Buraka's

Just last week I tried out Buraka's on State Street with a friend, and was pleasantly surprised from this restaurant that I had probably walked by a hundred times without ever noticing it in the past four years.  Buraka's brings Ethiopian cuisine to Madison as you walk downstairs to its location beneath State Street.  It's a rather small venue, but with a nice bar and plenty of seating.  I had the vegetarian dish which was reallyyy good.  It is presented as cooked vegetables in a curry sauce in the center of an Ethiopian bread (that looks like a spongy circle of flatbread).  Then you are supposed to tear off the bread and use it to grab the food with your fingers.  

To accompany this yummy meal, I tried the fresh mango juice while my friend ordered the freshly pressed coffee.  Even though I don't usually like coffee, I actually enjoyed the coffee, but when I go back to Buraka's I'll have to order the mango juice again, because if you close your eyes you really do feel like you're in a tropical setting drinking from a real mango.  

The service was spot on with our friendly bartender and the food was good.  It's a new place I'd highly recommend, especially because the prices are not relatively inexpensive :)

Sardine Restaurant

One of my favorite restaurants in Madison - that I cannot believe I have not written about so far - is Sardine Restaurant off of Lake Monona.  Owned by two of the coolest guys in Madison (who are the same owners of Marigold Kitchen up the road by the capital), Sardine is a french bistro-style restaurant located in the Machinery Row building next to William Street Bicycles.  

Fondly called "The Fish" by some of its regulars, Sardine has a great menu to offer the Madison community and like some of the other restaurants I have mentioned in this blog, Sardine was also elected as one of Madison's Best Restaurants in a recent year.  Some of my all-time favorite dishes at the Fish would actually not be the full entrees, but instead the duck confit salad, butternut squash soup (in season only), and the mussels.  One time a friend of mine went to Sardine, and she told me later that when she was deciding what to order for an appetizer, she only had to look around her where a mussels appetizer sat on almost everyone's tables to decide.  It's true, the mussels are fantastic, with a lively flavor and that comes with a heaping plate of frites (french fries).  The frites themselves are reallyyyy good and you have to be careful not to spoil your appetite with them.  

In general though, Sardine offers entrees between $10 and $20, and throughout the week it is a lively spot for a date, business dinners, the casual after-work hangout and prom night dining. Although some of its more interesting dishes favor the meat-lover, there are also vegetarian options and many dishes can be prepared vegan by special request.  On Saturdays and Sundays it offers a smaller brunch menu with a Salmon entree, omelettes and pastries fresh from the bakery that day.   These brunches usually attract more families with little kids.  

Although the menu is great, the atmosphere of the restaurant is one of my favorite things about it.  Some complain about finding the restaurant's parking lot on the lake side of Willy Street  (which, granted, is sometimes difficult to drive in to, depending on which direction you're coming from), but once you're there, the interior of the building takes your breath away.  There is a unique history of the building, which I'll let you research on your own time some day, but inside you're bound to enjoy the white-tiled walls, tall ceilings, wooden beams and dark-wood tables with white cloth napkins.  The bar area itself is where I usually choose to dine because the bartenders always provide some interesting conversation and I love their greyhounds and mimosas :)  The front of the restaurant, facing Lake Monona, is basically all windows and patio doors, bringing in the wonderful breeze from the lake and the colors from sunsets, and on Sundays you might even be able to watch the waterski show team practicing their routines.  When the weather is nice, be prepared for high competition in sitting outdoors :)