Delaney’s Steaks and Seafood

Everything about Delany’s seems great when you get there. The atmosphere is wonderful and the service is excellent. The drinks are overpriced but that’s ok for an excellent steakhouse. Unfortunately, the steaks were not good.
My companion is a great cook and easily outdoes the steak we had tonight every time he cooks steak. The ribeye was very tough and lacked seasoning. He said it was one of the worst he’s at a steakhouse. I ordered the filet which was also a little tough. The flavor was missing as well.
We were sitting next to another couple whom we heard had issues with their fish entrée. Enough so that they felt the need to tell the staff.
We really enjoyed the atmosphere and the décor, just wished the food was up to the quality of the environment we were in. We were very disappointed.

This place has been here a long time and somebody must like it but my experience on a Friday night was average at best. The bar is nice and the waitstaff both in the bar and dining room were very good. The food was not. First the Caesar salads that the four of us had was nice looking but had a very strong taste of lemon in the dressing. It ruined the salad for us. Next the hash browns had an odd flavor than I did not like. It got to thinking there might have been some of those sweet onions in it but didn’t see any. I do not like onions in my hash browns but either way I didn’t like the taste of the potatoes. Last was my ribeye. It was perfectly cooked but after cutting off the fat, gristle and the bone there wasn’t much left. For thirty three dollars what I did eat was very good but there just wasn’t much of it. I had to be critical of a much loved restaurant like Delaney’s but all three things that I ordered had issues. I am not that picky of an eater and I did eat the salad and hash browns rather than send them back and ruin our evening with friends. I just wouldn’t go back. There are much better steak places where I have generally have no complaints to go to.

I had the prime rib. The steak was average – slightly colder than I like it (could’ve used some aus jus or perhaps a heated plate like Tornado uses for their late night steaks), but tender and cooked to order.
My server was also fine. Attentive, professional. I tipped him a flat 18%.
There was another server (manager?) that seemed hell bent on interacting with me, however, despite my strategic use of my cell phone. I did my best to be polite, but finally he made a sexist joke (an old, bad one at that), and I tried blocking him off entirely. When I didn’t laugh, he told it to an older gentleman sitting next to me, repeating it again until he was finally humored with a chuckle.
Honestly, even if Delany’s were the most convenient option, I’d drive to a different part of town. There’s some great steak in this city, and there’s no reason to settle for worse at the same price.

Fair priced, and good prime rib; cooked at a perfect medium rare. Here on EPIC business and was recommended by the hotel staff. I usually compare prices for a date night experience. For two, appetizers and meal (that comes with a soup/​salad and a side of potatoe and veg) and a dessert will run you just around the $ 80 to $ 110 mark without alcohol. Solo wise, I got a 10 oz prime rib dinner for a decent $ 26, but it’s only served the latter end of the week (Wednesday on). Salad dressing are all made in house; blue cheese was good.

Absolutely fantastic food, wonderful service and great atmosphere. I hosted my staff holiday party here and it was a resounding success! I recommend this to anyone– casual cocktails to date night.

I’m a bit disappointed in Delaney’s. My husband and I went here for our last date night of 2015 on Saturday. I made a reservation for 630, and I’m glad I did as it seemed to be pretty busy with a wait. There was live music in the bar area, so that was nice.
We were seated and served waters right away. We were given dinner menus, but drink menus weren’t given to us until the waiter came by to see if we wanted anything to drink. How am I supposed to know if I want anything to drink when I haven’t seen the drink menu yet? We ended up passing on drinks anyway, so it’s a moot point, but still.
We were served a fresh loaf of sourdough bread right away which was excellent. I ended up ordering a sirloin steak and the husband went for the NY Strip. Both were served with a side of potato and a side salad, so we did not leave hungry. The side salads were fine, pretty typical. However, both steaks were served with a side of disappointment. I ordered my steak medium rare, but it arrived barely pink in the center. The ends of the steak were seriously well done. Husband ordered his strip medium and his was WAY more pink than mine. Both steaks seemed to be severely lacking in the salt department. Mine had a sauce on it which was tasty, but the steak was still missing a lot of flavor. The garlic mashed potatoes were good; it’s hard to mess those up.
I did get crème brûlée for dessert and was definitely happy with that at least.
They do get points for the lovely décor, the live music, the service and the dessert, but I cannot get over how much I did not enjoy my steak. So far, my worst steak in Madison.

I’ll just keep this short but overall I was very satisfied.
Wait Staff: Quick and friendly staff. Very attentive.
Atmosphere: Comfortable & Cozy. Candlelight and everything! (I’ll upload some photos)
Food: Excellent. Crab cakes tasted fresh and the Prime Rib was cook to perfection. (I uploaded some photos)

Color me unimpressed. Yes, Delaney’s has been serving up food on the westside for quite sometime and is seen by some as an institution. I appreciate the old school approach (napkins draped over your lap by the waiter, etc) but the food didn’t deliver. I opted for the bone-​in ribeye with the truffle butter. While it was cooked to order (medium rare), it contained some gristle and didn’t have the deep rich taste of a typical ribeye. I ordered the wedge salad as my side and thought it was good although lets be honest, most can do a crisp wedge of iceberg lettuce and some dressing.
When I look at meal here vs my typical meal at Tornado, there is no comparison. Tornado wins out at every level.
Other than a work event, I don’t see myself coming back.

I have been coming to this restaurant almost every year on my birthday for the last 20 years. Last time I went 2 bartenders just could not stop making racist and prejudice jokes toward my family. I’ll never go there again.

Best service! Great food. Awesome wine selection. Steaks always made how you like them. Ask for Mike if you’re sitting at the bar/​outside. He will set you up right.

I was there tonight great meal. This is one of the nicest restaurants I’ve been in Madison. We had awesome table service and I highly recommend for a nice steak dinner! I enjoy having a server and a waiter for better flow on table service.

Sometimes you need some old school supper club-​style ambiance. Delaney’s does not disappoint.
I haven’t been compelled to write a review until my partner and I went last night to celebrate our anniversary. The service was so exemplary that I needed to share. Our romantic evening out was enhanced greatly by the upscale yet unpretentious milieu, the careful and patient service, and the delicious food.
I’ve been here on multiple occasions. One time, when treating some friends and their toddler to a farewell meal, the staff bent over backwards to ensure that the adults still had a fine time out while accommodating our junior dining mate.
Some highlights from my visits to Delaney’s:
Seafood bisque: Incredible. The three times I’ve enjoyed it, I’ve felt that it fills like a cioppino, without weighing too heavily on the palate. If you’re not a big steak fan, please try this excellent soup.
Filets: Prime. I personally believe in eating a small amount of exquisite food rather than a large amount of mediocre fare. Delaney’s shines in this department. One of the few places that will serve an actual rare steak (in order to enjoy the flavor of the red meat in which I seldom indulge). Yet the staff still unobtrusively checks in on us after two minutes to ensure I am pleased with my choice. I certainly have been. I’ve had their filets Au Poivre and Oscar Style, but I’d honestly recommend skipping it. The steak itself is great.
Salmon Fillet: This is what I always consider ordering before I remember that I’m at an excellent steakhouse, and luckily, this is what my partner usually orders. It’s like magic; tender to the tongue, and savory throughout. They make the fish not taste fishy. The cherry relish really excels here.
Crab Cakes: Exceptional insofar as they were not what I expected. They appeared as though the chef had simply sauteed them, for they displayed a fine crust without being dipped into a fryer. Light and tasty, and served with a zesty herbed aioli. Will order again.
Ostrich Wellington: Delicious. Just try it. How often do you eat ostrich? It’s great.
Their larger steaks I’ve only tried bites of from friends, but the T-​Bone melts in your mouth the way it should. The sides, which are often included with an entrée, are definitely on par with a restaurant of this class.
To be entirely honest and ward off concerns of my being a sycophant, their wine list is not as large as some restaurants. They are also not a chain joint. I enjoy their cocktails.
There are many steakhouses in Madison, WI. The comments from those that don’t appreciate this place seem to me to be from people who have never worked in the service industry. It is harder than it looks, and that’s fine. There are plenty of fine chains that serve cheap food with mediocre results. The service has always been wonderful here, and last night, it was exceptional.
I hope that if you are looking for a quality night out with delicious food and drink, you will try Delaney’s. It will likely be a night that you remember.

My favorite steak spot! I always get the crab cakes and a Filet with mashed potatoes and a different veggie each time! Always delicious! Service is always beyond expectations never had a rude server ever!

I really want to love this place. It’s a Madison classic — but it’s just to unpredictable. Consistency isn’t their thing.
Sometimes the service is phenomenal — as often it is not. The steaks are decent but never «oh my gawd» great… But the prices are as expensive as any other steakhouse.
The drinks are consistently great… This review is based on my 5 visits over the last two years ;(

Very nice place for atmosphere, has a nice steakhouse feel to it when you walk in. I do like places that have a similar feel, just something about steakhouses that make me enjoy the experience more. The service was excellent, had a duo serving me for the night and they did not miss anything.
As for the food there was a standard set when they priced their ribeye steak at $ 33, I don’t mind paying this much for an amazing steak and when you are in the price range you are making a statement about the quality of your product. Unfortunately the steak did not live up to the price point. The steak didn’t have a lot of flavor and even the butter they give you didn’t help it out much. Compared to other $ 30+ steaks I have had this one didn’t live up to the price point.
Overall I would say the experience was nice, but the prices were too high for what I had for dinner.

Highlights and Lowlights
1) great food!
2) nice atmosphere
3) mediocre service
I want so badly for this to be four stars! We came to Delaney’s on a Saturday night for my boyfriends birthday. I made a reservation 3 – 4 days earlier and had no issues.
We arrived and were told our table would be just a couple minutes (no big deal, we expected this in a Saturday). Our server was fine but not really friendly/​chatty. We ordered drinks and my wine probably came close to 20 minutes later. It was by no means slow but there was nobody in the lobby waiting and seats were open at the bar so the fact that it took 20 minutes to get my drink was odd.
However, the food rocked! I wasn’t super hungry so I ordered the strawberry salad and sweet potato side. Little did I know, the sweet potato could probably feed a small village, and the honey walnut butter rocked! My boyfriend got prime rib and really liked it. It looked like they only have prime rib on certain nights so check before you go if that’s what you really want.
The atmosphere is nice, kind of an «up north supper club» vibe.
Overall, good food, nice atmosphere, but the service could be a little better!

I would give the food a 4 and the service a 3. This was the first time my boyfriend and I ate here and there was a live band playing in the bar area so we had great music to listen to all night long.
It was about 5 minutes until we saw our first waitress, she brought us bread and asked if we wanted to see the drink menu. I feel like the drink menu should be an automatic. There was a bit of a lag between getting the drink menu, placing drink and appetizer order and finally ordering dinner. They have a great selection of bourbon.
We ordered the onion rings and they were HUGE but good! I felt like our waitresses were watching us and waiting for us to finish to serve our salads. They gave good service but felt like like they we had to make eye contact to get there attention to come over, otherwise they would walk right by. I ordered Ribeye and my boyfriend ordered Prime Rib and garlic mashed potatoes. All of it was amazing! Finished the evening with Crème Brûlée for me and a Grasshopper for him. I would highly recommend and look forward to coming back.

So I asked Madison’s own Steve L for recommendations for a nice restaurant where a small group of friends could dress up and eat a nice meal. I was given many (wonderful) options, and we all decided to go to Delaney’s. And we chose very well.
We set a reservation for Friday at 6:15pm. They had a coat check at the front entrance, and the hostess was ready to seat us right away. The whole restaurant was dimly lit, and it was pretty quiet but not silent. The environment was relaxing and comfy, bordering very fancy.
Our waters were filled immediately, and our server greeted us when our whole party arrived. We started with a delicious complementary loaf of bread (Yuuummm) and we took our time looking over the wine list and the menu. Wine list is long, but moreso if you want to buy a bottle. They offer around 15 wines by the glass. One of my friends is vegetarian (which I did not know), so she did not have too many options when it came to the actual food. Therefore, she had the spinach salad, which she says was delicious).
I had the 6 oz Filet Mignon with a wedge salad. The wedge salad came with a strip of bacon (YES!), and even though the 6 oz looked very small, it was so filling. And it was cooked exactly how I asked. It also came with my choice of prepared potato, and I asked for fries. My other friends also had steak, which they claimed was also delicious.
Water was refilled very often. My friends then had the eggnog cheesecake (which I was not able to eat because it had dairy), but they raved about it. So I’m assuming it was amazing.
This experience was abolutely wonderful. I plan on bringing my parents here because I know they would love it. A bit pricey, but well worth the cost.

In my humble opinion, the best steakhouse in Madison. Oh I grant you, Madison has no shortage of quality steakhouses (Tornado, Wonder Bar, etc). But Delaney’s stands above all.
I have never had a better bone-​in ribeye, even in Chicago. Plus, unlike a lot of the other steakhouses in Madison (looking at you Ruth Chris), they include a side and a soup/​salad with your meal. Under $ 40 for steak, side, starter??? Yep, sign me right up.
For appetizers, the onion straws and button mushrooms are can’t miss. Great intro to a night of incredible food.
As far as drinks go, it would be hard to find more knowledgeable and engaging bartenders in Madison. They have an extensive wine list, and even more important, a great bourbon/​whiskey selection. Everything pairs together amazingly for a great dining experience.

5÷2÷2013 at about 4:30 PM. We heard about this place (word of mouth and Unilocal) and wanted to stop in for a drink and dinner here before heading back to MKE.
Our first impression upon seeing the location is that it looks like a ranch style super club. When we walked inside, we saw a large, bright (still daylight and lots of windows) retro-​lounge bar area. We sat down and had graciously poured cocktails with our entertaining and very funny bartender (whose name I never got, darn it!).
After imbibing, we checked in with the restaurant host and were seated (5:15 PMish) in a three or four table, dimly lit nook area of the restaurant, separated from other similar areas of the restaurant. It felt quaint, cozy and a bit romantic in there (see the picture).
Appetizer: Crab Cakes; two to the order ($ 12.00). Though small, they were definitely house made and excellent.
Entrée: TBone Steak ($ 37.00): Good sized. Excellent. Ordered medium rare, the steak came out with a wonderful crispy char and was outstanding in flavor and tenderness. Our other order was Chicken Oscar ($ 28.00) which was also outstanding. String beans instead of potato was good — possibly steamed and tossed in a light butter sauce.
Dinner was preceded by salads that were fresh and crisp. One of us had the raspberry vinaigrette that was obviously home-​made (not bottled, at least).
Dinner service was provided by brother team Mike and Tom who provided us with good service.
I definitely recommend this steak house. It will not disappoint any steak connosieurs.