Cafe Manna

Pricey, but worth it especially if you are vegan or vegetarian. I had a FANTASTIC «tuna» sandwich that was so delicious, I scarfed that thing down in 12 seconds. Now, granted, it didn’t taste like tuna at all, but that’s on par with all the other places I’ve had a «tuna» sandwich at, but this one had the best flavor and mouth feel. The fruit that came with it was so fresh and sweet, better than any other fruit I’ve had elsewhere. The four others that were with me loved their items (2 cups of chili, a lentil burger, another sandwich, 2 glasses of Limonade, Chai coconut tea, and a Berry drink), so all in all, this place gets a huge thumbs up from our party. I wish I could give this place 5 stars, but it was just a tad too pricey for my taste. $ 76.00 without tip was the bill for 5 of us. If that’s AOK for you, go for it! That’s a little high for me, but I don’t begrudge their pricing. If that’s what they need to charge to stay in business, then please STAY IN BUSINESS! I would still come here every now and then.

Café Manna is as good as it gets, not just for a Vegan/​Vegetarian restaurant, but for any restaurant.
My boyfriend and I stopped for the first time, and were highly impressed. Neither of us are Vegan, though I am a Vegetarian. I ordered the Raw Thai Rolls, and he the Black Bean and Mushroom Burger. The Thai rolls were amazingly flavorful. Within the roll is an assortment of fresh, crunchy vegetables and a warm macadamia-​lime filling that added a certain sweetness to the roll, with a little kick on the side. This paired well with the Asian dipping sauce, that gave a sweet and salty taste to the dish. The Black Bean and Mushroom Burger was enormous. While my boyfriend is often skeptical of meat-​substitutes, even he was sated. The burger tasted as if it was fresh off the grill, and was paired nicely with a toasted bun that wasn’t too heavy, and fresh veggies. He added avocado in lieu of cheese and found it both creamy, and complimentary.
We were slightly worried that we would leave the restaurant hungry, as has happened in the past at purely Vegetarian restaurants. This was not the case. Portion sizes were huge, and it’s really comforting knowing that every ingredient they are using is of the best quality and fresh. Lastly, the service was excellent. For a small café, the service rivaled that of a white-​table cloth, high-​end restaurant, without the higher cost.
Prices are more than you would expect, however, we didn’t mind because we were happy to pay for higher quality ingredients, and top-​notch service.

It had been 5 years since I had been to Café Manna. The restaurant has definitely improved.
The complimentary appetizer of pita chips and a bean hummus was actually quite smooth and I remember it being dry.
They also had a nice sparkling white wine on the menu which was refreshing on a warm day.
The service was friendly and we sat outside since it was beautiful and I find the interior slightly institutional. Plus, I had my dog with me and the patio is dog friendly (yay!)
My friend and I ordered the Café Manna Lentil Burger with avocado for and extra $ 1.50 and passed on the cheese which would have been an additional $ 1.50. The burger itself was already a bit pricey but it was really tasty. One complaint is that it sort of fell apart. I think next time I will pull some bread out of the bun to make room for the avocado. The vegan burger also came with some grilled asparagus which was also really wonderful.
I do think that they should have salt and pepper on the table.
We also ordered the raw Vegan Lasagna ($ 18). It was good but a bit too much on the mushy side. I love the concept of using zucchini as the pasta and pureeing nuts (guessing cashews) as the cheese, but it needed a bit more layers of other more firm veggies. Like possibly tomato slices, mushrooms, and more leafy lettuce. I ended up asking for some crackers and turned it into a spread. It was very heavy and so I didn’t have room for desert which is my FAVORITE thing at Café Manna :(
The raw cheesecake is to die for but it is also make from a pureed nut and I was stuffed e-​nut.
Like most people are aware… or if you aren’t this place is a bit expensive and most likely because of the demographic. Table next to us had 3 teen girls wearing yoga pants who were talking about the perfect level of blonde highlights they were trying to achieve and then each had their own credits cards which they split evenly. Mom and Dad’s money I’m sure.
So, despite some areas of improvement that could be made, I really do like this place and would return again. Will try something else instead of the lasagna the next time though.
Always happy that a vegetarian, vegan and raw restaurant exist… clean and fresh food!

Food is outstanding. Everything is fresh, made to order with high quality ingredients — no processed food here. This restaurant is ideal for people with specific dietary requirements like gluten-​free, dairy free, vegan, GAPS, etc. There is something for everyone and they know how to make it delicious. The service is impeccable, fast and friendly. I live in Madison but I make it a point to eat there any time I’m in the area. I must say, with all the great restaurants we have in Madison, I yet have to find one as good as Café Manna in the same price range. In my opinion, Café Manna is comparable to L’Etoile or Graze in Madison at less than half the price!

Visited Café Manna today. Did not know it was a vegetarian joint. Food was outstanding. Started with the chili soup. Ordered the cup. Portion was filling. Soup had a lot of veggies, was quite dense. Very tasty.
Ordered the peace bowl. Lots of veggies. Not very spicy. Liked it. Ordered with tofu. Will not the next time. Quantity was quite a bit and packed some for lunch :).
The dessert had a chocolate covering with coconut inside.
Starters (on the house), was chips (cashew flavor) and hummus.
This place is worth the visit. The service was pretty exceptional and very friendly (Thanks Ann). Place has a very good vibe. Check it out.

Food was good. I thought the place was going to be more casual. went there during a weekday with my 4 year old daughter, I felt unwelcome and awkward. I really wanted to try the nachos. but it seemed too fancy to eat nachos at a place with white table cloths. They were also very under staffed.

My vegan friends really like this place. The food is usually good but nothing that I’d crave. For me it’s just to find food that I don’t normally eat.

Love that there is vegan fare closer-​ish to me. Let me start by saying the staff is über friendly. The food is absolutely amazing. We have tried most vegan things on the menu.
Our routine is to have the guacamole potato skins. My gawd. They taste so good. I always get the rose mint tea. My handsome honey gets the chai. I love the veggie burger and sweet potato fries. He usually switches it up every time. Never have we been disappointed. We always get a dessert to go. I recommend the raspberry almond torte.
Please, all vegans unite. Go check this place out. You will not be disappointed. We’ve made it an every other weekend date night ritual. Yummy.

I was surprised by my wife for my birthday. I became vegan on March 7.
The food and service we received was phenomenal!
Our waitress Marissa was outstanding and well versed on all the dishes.
I recommend this place to everyone, not just vegan and vegetarians, but meat eaters as well!

This is the best vegan/​vegetarian and restaurant I’ve ever been to! Even if you’re a meat eater, you need to try this place out. The food is healthy, fresh, unbelievably tasty and unique. Some of our favorite beverages are the Limonade and Brazilian berry tea. The Peace Bowl, Portobello sandwich, and black bean burger are favorite entrees. I often make it a point to try their specials, too. Never been disappointed. Save room for dessert. But, if you can’t finish it, you can always take it home. The raw cheesecake is especially good as are the special cakes and small bites the chef sometimes makes. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the staff! They are warm and friendly and make you feel at ease. The atmosphere is calm and quiet unless there’s a particularly boisterous table.

I will always stop by here when passing through Wisconsin.
Diamond in the rough. It’s nearly good enough to forget that you’re in Scott Walker country. If you need an escape from the oppression and bigotry of the WI GOP, this is the place.
The Thai Spring Rolls are to die for. As well as the Raw Nachos. Limonaide is so delicious and refreshing.
Avoid the lasagna unless you’re just reintroducing solid foods. It’s a giant pile of puréed food between what seems an infinite distance between layers of oh so thinly sliced zucchini separating the massive volumes of decadent goo.

Do you like eating kick-​ass food while listening to yuppies yammer on about problems with email? Are you a necromancer in need of more Manna? Do you like gluten free and/​or vegan foods? Are you lost and in Wisconsin? Café Manna can accommodate you, your yuppie aunt, Mage of Darkness, and picky lactose intolerant friend.
**Edit**
Café Manna, you get five stars. Consistently delicious and fresh food. A kick ass [Titus Andromedon voice] PinoOOOOoot noOOOooooOooir! Excellent waitstaff. Reasonable prices. Food I can eat (gluten-​free & vegan).
If your tummy is upset, try the Mango Fizzy Thing whose actual name I can’t remember. Lentil soup= pretty good. Potato skins= so good, I wanted to smack somebody. My girlfriend and I split the (obviously named by a white person) Asian Lettuce Wraps, which are massive and enough for three people.
Please tip your waitstaff person well. Every time I’ve been here, an overly-​confident mediocre white man has given the waitress a tough time. This is in a wasp-​y part of town, so try your best to filter out the god-​awful blather of other patrons.

Small and quaint, great vibes and the food is amazing! There was a slight wait, but it was definitely well worth it.

Parking is scarce. Wonderfully relaxing restaurant. Pleasant ethereal music.
Well appointed. Cloth tablecloths. Diverse menu. From sandwiches to entrees.
I chose the limonade. They are lying. There cannot be kale in that. It is delicious.
They brought me a cashew hummus gratis. It was slightly sweet and addicting. It tastes exactly like — not similar to — actual hummus. Other than it was slightly sweet. It actually was one of my favorite hummus’s (if I can coin a word) ever.
My waitress is a dietitian. Not a nutritionist, an RDN. We discussed s lot of items on the menu at great length.
I ordered the guacamole potatoes. Ok. These are superb! Potatoes perfectly baked with guac inside. The guac is more of a purée than I would ordinarily like but it is delicious. The pico de Gallo is also quite tasty. This is seasoned perfectly. Ordinarily I would need salt, this had exactly the right amount.
If you are vegetarian, and in Milwaukee, you absolutely must try this place. It is without a doubt one of my favorite restaurants already.
If you are not vegetarian you owe it to yourself to see what a truly phenomenal vegetarian place can cook up.
Now for desert. They wanted me to try the no cheese cheese cake. It is vegan, gluten free and I just cannot make that happen.
I think maybe the carrot cake.
Ordinarily I don’t get carrot cake because I am allergic to walnuts and carrot cake frequently has walnuts in it. This has — wait for it — cashews!
There is simply no way that they will get a perfect desert to top off the perfect meal. I am preparing myself for a little let down. This is the only desert that is not gluten free. I have learned that I am a gluten lover. If it usually has gluten, then the gluten free option will disappoint me.
Smear my ears with jam and roll me in an anthill. This carrot cake is outstanding! The serving is huge. Enough for two people.
Amazing. I am out of superlatives. Quit reading this review already and get over here.

We decided to try vegetarian and we were not disappointed. My 12 year old daughter was hesitant but became a total fan of the truffle pasta. Want to say much more but have limited time and will come back at some point and add to this review. (Probably after I go here again it was that good).
The waitstaff was also awesome helping us navigate the vegan world. The chef came out and explained how some things were prepared which was great if you’re curious like we were.

My friend and I were looking for places other than Beans and Barley that were veggie centric and this place came highly recommended. It’s a ways out of the city, hence why I’ve only been once, but I can certainly say, if it were closer, I’d go at least once a week, every week.
Everything is super fresh and creative. The jackfruit carnitas are a plus and as everyone agrees, the spring rolls; oh my god, to die for! Prices are very reasonable, staff is helpful and the atmosphere is calming. I do hope they expand into the city one day, that would be awesome!

No idea why it took us this long to discover this! But thanks to the Milwaukee city tins, we finally made it. Café Manna is a cute medium sized establishment with wonderful staff and really fresh dishes! I am sure you can read about their food in the other reviews. This was our first time here and we were most impressed at the attention to detail they provided us.
We called ahead to see if they were open (on a Saturday late-​afternoon) and also to see if we could bring our dog. We were told it was totally fine so we headed on over. Upon arriving, we went to the patio area (which was empty at the time since it was 4pm) to find two menus at a table along with a fresh water bowl for our dog! Talk about service!
When our server came by, we were informed that it was their Patio Pooch week! It’s a week where they encourage their guests to bring their dogs to the restaurant… cause they’re family too! :) We were thrilled. They also bake vegan biscuits for the pups too. Our pup really enjoyed her time there, it was such a nice treat!
We will definitely be back!

Hooray for the first one hundred percent vegetarian restaurant in Southeastern Wisconsin.
While it was a bit of a drive from the Wauwatosa/​Milwaukee area, the ability to enjoy such a diverse menu was well worth it.
The interior is open and clean. The service was prompt and friendly, although we went during non-​peak hours. Our waitress was always willing to give us valuable suggestions and catered to our needs constantly [which primarily was making the food spicy, with a variety of options/​methods]. We were even given a sample of crackers and cashew-​based hummus, which was all made in-​house.
I ordered the Café Manna burger. This burger consisted of a Jamaican jerk lentil patty along with spiced aioli and some basic vegetables. While the ingredients were no doubt fresh and of optimal quality, the flavor was overall lacking. Despite adding avocado and jalapeño, there was not much zing to the flavor profile. These add-​ons were rather pricy; the avocado was $ 1.5 as was a slice of cheese.
My friend ordered a noodle soup, which was enormous!
Because this restaurant is located in an affluent area, the prices are a bit on the higher end. I look forward to re-​visiting to explore the menu further.
The restaurant does offer cooking classes and other events that I hope to explore as well.

This is a vegan spot in a nice strip center in Brookfield. Menu consists of soups, salads, sandwiches and hot entrees such as Pad Thai. We got 2 different salads and the limonade (not lemonade). It had kale and hence the green color. As others have mentioned, it looks weird but tastes great! Our salads were delicious– light, refreshing, very fresh!
I will certainly be back to try some other items on the menu. I knocked a star since they don’t accept AMEX and the prices seemed high for Brookfield, WI.

This is an absolutely fabulous all-​vegetarian restaurant with many vegan, gluten-​free, and raw options, all of which are marked on the menu. I asked about soy-​free options and was given a marked copy of the menu delineating what was and was not safe for me and our waitress was extremely good with questions. Further, it was easy to get a meal that was vegan and gluten-​free, and while eliminating soy cut our options it wasn’t a big deal. If you need to avoid soy and gluten, be aware that the gluten-​free crackers have soy in them and ask for veggies.
We had the guacamole potato skins, the raw tacos, and three kinds of tea. The guacamole here is exceptional and the ancho cashew sour cream is well made. The raw tacos were even better, balanced nicely with the salad, more guacamole, and some chips. The tacos come with a lovely sauce on the side that isn’t listed on the menu made with cilantro, lime, and an olive oil infused with hot peppers. The food was surprisingly filling without being sedating in the manner typical of raw food.
For tea, we had two kinds of chai and then a very pleasant earl grey.
The only downside to Café Manna is the location in an upscale strip mall in Brookfield, not the quickest drive from Milwaukee proper but certainly worth an occasional trip.