I'm surprised at the reviews, maybe they are from people who have not been there in the last 6 months or so. I think they have a newer menu now. I always get the House hero (steak sandwich) or the grilled chicken wrap and they are always delicious. The fries or OK though. Also try the sliders or wings, also very good. The place is very warm and cozy inside with a flat screen TV in the dining room (it is a pub after all). The service is pretty good as well, like someone else said the waitress is not old enough to drink and is not helpful with the liquor menu. Overall, as far as Taverns go, very good, give it try.... read more

Last Thursday I had the the chance to eat here with some friends after work. It happened to be happy hour so I asked for the appetizer menu. After checking the yelp app. for inspiration I decided on the potato skins which seemed to be a crowd pleaser. Well, thank you yelp, they were delicious. After our apps we were still hungry so we moved to the dining room which, to our surprise, had a cozy little fire place. We were a bit early for dinner so we had the place to ourselves. There were four of us there and we decided to split two entrees between all of us. We ordered the sliced prime rib sandwich and the ground sirloin burger with Swiss and caramalized onions. The chef was nice enough to split everything for us which we thanked him greatly for. The sirloin burger was awesome. I guess ground steak really does make a difference in a burger. Shortly after dinner a band came on and things got a bit loud and crowded. People seemed to be having fun but we were all stuffed and getting tired. Maybe we will check them out on another Thursday preferably on a long weekend lol. read more

Stopped by late on a Sunday afternoon, the bar was busy but dining room not - due to the time - the waiter was great, friendly & helpful. We had the Taste of Italy for an appetizer. Both my wife and I ordered the sliced prime rib sandwich. Enjoyed the food, prices were good, based on our experience we'd return. read more

Food is decent, staff super friendly, it's kind of a "Madison High School Reunion" on the weekends, but it's a very nice place to hangout and have some drinks. Excellent in the summer with the music and the porch opened in the back. Close to the train and to town. Really enjoy it. read more

Ordered a salad which was really good fresh grilled chicken. Hubby had a burger decent but over cooked. Friendly staff but Christmas decorations still out in March?? Little strange. Not the best kept up or best atmosphere older crowd. But I had a restaurant.com half off deal so was worth trying. Would go back again with a coupon. read more

This place has high quality food for a great price...atmosphere is laid back and casual and the staff is always pleasant. Sliced prime rib sandwich is THE BEST!!! Awesome seasonal cocktails as well. The perfect spot to go with family or friends! Gotta love dollar beers on Tuesdays and karaoke on Fridays :) read more

We go there all the time for dinner. Great food. I'd definitely recommend it! It's great for a casual date or family friendly. They have a kids menu with big portions and includes ice cream, although my 3-year old loves the barbeque wings. My 2-year old eats the mac&cheese. My husband and I always get the buffalo wings and a big mexican salad or burgers. I have some friends who have only went to the bar there and said good things. Service was quick and very good. Price is reasonable too, so that's always a plus. read more

We just had an amazing dinner out on the patio of Prospect Tavern. Our server, Ian, was fantastic! Very helpful and responsive. The food was excellent and we'll definitely be back. read more

Prospect tavern is a quaint pub with amazing potato skins at the bar. The staff is kind and very accommodating! When another bar in town canceled an event I had booked for 25 people, Anthony at Prospect Tavern welcomed us with open arms and treated us as if we were regulars. read more

Great service. Great staff especially the bartenders. So fucking hot! Great atmosphere with music and good company. Outstanding nachos. Must try the mojitos with fresh mint! read more

Great bar for a couple beers after work, great happy hour prices, the crowd and staff are always friendly. Regular bar food, apps were good and everything seemed clean and orderly. I'd skip the burger though, definitely a frozen patty. read more

My daughter and a friend, who are teens, went out to dinner here recently and were treated very poorly. The waiter was rude to them, they didn't get their food until an hour after they sat down (people around them who were seated later than them were served first), and overall they felt very disrespected. Not cool! read more

Had dinner with my mother and sister. It was a little difficult getting my sister's wheelchair into the dining room; we had to go through the kitchen area.The dining room is cozy, but a little loud. We had a corner table, so it was not too bad. The food was good, regular pub fare; generous portions and a good variety. They had run out of the crab cake appetizer, so I was a little disappointed. I would go there again. read more

Just went there and was disappointed with pastrami Reuben which had very little pastrami. The potato skins were ten dollars and they gave you only 4 skins. Not worth the price. read more

The Citrus Chili Salmon with the sweet chili sauce was excellent, cooked just right. Best salmon we had in a long time. The Sirloin Steak & Creamy Cheddar Grits with Asparagus and Crispy Onions was also very good. Nice atmosphere. Waiter was very attentive. Outdoor sitting available but it was too cold for us to sit outside; otherwise, would love to do so. Do recommend. read more

After looking at these other reviews i must say these people are extremely wrong. My family and I go to prospect tavern at least 2 to 3 times a month, and absolutely love it. Every time we walk in the door we are greeted with big smiles, and remembrance (meaning the staff/owners remembers mine and my family's first names). The new chef is putting out some amazing lunch and dinner specials. last nite i had a grilled top sirloin w/a sweet red wine reduction sauce, and i almost ordered seconds. My son loves the hamburgers and say hands down that they are the best burger in Madison. I don't know how anybody could talk bad about the tavern cause its our new favorite place. read more

I love this place, I really dont know where this people before me are coming from with those reviews... I have had food there before and has been pretty good, but most of the time I go there is just for a couple of drinks with friends, and its just a great hangout place, specialy now that its getting warmer with that outdoor patio its just the perfect place to go without being enclosed in a bar, not many places like that around.... Big fan read more

Friends introduced us to the Prospect we have nothing but positive things to say. I have dined there twice and both times the food was perfect, no problems. Our service was great. On Saturday nights they have the best DJ ever! and a beautiful deck to sit out on, where everyone mingles regardless of age. Have met nice people in the Prospect Tavern and always look forward to going back :) read more

Truely enjoyable experience! Great place for office happy hour I have recently started working in the area and have been hearing great things about the Prospect Tavern. I decided to "google" them and ( like sara t.) was suprised about their reviews. That following friday was gorgeous and my co-workers and I were contemplating eating outside. Having read about Justine's cannibalistic outdoor experience, I was very hesitant to suggest this place to my co-workers. In lack of better judgement I did, and luckily it payed off. We had a blast! Maybe they changed there chef, but the food was great. Being a vegetarian, I had the artichoke dip on garlic toast, while most of the meat eaters went for the " Cowboy Steak" which didnt seem to last on their plates for too long! Although the food was great the happy hour was even better. They had all there specialty drinks half price. We then ended up losing track of time and karaoke had started! By the time we left it was near 1 a.m. and we still talk about that night at the office! read more

HIIII HATERSSS! i am unsure as to why there have been all of these bad reviews! The reviews that i have read are from months ago and there have been major changes to the place that make it amazing. When i went there to have drinks with all of my friends, we received fantastic service. All of the bartenders were more then accommodating to what we needed and were extremely nice about everything. It seemed as though everyone who walked through the door was part of their family. I also met the owners who are always there. Even though i had just met them, they were very welcoming to me and my friends and everyone else who was there. They made my night ten times better by entertaining us and making sure that we had everything that we needed/wanted. Also, the food there was delicioussss, not to mention the free buffet they had for the football game! I would definitely go back to this place all the time!!! read more

My husband and i like this place. we take our beagle and sit outside with him when its nice weather...we enjoy the sweet potato fries and drink beer. the staff is nice to our dog and we enjoy it for what it is:) read more

Restaurant Depot food and average drinks. The crowd is mixed between college kids and local alpha hotels. If they became a local bar, they'd be great. read more

One star is being VERY generous. Awful. Five of us came in for drinks and appetizers. When we sat down 4 servers walked past us behind the bar. None of them so much as looked at us. The place was not crowded at all for 7 on a Friday. Eventually someone came over and took our orders. She was not pleasant in the slightest and acted like she was doing us a huge favor by waiting on us. We ordered drinks and apps. My three friends got their apps and mine was still sitting on the shelf from the kitchen. Ten minutes go by and I ask the bartender to bring my food that I can clearly see sitting there. She says oh no those aren't yours. 40 minutes later I get my mozzarella sticks. 40 MINUTES! Oh and the service was so slow that they didn't ask us if we wanted food until after 7 when appetizers go back to normal price. They took my food off of my bill but the service was abysmal. My friend finished her drink within a few minutes of ordering and for the hour we sat there not once did any of the multiple people behind the bar ask her if she wanted another. Don't waste your time with this place. Drive an extra few minutes into Morristown for better service, food, and ambiance. read more

We're always looking for great little places & prefer not to go to chain restaurants. I came across a Groupon deal online so I thought this would be perfect. We drove about 40 minutes to get there but we don't mind if the place is worth it. This restaurant was nothing special, not terrible - not fantastic. Interior was pretty much as expected except the booth seats had rips on the upholstery. Everything else was well-worn but had a certain charm. Open Rueben was good, sliced beef sandwich had a little more fat than I would have liked but was still good. Ordered a side of truffle Parmesan fries which seemed like they only sprinkled Parmesan cheese on regular fries. Mixed drink was good. Service was good. Prices were a little high - 2 sandwiches, 1 extra side of fries, 1 soda, 1 beer, 1 mixed drink for a total of $59., the sandwiches alone were $26 with the rest costing $33. Not much on dessert menu so we didn't have dessert. The bar was hopping for 3pm on a Tuesday. So overall it was ok, nothing to write home about but not to be avoided either. read more

All I can say is WOW! I am a thirty two year old female who was looking for a new place to hang out in madison with some friends. The bartender took forever to take our order because she was too busy serving the same group of people over and over. Must have been regulars! We were there for about 2 hours and then was told by the bartender that "we were cut off"; there was a 4 drink max. Now first of all no-one was out of control and we were walking back to our place. When I questioned this decision I was told that I could talk to the owner whom was sitting at the end of the bar. Let me go ask my mama for permission to drink more....no thank you! However the 18-23 year olds were being served shots and multiple drinks at the same time. Go figure! So if you are over 25, don't attend Drew, and looking for good service DONT GO THERE! The old fat owner and the old bartender seem to be offended and threatened by mature attractive women! read more

5/4/13 Went here last nite for dinner and the food was excellent! Atmosphere always helps and the restaurant side is very cozy and seating was comfortable. The waitresses and the owner Carol couldn't have been any nicer or more attentive. But when you go out for a meal the most important thing is the food and if I could have I would have gone into the kitchen and taken the chef home to live with me (the food was that good). My husband raved about his pork chop w/mashed potatoes and corn, I had a bite and it was very good, even the corn was great. I had the herb encrusted pan fried chicken w/mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach and it was sooo good. Mashed potatoes are home made, chicken was crisp and moist on the inside and spinach was fresh with just the right amount of garlic. The crab and asparagus appetizer was very good, the sangria came in a large mug and was quite tasty and at the end of the meal we shared a hot brownie w/ice cream and whipped cream that was really yummy. We go out to eat quite often and never write reviews we just read them to try and make informed decisions about our next choice of restaurant. It was cool outside so we didn't sit outside but the patio is lovely. Entrance is on the side and as someone else mentioned it does look closed from the front. If they could do something with the front of the building to make it more inviting I'm sure more people would be tempted to come in although for 8:30 at nite they had quite a dinner crowd. The bar was empty but at around 10:00 or so that switches to the crowded side. We use groupons ,and living social coupons quite often and we had one for here also which we used with no problem. The food was reasonably priced even without a coupon. My husband and myself are not food critics but we love to eat and know good food when get it and this place is on our top ten list!! read more

As a regular at this place for 5 years tonight my relationship came to an abrupt end. We invited several friends to meet us for drinks and dinner. Being a beautiful night we decided to sit on the deck. We waited inside at the bar for tables to open up. When 2 tables where available we went onto the deck and moved them together as our group was larger then the 4 top available. We were told by a young waitress who we had never seen before that we could not move the tables together. I asked if any of the managers we have come to know were available to talk to. She said no and left us. We moved the tables together and proceeded to order drinks and dinner from Henry our waiter. We know Henry since he started as a bus boy. He took our order and told us Carol was going to be mad we moved the tables. I asked him to send her out to see me. She never showed. We ate dinner joking the entire time with Henry about the food and drinks. His service was as usual very good. My fiancé, Susan, went into to ladies room and when seeing Carol told her that we moved the tables and not to blame Henry. This conversation degenerated into Carol basically Telling Susan that in the future if we want to sit together on the deck in a group we should take our business elsewhere in town! This is the same women who when we bring our. Dog with us that it is ok to walk through the resturant to get to the deck! We can bring a dog into to the place but we Cannot sit together if we are more than 4 people. They may have rules, just like the Madison health department, but Carol attitude and behavior convinced us it is time to find a new " regular" spot for our business! read more