First trip to Madison and looking for suggestions. Tailgaiting or bar hopping?
Looking for suggestions for Saturday. I've heard there isn't much tailgating in Madison but you can find some. Anyone that has been to a game there have some good info?
Also looking for some good places to eat the the day before the game if anyone has some info they want to share.
Go BLUE!
September 15th, 2019 at 4:08 PM ^
This may help some: https://mgoblog.com/comment/243301730
September 15th, 2019 at 4:09 PM ^
Go to the Dairy Barn for breakfast in the morning if you can get there early enough. Plan for a 30+ minute wait if you don't get there before 8am.
I also would really recommend Old Fashioned but they don't do reservations so it depends on when you get there. The lazy susans are really good (no. 6 is my favorite) and the beer list is great.
Not sure how into craft beer you are. I don't have any breweries that I would particularly recommend. Ale Asylum by the airport is a decent place to get beer and food; it is big so it isn't too hard to find a table even on a busy Friday night. My goto is looking on beer app Untappd for places around me that have Untitled Art beer, which is my favorite.
September 16th, 2019 at 8:55 AM ^
Are you referring to Mickies Dairy Bar? If so, it's right across the street from Camp Randall on Monroe Stree. But I'm guessing it's going be a HUGE line on both Saturday and Sunday morning, so get there early. You won't need to eat for the rest of the day after you consume their breakfast.
September 16th, 2019 at 6:54 PM ^
Any must have WI beers? I’ve had some Central Waters stuff and thought they were solid. New Glarus sounds like a must do. Anything else must haves or whales? Was looking online and through Untappd.
September 17th, 2019 at 2:47 PM ^
Central Waters has some very good limited release beers, but may be hard to find. New Glarus has some decent beers and their flagship Spotted Cow is (to me) a run of the mill beer, but it's not distributed outside of WI, so it's a huge seller to out of state visitors. Lord knows how many cases I've bootlegged back to MI for friends and family. To me it's just a good bloody mary chaser. I am a bigger fan of the MI, MN, & IL breweries, as most WI beers are brewed for quantity drinking, but don't get me wrong, there are some good solid ones.
In Madison, Karben 4, Ale Asylum, & One Barrel would be my recommendations of local breweries to try. Otherwise, there is a Hop-Cat in Madison, so you'd be able to find a wide selection there.
Have fun! Go Blue!
September 15th, 2019 at 4:15 PM ^
I was going to be in Chicago this weekend and Gameday at Diag.
Does anyone know what happened for them to close? Seriously bummed.
September 15th, 2019 at 4:16 PM ^
For my beer folks, hit up Funk Factory Geuzeria if you can. They/he makes primarily *sour beers but will have cans and possibly drafts of plenty other styles. As Untitled Art was mentioned above, it's actually Levi (Funk) who heads that as a side project to FFG.
*Some of the best american wild/Methode Traditionalle beers in the country in this guys opinion.
September 15th, 2019 at 4:17 PM ^
Bar Hop on gameday. Plenty of bars on Regent St by Camp Randall that do events in the parking lots.
As far as the rest of the weekend goes, it depends on what area you are staying, but no matter where you are you won’t go thirsty!
Go Blue!
September 15th, 2019 at 4:24 PM ^
Went 2 years ago. Very little tailgating options (which was a big surprise). Definitely go the bar route pre-game. Also a caution ... Camp Randall is a very old stadium with horrendous access from one area to the next. Be sure to use the correct gate for your seat section. I also found it "stalinistic" that the students file in to the stadium in a single line with cops ever present to guide them in row by row ...
Have fun - the crowd is good, and bring home a win !!!
Go Blue!
September 15th, 2019 at 4:24 PM ^
Whenever I’m in Madison I always hit up Greenbush Bar, which is less than a mile from Camp Randall.
Pretty laid back local place with great pizza and a solid beer list.
https://m.yelp.com/biz/greenbush-bar-madison
September 15th, 2019 at 5:29 PM ^
They will curse at you. A lot.
They (and perhaps you) will drink. A lot.
All is meant in good fun. Great place to see a game. Enjoy!
Unless things have changed there isn’t a great tailgating zone. The most fun/crazy place are the houses which are largely student rentals (or perhaps frats? I cannot recall) just along the upper side of the stadium.
September 15th, 2019 at 5:38 PM ^
It’s Friday night in Wisconsin. Find a supper club in the general environs, get the all you can eat fish fry and relish plate, and drink all the Old Fashioneds you can. The best.
September 15th, 2019 at 6:13 PM ^
Here is the board post on this topic from two years ago, it was pretty useful although it had way more options than I could hit up in a weekend. I did get to The Old Fashioned for dinner on Friday and Mickie's Dairy Bar for breakfast on Sunday, would highly recommend both.
September 15th, 2019 at 6:56 PM ^
The Old Fashioned is great (get the tiger sauce with your cheese curds), as is MIckie's.
Greenbush Bakery for donuts in between.
September 15th, 2019 at 8:43 PM ^
Try The Great Dane
September 15th, 2019 at 9:08 PM ^
If you're driving in, get there very early. Parking SUCKS in Madison on game day. Try to park in a garage on Capitol Square and walk to campus from there.
Pre-game, just bar hop down Regent Street right up to the stadium. Try Red Zone, Lucky's, or Sconnie Bar.
Post-game, head over to Wando's, Double U, or State Street Brats, all in the same area by State Street. The Red Shed is over there as well, and is an amazing little dive bar.
At 10 pm, go to Tornado Room off Capitol Square and get a steak sandwich in their bar lounge.
After that, take your drunk ass down to Greenbush Bakery and get some maple blueberry cake donuts. They're open until 2 or 3 am.
If you ever want a burger, go to Dotty Dumpling's Dowry. Way better than Old Fashioned, and cooler atmosphere.
September 17th, 2019 at 2:49 PM ^
I'll 2nd Dotty Dumpling's Dowry!
September 15th, 2019 at 9:34 PM ^
I don't drink so bar hopping is not what I am interested in.
2 years ago we tailgated down the street from the stadium. We parked in the UW Health Clinic. 20 S Park St. It is 7/10 of a mile.
Seemed like it was free but if not is was nominal. Quite a few Michigan fans.
September 16th, 2019 at 8:06 AM ^
What?
September 16th, 2019 at 9:04 AM ^
Parking options mostly suck. The neighborhood directly west of the stadium has lawn parking, but arrive early and prepare to pay.
UW hospital parking lots northwest of the stadium are open for game day parking and are probably the best tailgating option. These lots are about a 20-25 minute walk for most folks. There is also a shuttle. See parking lots 60 and 76 on this map:
https://transportation.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/28/2018/01/Football-Game-Day-Parking.pdf
A tricky and free option: open google maps. Locate the "Southwest Commuter Path" - it's a bike path that exits right at Camp Randall Stadium. You can find free street parking a 10-20 minute walk from the stadium, past where Commonwealth Ave intersects this bike path. But get there early. And don't expect to tailgate on the street - just head to Regent Street and try to muscle your way into one of the many game-day beer gardens.
September 17th, 2019 at 4:14 PM ^
The early kick-off limits pregame activities, but I recommend starting early at the Farmers' Market on the Capitol Square. It's the largest farmers market in the country and a good place to start off a game day with coffee, muffin or hot cheesy bread.
From there, walk down State Street on your way to Camp Randall. Plenty of bars along the way and you can also hit up the beer gardens at the bars near the stadium. Union South is right across from the Camp Randall arch and a good place for a pit stop for food/beer/bathroom. The band is there for a pre-game pep rally. A lot of tailgating is done in the neighborhoods and parking lots bordering Camp Randall. If you don't have an arranged spot, I'd stick to the bar scene.
Madison is a great food town with a ton of excellent options on or near the Capitol Square. Old Fashioned, Great Dane, Tornado Room, Cooper's Tavern, Lucille's, Rare, Harvest, Delmonico's, Graze, DLux, Merchant, Tipsy Cow, Red (for sushi), Cento (for Italian) to name a few. Also more eclectic/ethnic options if you do a little research. L'toile is one of the best restaurants in the Midwest. Closer to the campus section of State Street are Dotty's and Plaza Tavern for good burgers. For breakfast, I like Short Stack on State Street and Marigold Kitchen off the Square. The food at Memorial Union is really good. Get lunch and a pitcher and eat on the lake at the Terrace. Probably the quintessential Madison experience when the weather is nice and in my opinion a must see.
Things will be crowded as they usually are for a football weekend.