Rising Sons Deli

I like this place. You have to know the menu a little though. I like the chicken noodle bowl order, and I also like the fried rice orders. It’s always 10 bucks and they don’t take cards. But it’s a relatively fast an decent option for the $ on state street. It’s also obviously a family run restaurant, and I just feel like, it seems they are good people.

The service is good here, it’s a cute little restaurant. The food is okay, never bad but also never amazing. Their pad thai could use more tamarind.

This was always a favorite place when we were in college, and coming back to it now it’s still just as good. Their noodle dishes and fried rice are really great– the Drunken Noodles with tofu (and some added chili sauce) is my favorite!
Décor is super weird because this place used to be a 50s diner and they never redecorated, but if you can get over that, it’s fine :)
Don’t forget– this place is CASH ONLY!

My only visit and experience was yesterday for take-​out. Theres a decent sized bar and comfy stools you can sit at, or a few tables/​booths i think. Its a long and narrow space, but seems to work. I stopped in around 2:30 in the afternoon and it was super quiet in there. I ordered the vegetarian mango curry. When I got it home and opened it up I was srprised to see how liquidy and soupy it was, compared to any other mango curries I’ve had in the past from other restaurants. I was pleasantly surprised at how delicious, fresh and tasty it was. Full of flavor, just a hint of spice (I asked for mild) and super fresh and tender veggies, cooked just right. I’ll absolutely go again and will try some of their other dishes next time I’m in the area.
As others have mentioned, bring cash… or a checkbook (he offered that to me as a choice, believe it or not!). If you forget to have cash on hand there is a convenient ATM just a few steps away, which brought the cost of my lunch to $ 3.25 more than I had intended. Decent and reasonable prices to boot.

This is my go to place when it’s freezing. I love their noodle soups. Especially in a day in the single digits.
I have been getting the Phở and Tom Yum Noodle soups. It’s a large portion that I can actually finish without regretting it. The soup broths are perfectly spiced.
The phở today didn’t taste like beef broth, but it’s ok. It was still a soup and it warmed me up.
I would also recommend all of their appetizers. I like getting sticky rice too. It comes in a small basket.
Seating is limited so if you come with a larger group, the max would probably be 6 people. Great for 1 – 1 lunch meetings. They also have individual seats at their «bar» area in the middle of the restaurant.
I probably come in at least once every two weeks or so. I highly recommend this place.

Decent Thai/​Laotian food that is not too far into State Street. The service was great and the food came in pretty quickly. I ate inside, but I heard that dining in their outdoor space is a fun experience. The inside has tacky decorations. I ordered the Panang curry with tofu, which could have been a bit more flavorful. Crab rangoons are great. I’m a sucker for Thai food, and this is my go to spot for any cravings when in the area. Make sure to have cash or check– they don’t accept cards!

We arrived at Rising Sun Deli around 12:30 on a weekday. A waitress greeted us a we walked in and told us to take a seat wherever we liked. We sat near the door. I would not recommend this on a cold Wisconsin day. Every time a customer came in or out a cold wind came with them.
We started with the kalapao and beef jerky. The jerky was sweet, tangy, chewy, not dry and utterly delicious. I could eat a plate of that. The kalapao is a sweet bun filled with pork and hard-​boiled egg. It was rustic looking but the sweet but and the savory filling was a winning combination. I loved it!
For our entrees and I had the phở and my dining companion had a duck soup. The broth in the phở was spot on — beefy, layered with flavor and complexity. Usually phở comes accompanied by a plate of condiments such as basil, bean sprouts, jalapenos, and lime. At Rising Suns Deli they were already in the phở. There was soy sauce, fish sauce, hoisin sauce and sriracha at the table to enhance the phở as desired. Even though I couldn’t add my own proportions as desired, I was extremely pleased with the phở. My dining companion said the flavors of the duck soup were also spot on. There was quite a bit of extra fat and gristle though.
One thing to keep in mind is that Rising Suns Deli does not take credit-​cards, so you will need to bring cash.
There were many dishes on the menu I look forward to trying. This probably isn’t a place you would go if you are trying to impress a date, but I can see myself going back over and over. Good food, decent prices, reasonable service.

*Note: they DO NOT take credit or debit cards. CASH or CHECKS ONLY*
Love, love, love the food here! If you are on State St. in Madison, WI by campus and have a craving for authentic Laos/​Thai food then you should definitely stop by here.
The atmosphere is a quaint little spot with regular tables and diner-​style bar seating in front of the kitchen. Cute and clean.
The Food:
Coconut Chicken Noodle Soup– ⁵⁄₅ this dish was flavorful and packed just the right amount of sweet, sour, and spicy. Definitely a must try!
Papaya Salad — ⁴⁄₅ so very tasty. Perfect mix of spicy, sweet and sour as well
Garlic pork — ⁴⁄₅ flavorful and cooked just right
Crab Rangoon — ⁴⁄₅ loved every bite of it!
We come here every time we get to Madison. We will always return to this restaurant when we come here! They have so many authentic recipes on the menu that are real Lao staples. Try the mok gai, mok pa, or galapao.

Came here with friends to nurse our freakfest hangover and was greeted with a delicious steamy bowl of noodles.
This place is PHO-​real. The noodles were tasty and the broth game here is mad strong. I definitely recommend getting their duck noodles and tom yam noodles (spicy), as both broths were on a different flavor level compared to the others.
Just thinking about the noodles is making my mouth water again. I’m definitely coming returning again if I ever find myself in madison.
However, they do have some flaws. One being they only take cash, so remember to hit the atm before. Another being the inconsistent portions of meat in the noodles, which would be an issue for gluttons like myself.
Overall, I think it’s a hidden gem in madison with cheap food at pretty respectable quality.

On the door it says that they’re supposed to open from 11am onwards on a Saturday. Only at 11:05am and after several attempts to get the owner’s attention from outside did we manage to get in. If not for the long lines in every other restaurant along State Street, we would’ve given up a long time ago.
— Duck noodle soup: I tasted the soup, and it was really tasty and flavorful! Definitely try this if you want a failure-​proof dish.
— Tomyam noodle soup: This was really good too! I’m glad they didn’t just use the plain tomyam paste because I could taste the shrimp flavor which made it better.
— Kao Poun: On the menu it says that this is coconut-​based curry with noodles. Boy they weren’t kidding about the coconut part. The coconut taste was way to overpowering and you can barely taste curry.
Overall, I wouldn’t say that my experience here was bad, although I was a little ticked off my the owner’s lack of punctuality at the beginning. If you’re looking for mediocre cheap Asian food, this is the place to go.

This was my last stop in Madison after Homecoming weekend. A nice little hole in the wall place on lower State Street. I had a hankering for phở and this was the only place that I found on Unilocal.The sign on the front said ‘Thai’ so I figured it wouldn’t be what I was used to having at Vietnamese places.
The place was quiet at 11:30am. I sat at the counter and quickly placed my order. I tried to think back on what business used to occupy this spot 25 years ago when I was a student here. It never came to me.
The phở arrived and, as expected, it was different. It wasn’t bad, just different. I half expected it to taste like tom yum but it didn’t. The warm broth and noodles helped to warm the soul. There were no sprouts or basil or jalapenos. Oh well, but I couldn’t understand why there was no Sriracha. No Huy Fong Sriracha? Unspeakable. I made do with the jar of chili oil found on the counter.
Bowl done, I paid (cash only) at the counter, exchanged pleasantries and off I went to the airport. Next time, I’ll try the Thai food. Hopefully, I’ll find a phở joint nearby as well.

I went here on a Sunday with my girlfriend. We were seated outside immediately in the back alley which is super cool. I really enjoyed the food but the service and the scenic alley are what gives it 4 stars in my book.
My girlfriend got a shrimp dish. they were medium sized and the taste was fine to her. I got a coconut chicken noodle, I enjoyed it but it was a little more unique then what I expected. More fusion then traditional. The dishes were great and we both had some take out. Luckily the place has the good plastic take out containers.
I wouldn’t make this a regular place but I would certainly come back and try something else next time. This is also cash only, which is a pain in the butt, Back to three stars!

Let’s get the important point out of the way first. ~~ Cash only ~~
This was one of the first places I visited when I initially set food in Madison years and years ago, so it brings back many fond memories. I remember being impressed with their Penang Green Curry. As for all their curries, you get a choice of tofu, meat or shrimp (shrimps come at an extra). For the green curry there’re eggplant and bamboo shoots, some of my favorite ingredients in my curry. It also comes with generous serving of rice to go with the rich curry gravy.
Over the course of several years we’ve been through almost the entire menu. I like their curries, noodle soups, tom yum and drunken noodles. But sad to say I think things have changed somewhat, on my recent trips I’ve been less impressed with Rising Sons. Maybe the saying that your appetite changes over time is true? Or maybe there are a lot of newer options that are more refreshing popping up in town over the years. Not imagining myself going back unless things change back to the way they were before.

Tom Yum noodle soup at the Rising Sons Deli. (Yes, it’s called a deli, but it’s all Thai/​Laos food here.)
Very rustic soup that’s hot/​salty/​sweet/​fish sauce broth that’s cooled by the coriander and lemongrass. Chicken meatballs are superfluous. The minced pork just sneaks in at the end. So good.

Kind people, wonderful Tom Yum Noodle and excellent Green Tea. I will definitely be coming back.

The place has somehow room to improve but the food is not bad.
Friendly servers, sometimes being forgotten though; very slow but that’s probably an authentic south East Asian feature. Food portion is pretty small, even for an Asian like me.
I like most food but last time the chicken satay tasted funny.
What I like about this place is, it really reminds us of our time in Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar. It mostly takes forever to wait for some simple dishes but their people are usually polite and friendly. The food definitely has its authentic flavor, not the American/​fusion one.
Also like the fact they are willing to accommodate customer’s special diet. Most Chinese restaurants, if operated by Chinese, won’t do that. (Sauce mixed, or just say yes but comes out the same). They do try to make their customers happy, which is appreciated.

Excellent curries and Pad Thai are beat eaten on their small open patio during the summer. Remarkably friendly staff. I have not ordered anything here that I did not thoroughly enjoy. Reasonably priced but bring cash.

My friend and I sat at the counter, so the service felt pretty laid back, but they were nice! We both had curry dishes that were perfectly satisfying but nothing out of the ordinary. Pretty good place if you’re looking for Thai/​Laotian food… I’d recommend it!

I have eaten 3 times at Rising Sons over the years. Each time my experience has been more disappointing than the last. I recently dined there early on a Saturday evening before ushering at Overture. I needed a meal that would hold me til late evening without my feeling weighed down.
I ate the green chicken curry. I found the sauce somewhat flavorful but extremely thin. I even sent it back once and it came back to me just about the same. The waitress stated that this was normal recipe. I liked the Thai eggplant but wished for a greater array of veggies. I might have forgiven the watery consistency if the flavor profile had been more robust.
The server was kind and accommodating. No one ever came to take my money and I had to get up and go to the counter to pay. The place was not busy so I just think I was forgotten.
I love Thai food. I can imagine a freezing winter day when I am hungry and just want to warm up. I will give in to my desires and head to Rising Suns in hope that those lovely Thai spices and textures will magically appear and I will feel the heat all the way to my toes.

I walked in here hoping I could satisfy my noodle soup craving but was sorely disappointed. I ordered the BBQ Pork Noodle Soup. When my dish arrived, I immediately noticed that the supposed «egg noodles» mentioned in the menu were definitely just instant ramen noodles. Strike one. I asked the server why they used instant ramen when the menu said egg noodles, and he told me that what I was eating was «Vietnamese style egg noodles.» I know what Vietnamese egg noodles are, and this was definitely not it. Trying to fool me into believing that my food was authentic? Strike two. Now, if the soup was actually good on top of that maybe I would have forgiven it, but the pork and vegetables were really not very memorable either. Strike three.
Considering that the food was pretty much a waste of my time and money, I definitely will not come back.