Mickies Dairy Bar is a diner restaurant in Monroe Street, Madison.
Mickies Dairy Bar on Monroe Street, in business at the same address since 1946, is a classic Madison breakfast diner across from Camp Randall Stadium.
Signature dishes: Scrambler, Buttermilk pancakes
Must order: The Scrambler scrambled egg plate or a stack of buttermilk pancakes.
Tip: Cash only with an ATM inside; closed Monday and Tuesday; the lines stretch on football Saturdays.
Address: 1511 Monroe St, Madison, WI 53711
The Plaza Tavern on North Henry, a block off State Street between the Capitol and UW Madison, is home to the secret-sauce Plazaburger since 1964.
Signature: Plazaburger
Order: The Plazaburger with the secret sauce and a side of fried cheese curds.
Tip: Closed Sundays; the small-town tavern feel makes the dinner shift the right window.
Tex Tubb's Taco Palace on Atwood, Kevin Tubb's Austin-style taqueria since 2006, runs tacos and burritos plus house-made limeade and horchata east side.
Signature: Austin-style tacos, House-made horchata
Order: An Austin-style taco plate with house-made horchata.
Tip: Happy hour runs Mexican beer specials; weekend dinner is the busiest, weeknight lunch the calmest.
Banzo on Sherman Avenue near east side, the Israeli falafel spot from Netalee Sheinman and Aaron Collins, serves chickpea falafel and hummus plates.
Signature: Falafel sandwich, Hummus plate
Order: A falafel sandwich with hummus on the side.
Tip: Closed Sundays; the food-cart history shows in the quick counter turnover at lunch.
Buraka on Williamson Street, Madison's Ethiopian flagship since 2000 on State Street, serves wat stews and injera at its Willy Street home since 2016.
Signature: Doro wat, Vegetarian combination platter
Order: A doro wat platter or the vegetarian combination served with injera.
Tip: Lunch combos turn the room faster than dinner; spice level can be requested mild to hot.
Ahan on Williamson Street, the Brown-Soukaseume family's Asian-inspired room, brings Laotian and Southeast-Asian dishes to the Willy Street corridor.
Signature: Laotian curry, Spring rolls
Order: A Laotian curry preparation plus the spring rolls and a rotating special.
Tip: Reservations via the operator's site; takeout runs faster than dine-in at peak weekend hours.
Parthenon Gyros on State Street, Wisconsin's first gyro restaurant since 1972, serves house-made gyros and Greek plates with a rooftop patio for outdoors.
Signature: Gyros, Greek salad
Order: A house-made gyro plate with a Greek salad on the side.
Tip: Open 11:00 to 03:00 daily; the rooftop patio fills first on summer evenings.
