were leaving they were tossing up the Friday Fish Fry sign, which I hate we missed. But what we didn't do in food, we did in beer. We each had a couple of rounds, all draft. We watched what sports were on, chatted with folks and just enjoyed the chill time and cold beer. Service was friendly and helpful. Bartenders were not the quickest to check in on you, but they were nice enough and acknowledged any wait. Overall, solid tavern in Madison. Nothing special, but nothing awful. Classic tavern, and I can dig it. read more

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This is classic WI tavern and neighborhood bar. Two parking areas on either side of the building. Long bar, then a separate area with booths, two-tops and tall tables. Its one advantage is a lovely fireplace. Lights are dim. Has that old-wood vibe. Staff are attentive. Bartender was very personable and helpful. To that end, one of the staff recognized a member of my group from frequent carry-out orders. Food is fine, although nothing remarkable. Fried green beans were fun. All the apps are fried. Maybe it is the lower price, as more area restaurants try to morph into 'upscale' bar food. Not sorry I met my friends here, but it won't be a destination restaurant for me. read more

Really delicious food, attentive service, in a dark and friendly tavern setting. They are known for their Rueben sandwiches but we opted for beer brats that were perfectly cooked. The basket of onion rings were perfection. 5 easy stars. read more

I went to Laurel Tavern for the first time for their St Patrick's day corned beef and cabbage. This plate was served with boiled potatoes, soda bread and horseradish sauce. I was there mid afternoon and I was one of 6 customers. Service was brisk and friendly. The corned beef was beautiful - tender generous slices (I ended taking some home) and the cabbage and little potatoes were perfectly cooked and well seasoned. The soda bread was perfect. Although you might think this was nothing special because everything was just as it should be and tasty this is a win for their kitchen. I'm going to be back to try their other offerings. read more

Great burger and onion rings, excellent pub food. I get takeout here frequently. Friendly people.

Warm & welcoming spot with lots of booths & a cozy fire. Very pleasant and attentive staff. Food was okay, I had the mushroom Swiss burger I would have liked a toasted bun and a char on the burger. I asked for it medium rare, it wasn't. It fell apart & was a real mess. The onion rings were from a bag not fresh. read more

Laurel Tavern - Onion Rings - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Friday fish fry at the Laurel Tavern remains a highlight of my visits to Madison and today was no exception. We arrived a bit after 4;30 to secure a table, which turned out to be a good strategy, as the place was packed by the time we finished. Erica, our server was so great, helping me out with a beer selection and letting us share a dinner with extra sides. The walleye portion is huge, with three generous fillets. Hash browns and a green salad made it good, but adding fried cheese curds as an additional side made it great. This is a place for happy diners, like me. read more

Laurel Tavern - Walleye dinner with fried cheese curds - YUM! - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Our food was delivered quickly a with courtesy. Quality of food was GREAT. Waitress was attentive without being too hovering. Overall I highly recommend Laurel Tavern and will be dining there often. read more

Love the Laurel! Warm, cozy atmosphere for a quaint college bar! Food is always delicious! Every time!

This tavern screams nostalgia! Not sure if it's the red lights, long bar, pull tabs or cheap bar food! You can't go wrong with Laurel Tavern! In an area such as Monroe St. where things are only becoming gentrified... it's nice to have a low cost bar with a quality Friday night fish fry and simple menu to call home! Quick note... be prepared to wait on a Friday night if you want the Fish Fry! Tables go fast!! read more

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So I have been back to the Laurel for the fish fry not once but a few times now. I can honestly say that it is very consistent and delicious here. The price is a bargain for the plateful that you receive. This place does get packed on Friday, yet the waiters and staff are great about moving the line along. The Laurel Tavern fish fry is one that I would highly recommend. read more

Laurel Tavern - pool table - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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We heard about this place from a friend otherwise it would never have been on our radar. We stopped in for a late dinner on a Thursday evening. The place was somewhat empty except for what I am guessing were some regulars given the stares we got when we entered. My main question is: what's with the weird pink lighting throughout the place especially in the dining room? It appears someone really likes pink because the ladies' room is all pink. In the dining room the lighting gives the food an unappetizing glow. Really odd. The waitress was friendly and kept things moving. The food prices were actually cheap - a surprise these days with everything going up. The fried cod sandwich was solid. The reuben while tasty but was mainly sauerkraut with a bit of corned beef. It definitely needed more meat. The old fashion was disappointing - guessing a mix and tiny for the price (this was not a bargain). We've now been here - no need to return. Plenty of other neighborhood bars to try out. read more

Laurel Tavern - Brandy Old Fashioned - no muddled fruit here - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Ask a local. Driving through Madison on a Friday night, stopped for a pickup on a friend's recommendation for an amazing neighborhood fish fry. Friday night fish fry included 3 pieces of fried walleye pike, potatoes (baked, French fries or hash browns with onions and peppers covered in Wisconsin cheese), a roll and soup (clam chowder), salad or coleslaw. The fish was delicious with tarter sauce. Get the hash browns. Ordered take out while driving and it was hot, fresh, and a perfect dinner. Buy local! read more

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I did not order food because I was not hungry but the atmosphere was amazing, the bartenders were great and the patrons have been coming for years and know the history of the area. I will go next Friday for their fish fry read more

Laurel Tavern, what a gem. It's a local spot with great food, prices, and staff. When you walk in, it feels like it's just going to be an old towny bar, and ding ding ding, you're basically right. But this one has so much charm, one of the BEST fish fry's in Madison, and is always a hoppin spot. So here are my recommendations for a game plan when coming here on fish fry fridays. 1. Come early. And I'm talking senior special early. If you're here at 530 you might have to wait for a table or just sit at the bar, but even then the bar might be full with people just enjoying a Friday evening. The parking lot is usually full by 5, so do yourself a favor and just come enjoy the spot with the seniors 2. Ask to be seated right away. The team will seat you at your table even if only one of you is present! Definitely try not to reserve a table for more than 6 people but I'd say the perfect group is 4 here as the dining room area is pretty small. I'd say like 50 people max can fit in the dining room and that's if all the tables are full. 3. You'll get a server to you right away so definitely have your drink order ready. Meaning - what type of old fashioned are you getting? 4. Order the fish fry. Specifically the fried cod! I know walleye is traditional and it's usually my go to at fish fry's in Wisconsin, but the cod here slaps. It's boss. It's flavorful, flakey, deliciousness and you won't be disappointed. Also the fact that you get a soup, salad, or coleslaw is bomb. Their clam chowder is great and actually is gone pretty early in the night. If you want both chowder and coleslaw then make sure to the slaw as a side cuz the soup is more expensive 5. Enjoy your delicious meal 6. Rave about how delicious it is and thank your server. Tip well and come back soon Honorable mentions - potatoes O'Brien (cheese on top of hasbrowns), fried mushrooms, and fried cheese curds. HAPPPY FISH FRY FRIYAYS! read more

A friend recently took me to the Laurel Tavern to celebrate my birthday. We were seated in a middle section and since my friend is hard of hearing, it was extremely hard to carry on a conversation. We happen to see a table open up in a corner and switched to that table. The woman (I think the owner?) cleared off the table very briskly, and we could tell she was angry. She then proceeded to reset (almost throw the silverware) the table. I told her we moved because we could not carry on a conversation. My friend repeated it. She just glared at us and said "Yah". If she wanted us to move, she should have said so. This is the absolutely the worst and rudest I have ever been treated at a restaurant. On the upside, our server was excellent and the food was good and plentiful. read more

Classic WI fish fry. 3 pieces of walleye for $14 and it's delicious. Fish came out piping hot, coleslaw wasn't overdressed and you got a whole soup cup full, and both the baked potato and fries were solid. An extra side salad was not expensive and yummy- blue cheese dressing was actually chunky! Quality beer was cheap (think $4.50 for pints of moon man and ale asylum). We'll definitely be back. read more

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Great neighborhood bar that's very welcoming and easy going. It's a great place to watch a badger game. The food is pretty much what you would expect from a bar, but the appetizers are definitely better than I've had at most. The fries were crisp,the mozzarella sticks were just what I wanted, and my friends really liked the burgers! I will definitely need to come back to try the fish fry some friday night. read more

Laurel Tavern - Mozzarella sticks!! - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

What an absolutely wonderful dive. This place doesn't try to be something it's not. Excellent food for a busy local bar. Lots of TVs for sporting events. read more

We really like the atmosphere of Laurel Tavern - typical Wisconsin small town bar feel with great service and good bar food. I really liked the clam chowder! Fish & hashbrowns were yummy too. For a Friday night, we got seats right away and they were pumping out a ton of to-go orders. You can tell this is a Madison fav! read more

Laurel Tavern - Clam Chowder - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Disclosure: we're rating this solely based on our one take-out experience of Fish Friday. We got an order of walleye with hashbrowns o'brian and salad, and cod with fries and coleslaw to go. The fish were excellent, flaky and tender, with the perfect ratio of batter and fish. Even after the 20 minutes of getting home, the fish stayed hot and crunchy. The woman at the bar that checked us out wasn't too friendly, maybe it was because we used a restaurant.com coupon, maybe it was an off day. I'd definitely come back and get take-out fish again. read more

Disappointed fish fry dinner. This afternoon ordered 2 fried cod dinners one with French fries the other with hash browns to go! Food was delicious as usual. Only problem was one of the dinners (mine) only had two small pieces of fish. The other (my wife's) had three pieces and each piece was larger than mine. I guess that's one of the risks one takes when they order take out read more

Laurel Tavern - Fried Cod Dinner to go Friday 6/5/20 - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

The Laurel Tavern has been a lifesaver during quarantine/COVID on fish fry Friday's! We have been testing out different fish fries while in quarantine from the area and I have found the Laurel Tavern's walleye fish fry to be the most delicious around. Even as take out, the fish fry is not overly oily and greasy as it tends to be typically when you take out a fish fry. The fries are delicious and the tartar sauce (this is important) is PERFECT. The prices are fair as well, I haven't tried anything else here but the walleye fish fry alone warrants a five-star rating. Definitely a great restaurant to support during these crazy times to cure your fish fry craving! read more

It's been years since I dropped by the Laurel, so when I was running some errands in the Dudgeon-Monroe neighborhood the other day, I thought I would pay my old haunt a visit. I'm always a sucker for a good Reuben, so I selected the "Best Reuben Around" from the menu along with a bowl of chili. After eating the Reuben, I would consider renaming the sandwich more along the lines of "The Best Reuben within a Stone's Throw". It was an OK rendition of the classic sandwich but nothing worth getting too excited about. When I first saw the sandwich, I almost considered returning it, since it looked like it was burnt to a crisp. However, that was more a function of the color of the rye bread rather than too much time on the griddle. I really enjoyed the bread component of the sandwich. The thick slices of marble rye held up well to the moist interior and the time on the griddle added a nice crunch for some textural contrast with no greasiness. I also was pleased to notice there was no caraway in the bread. The weakest link of the sandwich was the dressing. It was watery and didn't add a lot of flavor. Meh. The sauerkraut, while applied in the right proportion was light on flavor and crunch. The corned beef was your average tavern-grade meat, it was lean and tender, but didn't wow me with the flavor. I also you have liked more corned beef on a sandwich with no sides that set me back $7.45. The chili was above average bar food and had a homemade taste and feel. It had none of the problems often encountered with bar chili. It didn't have the grittiness that occurs from adding too much chili powder. It was loaded with tender ground beef and tomatoes, giving it more of a stew-like consistency versus the soupy consistency of some bar chili variants. Most importantly, it didn't have the greasiness that plagues other versions of this dish. While far from transcendent, I'll definitely consider grabbing a bowl the next time I'm in the neighborhood. read more

Laurel Tavern - While the bread on the Reuben sandwich looked burnt, it was not. It added a nice crunch to the sandwich. - American Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Great soup, great service, decent food. Not sure why this place isn't busier! Will definitely be back.

Generous portions and friendly service, and very busy. Fish fry comes with choice of soup or salad, choice of potato and roll. Bistro burger was very good and had a delicious spicy mustard topping. Cheese curds were tasty and very cheesy. Excellent drinks. Great food reasonable prices, strongly recommend. read more

First time I ordered from this place- disappointmented; order was wrong, called, guy didn't seem to care...food was substandard.l

I really like the atmosphere in this place. I went to learn a card game with a meetup group and had a very nice time. It's a great spot to be able to hear each other talk, and they accommodated a larger group of people (about 14, I think?) between two tables. I ordered the chili dog, which was just ducky (I mean... it's a chili dog... can you really go wrong with a chili dog that's not made with Man-Wich?). My guy ordered a burger. Both of us were satisfied. The fries were good too--not too oily, and tasted like they change the fry oil out often (which is a big pet peeve of mine with other places). I had an old fashioned--which was a-okay. BF had Snowshoe on tap (a basic beer that's dern good). There's a little private lot on the side, and it was mostly empty on a Sunday evening. I'll definitely go back. Next time, I'll bring Exploding Kittens. ;) read more

Great neighborhood bar with friendly staff. I love a local taven and will gladly try it out wherever and whenever I happen across one. A large bar on the left greets you when you walk in from Monroe Street. There are also some seating in the bar area as well as a separate dining room. The interior is cozy and welcoming. The beer selection is your typical local offering. Some macro and craft beers but nothing too extreme or unique. On the food side, expect appetizers, burgers. sandwiches, and the like. I opted for the bremaster burger-cheddar, pickles, fried onions, lettuce and a mustard garlic sauce. Clocking in at a 1/3 pound, I found it to be very average. The fried onions were cloying sweet and the mustard garlic sauce didn't do anything for me. Yes, definitely cheaper than those that can be found on Monroe St ($6.45) but I would gladly pay more for a burger that deliver flavorwise. Our waitress was sweet and I wouldn't hesitate to stop in when I am in the neighborhood to grab a beer but save my appetite for somewhere else. read more

Prepare to wait 30-45 minutes for a table during the peak Friday Fish Fry hours but it's definitely worth the wait if you relish lightly battered walleye or well-seasoned baked cod with the traditional salad starter and super reasonably priced brandy old fashioned's. The long and narrow bar area becomes quite crowded at dinner and you may need to work a little bit harder than usual to get the bartenders' attention. There are a couple 2-top bar tables that are first-come-first-serve and a back waiting room area that is more suitable if you have children in tow. read more

Stopped in for a quick bite, first time here. Great menu selection and great burgers and fries. I was surprised at their beer selection and of course had to try a couple of them. I wish I would have known about this place sooner! read more

The laurel has become our packer game day bar. The food is standard (but great) Wisconsin bar food, and the burgers are stellar. They have a good beer selection, but they recently took velveteen habit off tap which is seriously disappointing! Please get it back! Service is great. Lots of TVs to watch the game. It's a nice laid back neighborhood place to enjoy a good meal and a few drinks. read more

Great fish fry! Came here on a Friday night and really enjoyed the fish fry. We started with the fried green beans, which were fantastic! They were very lightly breaded and the green beans were fresh and juicy. Great appetizer. I went with the walley fish fry with hash brown o'briens. The walley was superb. The fish tasted great and the breading was crispy. The hash browns were ok. They came with cheese, peppers, and onions. The potatoes ended up a bit soggy. I should have went with the baked potato. read more

Positive: battered and deep fried green bean fries are novel if, uh, way overpriced and tasted like they were fried at a carnival. Negative: what is a thick slice of raw onion doing in their signature patty melt? The whole time I was thinking, "somebody better complain about this because this is way gross." Please someone comment or message me a suggestion of a place that I don't drop $14+tip for a patty melt and a side and then hate it. I would love to do a positive review of something because hitting misses is unsatisfying. read more

Good food, bad service. Our waitress was so rude I couldn't believe it. We came in on a Sunday around 2 p.m. to a minimally filled restaurant and never got even a "hi". We received a "what do you want to drink?" I had to get our own menus and service was slow. On the bright side, there was a younger gentleman there working in the back who popped out to help the tables our waitress was ignoring (I hope that isn't true, but it sure felt like it!) and he was as friendly as can be. Thanks to him, we were able to order and be treated like we were wanted there. I wish I could say it was a fluke, but judging from another customer I heard complaining to our waitress about her service, I'd say I wasn't the only one dissatisfied here. read more

Went here with my husband because we had a Restaurant.com certificate. It had been rumbling around in a drawer for over a year when we found it the other day - hooray for no expiration dates! Laurel Tavern struck me as more bar than restaurant - shocking, with "tavern" in the name, right? It was a Monday night and their happy hour special was simply 50 cents off. As such, paying $4.75 for a pint of Ciderboys was a bit steep, in my opinion (and that was with the 50 cents off). We started with cheese curds - they were awesome. My husband ordered the cheeseburger and fries special. Toppings are a la carte, apparently, and he wishes he had added some onion to it. He says it was a fine burger but nothing exciting. I ordered the pizza burger. It came with pizza sauce and cheese on it. I thought the sauce tasted more marinara-y than pizza-y. Overall a bit bland. Employees were friendly. It's too bad the food wasn't a little better - we'd probably go back if it were. read more

The Good: Service was very fast, and it was a busy Friday night. Beer selection was great. Had a lot of local beers on tap which is always a plus for me. The Meh: The food. Nothing was bad, in fact I would even say it was a decent meal. It just wasn't memorable. I have been to a lot of fish fry places in Madison, and all of them had something I remember, from the ambiance, to the food quality, or even the drinks. I feel like in 3 months I won't remember anything about the fish fry at the Laurel. So for me, there are many better fish fry options in Madison that I would go back to before the Laurel. read more

Doesn't look like much from the outside but once inside a great neighborhood tavern! Friendly staff, good service and delicious food, we had the fish fry and cheese curds, yum! read more

Solid neighborhood bar. Good burgers and a very decent Friday Night fish fry. Always give a substantial amount of sides and the service has always been good. One of the favorite places for my kids to go to so also great for families. Its been here for quite some time so obviously they are doing things right. You can be sure I will be back. read more

This place is an old stand by. We have always had good bar food and drinks here and return whenever we can. Their burgers are right up there in my top ten places to go and its a young fun crowd. read more