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    The Sow's Ear

    4.3 (110 reviews)
    Open 6:30 am - 5:00 pm
    Updated 1 month ago

    The Sow's Ear Photos

    Business Info

    THE SOW'S EAR ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - The Sow's Ear

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    Nathan N.

    Stopped by a charming coffee shop on a hot day, and it turned out to be a great choice! This classic cafe offered a wide variety of drinks, but I went with the Peach Pear Apricot, which was both refreshing and packed with flavor. I chose the 20oz since it was just 50 cents more than the 12oz--totally worth it!

    Nathan B.

    A great local coffee shop in Verona. I come here every time I'm in town visiting my son. Coffee is great and so is the food. There are also really good Gluten free options. My daughter has celiac and she has never reacted to the food (no cross contamination). Highly recommend this place if you're in the area.

    Cappuccino
    Heather S.

    My husband is somewhat of a cappuccino snob and he approved of theirs. He sipped on it while I perused the yarn. Very cute and quirky yarn and coffee shop!

    Sugar free French Soda - so refreshing on a warm afternoon!
    Ari W.

    I have popped in to The Sow's Ear twice now just recently and what can I say? This place is adorable and I love it! I've ordered French Soda's both times (I'm hooked) while coworkers have tried a few flavors of their smoothies. No food yet, but what I have seen other customers enjoying, and based on what's available in the grab and go section, the food seems to be great here. They have some quiche on the menu I will absolutely be trying soon enough. I'm not a knitter, but they appear to have a nice selection of knitting supplies and yarn throughout available for purchase. Additionally, they have art on the walls and goods/food items for sale from local crafters. Outside is a lovely patio with plenty of seating options if you do order food and want to take a seat. I definitely see this becoming one of my go-to's this summer.

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    2 months ago

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    1 year ago

    Cute little coffee shop with a yarn store in the back. Mid priced, excellent food, warm service.

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    2 years ago

    Delicious sandwiches, coffee, tea, and cute merchandise! The Verona sandwich was perfectly cheesy :)

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    3 years ago

    Prices seems a touch high and service is fairly slow. The quality is good, but just be prepared to hang out longer than anticipated.

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    4 years ago

    One of my favorite coffee shops in Madison. Excellent coffee, good vibe. They have lots of knitting supplies if you are into that as well!

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    Page 1 of 3

    Ask the Community - The Sow's Ear

    Do they offer a children's beginner knitting class for 2nd graders?

    The Sow's Ear provides beginning knitting classes for kids 7 years and older. Check out our class schedule on our website. We update classes every quarter.

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

    Review Highlights - The Sow's Ear

    If you knit you really won't want to miss this, as their shop is also a knitting store.

    Mentioned in 11 reviews

    Read more highlights

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    Inn stay: 5. Event experience: 3…read more We received a call from Debbie the day of check-in letting us know our room was ready early, if we wished to check in ahead of time. Upon arrival, it was so helpful to have our own assigned parking spot. As soon as we entered the lobby, Debbie was a delight and greeted me by name; she escorted us to our suite and showed us the amenities and answered any questions we had. The room was clean and spacious, and the grounds along the Sugar River were lovely. We were immensely pleased with our stay. The Seafood Soirée event felt hodge-podge. VIPs didn't get any sort of band to tip off the bartenders that our drinks were free for the first hour; two separate times I heard staff in other areas talking about workers getting placed behind the bar without being trained (one resulted in a coordinator having to comp a bottle of wine as the bar staff was misinformed). So the lines were long, the chairs should have been pulled away from the bar as they got in the way and people tried to sit in them. Trying to meet Andrew Zimmern as a person with manners was difficult as staff didn't even attempt to keep order and people kept budging in without waiting. The food served during the VIP hour was underwhelming. Then we get to 4 pm and walk out to the stations to find the food wasn't ready. Cue milling about. Then the two chef celebrities didn't even speak on time. We eventually left early and went back to our room. So regarding coordinating and hosting an event, they really missed the mark. We would definitely stay at the Inn again, and in fact are already talking about returning. But would we spend a few hundred dollars to attend an event there again? No.

    I'll withhold or temper complaints because of the excellent service reconciliation. I'll limit…read morethose complaints to the following. 1. Not all old fasioneds in Wisconsin are great. 2. Not all cheese in Wisconsin are worth getting excited over. Ok. That seems fair in light of their efforts. Don't hang a sign saying walkins welcomed on the sidewalk when you treat those that walk in like they're not. Our server was attentive-not quite to a fault-and responded quickly. Actually he was really nice and likely oversaw the reconciliation. The high top bar setting is good-not too loud but open and I love a kitchen view. As for the food I'll mostly ignore their cheese tower-though the pickles and mustard was stand out great. But the entrees. The haddock fish fry was perfect. Though the slaw is flavorless. Truly great fish fry. Top 5 in Dane county. Their short rib was amazing. Tender. Polenta cubes delicious. Veggies great. They both suffered from the same problem. Staging. For the fish fry the fries were at best ambient room temp. For the short rib the polenta was the same. They both lose their temp fast. So. Someone plated them first and then the meat was super temp hot at serving. Time it better-freshman error. But I stand by it. Mostly great tasting food. Really good service. If halves were allowed it be 3.5

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    Bright, beautiful suite.

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    Brothers Restaurant & Cafe - Chicken suqaar with pasta

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    This is a nice cafe with prompt, friendly service and an interesting Somali menu. Whatever meal you…read morechoose, don't forget to add one of the sauces that are brought to the table. Our first taste seemed bland. We were told that traditionally dishes would arrive to the table already seasoned, but some customers found them too hot, so they now let each diner add their own sauce. The lunch menu is comprised primarily of a choice of meat and either rice or pasta, the latter being a leftover from Italian colonization of Somalia. I had the goat and pasta, both of which benefited by the (judicious) addition of the hot green sauce by itself or diluted a bit with the mild white sauce. The goat was a bit tough but had a nice flavor. It came with a lime wedge and some chopped lettuce, onion, and green pepper. My husband had the beef chapati and was "underwhelmed." The chapati was quite soggy and the dish was heavy on potatoes for his taste. We both enjoyed the sweet and spicy Somali tea, a chai type that is enjoyably heavy on cloves. This family restaurant is definitely worth a stop.

    I dined in on a Monday evening. The place was not too busy. Shaah tea was my absolute favorite item…read morehere. A small one was just $2, but came in good quantity, and it was rich and flavorful. Chapati beef roll was my favorite entree. There was a spicy sauce in green bottle. That is super flavorful. That enhances the flavor. Chicken legs over rice was my other item. Chicken was super tender and flavorful. Rice came in good quantity and was flavorful as well. Side salad had an extreme strong kick from raw onion. Portion size was big here. Prices were reasonable. Drinks in the front fountain (pinapple and mango) were complimentary. That was a nice gesture. Other places would have charged a couple of dollars for that.

    Photos
    Brothers Restaurant & Cafe - Complimentary drinks - mango and pineapple

    Complimentary drinks - mango and pineapple

    Brothers Restaurant & Cafe
    Brothers Restaurant & Cafe

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    Madison Chocolate Company - Spicy hot chocolate

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    We were in Wisconsin for the weekend and on our way back home I saw this delightful shop and imma…read moresucker for chocolate. Figured they must have hit chocolate. 1. Upon walking in you immediately know you're going to love the place. It's so cute and cozy. There is indoor and outdoor seating, cute decor, and chocolate galore. 2. I ordered the drinkable hot chocolate. It was good, although a little thick. I would have wanted a bit of almond milk to thin it a bit but I loved how rich it was. My daughter also got the kids chocolate frappe (I think that's what it was called) she loved it! 3. We received one free truffle each since it our first time there. We ordered the mint, vanilla bean, and turtle truffles. I also ordered the sea salt caramel truffle and my daughter got a gaming boy stick chocolate. So cool. 4. We also tried their cookies so tasty! 5. The lady working was sooooo sweet. Omg, she truly was. I'm so sorry I didn't get her name but she made us feel welcome (almost everyone in Wisconsin made us feel that way) and she was no different. What a pleasant experience as we headed back home. Highly recommend that you drop in when you are in the Madison area!

    I got a coconut cream pie latte, one of their summer specials. It was a bit on the pricier side…read more(over $8 for a 16oz not including tip), but entirely WORTH IT! This is the best latte I've had this year--perfect if you like coconut cream cold brews but prefer something a little sweeter than a cold brew, like me. It's got coconut cold foam on top and was also topped with toasted coconut and what seemed like pie crumbs? So delicious It wasn't very busy in there and I got my drink super fast, the barista even walked it out to the table I was waiting at. Highlyyyy recommend this place for coffee!

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    Madison Chocolate Company - What treat should I try?

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    Madison Chocolate Company - Ganache hot chocolate

    Ganache hot chocolate

    Madison Chocolate Company - There's a nice short walk around the pond across the street. Perfect with a warm cup of coffee.

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    There's a nice short walk around the pond across the street. Perfect with a warm cup of coffee.

    The Sow's Ear - artsandcrafts - Updated August 2026

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