Reviews for Essen Haus Restaurant and Bar in Madison, WI
Excellent reminders of my childhood tend to be based around food, German food being the zenith of that. Having tea and coffee,... cold cuts and brot with my Oma was a wonderful thing to look forward to on the weekend. As I came to Essen Haus, I was filledwith images of childhood, pictures of my family's time living in Germany, and the many good meals I've had. Starting with thesmoked trout platter, I was pleased to say that nothing was out of place. Served with red onion, cream cheese, lemon andcrackers. The kartoffelpuffer, or potato pancakes, were light, flavorful, and served with apple sauce as is usual. Thoughsmaller than my Oma's, which I believe is a line riddled through the minds of Germans, they were excellent. The Jaegerschnitzelwas a bit of a letdown though, as it was fried too crisp, and that led it to being a bit too tough. The Jaeger sauce whiletasty, reminded me too much of a stroganoff sauce. Beer was fantastic, as I have not had Spatenbräu Märzen in quite a while,and a liter no less. This was a great place to stop in Madison, and I look forward to coming back with more family. Read more
#1 Best spot in Madison for tap beer in my honest opinion...and if you love German food like my wife, my son, and I do...well,... it's a no brainer. While my daughters ate chicken tenders, fries, and of course we all ate pretzels and mustard...Brett drank ahalf liter of pilsner in about the same amount of time as fat Daddy drank three 1-litre boots (1 dopplebock, and 2 maibock).Someone at the table next to us shouted out something about "bellies and boots," which rings true for me. The German music wasjust setting up as we were leaving, but we have stayed to listen, sing, and even dance along with the music in the past.Definitely worth it. Brett loved the potato pancakes with his Jaeger schnitzel. Lisa ate the fried perch, which she thought wasdelicious, and I had the Weiner schnitzel, which is what I usually order when eating here. I've been drinking here occasionallysince I turned 21... I'm 53 now, so do the math if you want...but I have never left the Haus disappointed. I woke up wishing Ihad another boot of Maibock in my hand. Our waitress was outstanding. I don't know if it was coincidence that they sat us atthe coffin table (table for five, shaped like a coffin) which I also believe was numbered 311 for the wait staff. I'm prettysure that is also slang or police code for "loud and obscene", which...go figure...I was after my 3 litres of first rate bier. Ithink (or know) I might have tried to set our waitress up with my son, but she said she already had a boyfriend. Her loss. Whata lot of fun though. Read more
Was thrilled to find they have a nice outdoor seating area -- some tables with shade and some without -- and they are dog... friendly. The summer vibes outside are great, with a volleyball court in the parking lot behind, live music from the venue nextdoor, and lots of other happy folks sitting out to enjoy food and drink. My family really enjoyed their classic German food, andI was impressed by the friendly, kind waitress. Read more
We came to Essen Haus because my husband's late uncle wrote a letter to a friend back in 2003 about how amazing his experience... was. This letter was brought to my husband's attention about a month ago and at that moment we knew we had to try it. Annalysa(our server) was so excited to hear our story and really made our visit extra special. I highly recommend spending an eveningexperiencing Essen Haus! Read more
We had a wonderful time eating and shopping here. We are from the buffet and everything was delicious. Our service was very... good. The restaurant has a lovely atmosphere, we sat at a table that was inside of a hotel and buggy. There is a bakery withlots of choices of foods to take home. The gift shop has lots of lovely items, stationary, jewelry, art Knick-knacks, children?stoys, home decor and kitchen items. Read more
This was our first time visit to the restaurant. The food was beyond delicious!! I had the all-you-can eat cod dinner and my son... had the bacon cheeseburger. Our server, Michael, was on his third day working here and he did an exceptional job!! He knew themenu and he was spot on in his recommendation for a liter of beer. What was most exceptional about him was his patience andprofessionalism as my son placed his own order. My son is 20 years old and has Down Syndrome. Michael took the order and madesome suggestions to my son which were perfect. We will certainly be back as the food was tasty, hot and well presented! Read more
Had a family dinner here, 6 adults. Since it was a birthday dinner, we were told the birthday person could get either a free... shirt or dessert. The waitress was very polite and answered any questions we had. She was knowledgeable about the beers ontap. The bar area had a few customers, but the seating area was empty. Food came out great, and large portions. We had plenty totake home for later. I will definitely be going back! Read more
When we entered, the hostess said there was no room and to go next door. We asked if we could just sit at the bar and she said... "no it's full go next door". .... So we walked to the bar and sat cuz there was no one there ???????????? The food was solid.The cherry strudel was bomb. It was so dark in there I could hardly see my food lol. Read more