Hotel: SpringHill Suites by Marriott Madison
Would I stay again? Yes. You can walk to shops and restaurants since this hotel is in Hilldale or you can take a short drive to the square. The hotel is new, the service was good and I had an area for work and sleep.
Restaurants:
Lunch(Milwaukee): Mason Street Grill
Would I dine again? Probably. It reminded me of a Houston’s and I wish I had found something more casual and local. But I got stuck in the rain, ducked into the first spot that looked good and I had a very enjoyable lunch. The House Mustard Horseradish Dressing was a bit addictive.
Dinner (Madison): Tempest Oyster Bar
Would I dine again? Yes. My dinner was good but the restaurant was super quiet. I assume on a Wednesday or Thursday night there is a good crowd for happy hour.
Lunch (Madison): Ian’s Pizza by the Slice
Would I dine again? Yes. Yes. Yes. I visited Ian’s years back to try their Mac n’ Cheese pizza. And it was awesome. They have so many unique combinations so this time i also tried the Smokey the Bandit (BBQ Sauce, Mozzarella, BBQ Chicken, Bacon, Ranch, & Cheddar). Delicious!!
Dinner (Madison): Muramoto Hilldale
Would I dine again? Sometimes you get so consumed by emails that you look up and dinner is almost over. I walked out of my hotel at 8:30 knowing there was a Japanese restaurant within walking distance and two other options were bar food or tacos. Living in Texas means I can always get tacos so I opted for Japanese. The black cod was good but next time I will shut down the emails much earlier.
Breakfast(Madison): Marigold Kitchen
Would I dine again? Yes. I love when I arrive to a client meeting and there is a fantastic breakfast spot around the corner. Madison is a great food city and their square has so many options. I arrived to Marigold, ordered the lemon ricotta pancakes and left with a smile that stayed on my face the whole day.
Lunch (Madison): Graze
Would I dine again? Yes. I came to Graze many years ago because they were known for an amazing burger. During this trip they had a farmer’s market in downtown Madison outside of my client’s office and they recommended I walk through and get some cheese curds to bring back to Texas. I saw the Graze chef at the Farmer’s Market purchasing produce and knew where I was headed to lunch. Fried cheese curds and bibinbap..ready to fly home!
Always Travel With Peanut Butter 