Sardine

Love the mussels. The best in town. Other food options are also good. I really liked the grits. My mom had a waffle for brunch one time and she said it was simple amazing.
Great environment (although often loud), great service

Sardine was superb. The bar service was impressive, food was delicious, and the views of the lake were stunning. I will definitely be back!

Probably as close to an honest-​to-​God brasserie Madison gets. It’s not terribly expensive but I can easily drop $ 100 a person here for special occasions and leave totally satisfied and a bit drunk. They do very good work getting good ingredients and preparing them well. Word to the wise though, just getting an entrée is going to seem like not a lot of food compared to what normally passes for a 20 dollar plate in Wisconsin

We made a reservation for brunch for Father’s day, and brought in-​laws with us. 5 of us arrived there in time, but we were told by the hostess that they needed to set up a table and would take a few minutes. Fine, so we, including our 8-​year old kid, waited. We could see some one finally started setting up a table for us. The place was packed, but 20 min. past our reservation time we finally saw our table ready. Then, we realized the hostess was missing when the table was ready. When we looked around, we saw her chatting, taking pictures, having a good time with other guests. 25 minutes past our reservation time, she decided to make us wait longer and didn’t want us to interrupt the great fun she was having.
Then, it took forever for someone to come over to take our order and took another 30 min. to serve food. By the time, we were all too hungry and our father’s day was semi-​ruined. We’ve always found the hostess somewhat unapproachable — but she was particularly indifferent to our dismay that day.

My wife and I visited Madison from Phoenix, and met some friends for dinner at Sardine. Wow… what a great spot! The food is amazing… we all shared plates, and everything was outstanding. Really cool, hip atmosphere — great lively crowd and great spirits/​beer/​wine selection… we sat on the deck overlooking Lake Menona… beautiful setting. The waitstaff was super friendly and accommodating… this place truly exceeded expectations…2 huge thumbs up.

A Parisian inspired gem in the heart of Madison – yes, please. I fell in love with Sardine after a brunch experience where we sat at the bar and enjoyed delicious Greyhounds and plates of warm duck confit, croque madame and Sardine Ceasar (granted Ceasar salads aren’t actually French but somehow it «feels» french with anchovies). The bar staff are jovial and attentive, quick to see near-​empty glasses and ready to recommend favorites.
The dinner experience was equally pleasant (I highly recommend sitting at one of the high top tables in the bar for a more lively yet casual experience). This time we enjoyed the oysters with a fantastic mignonette, Moules Frites (PEI mussels), duck confit and crème brûlée. Definitely reminded me of the nondescript, low-​key Parisian cafes that are deliciously arresting.
Bottom line: the chefs nail duck confit and the staff is well trained. Great for work dinner, date night and happy hour. Parking can be an issue so walk or über if you want to save time.

It was nice to sit outside and look at the lake.
The food was good. The violet cocktail was very good.
All was as expected.
My only complaint is this:
It is simply unacceptable for a restaurant that calls itself nice or upscale, or french, to have the same soap in their bathroom as in the bathrooms in rest stops on the highway.
I guess it means that the place is wholly acceptable when my biggest complaint is about the soap in the restroom.

We had a lovely experience here, while visiting from Chicago. The ambiance is great — charming décor, lovely staff. We started with the Charcuterie plate and for entrees we had the Trout and the Duck Confit salad. Both were delicious. Our server was the perfect balance of attentive yet not intrusive — great timing. We’d definitely come back!

Lunch is really good. But dinner is so disappointed. Went there with friends, the size of everyone’s meal is small, extra small. But the price is crazy. Many things can not taste out what that is. Disappointed.

Seriously one of the best meals I’ve had — wonderful service, beautiful décor and a lovely view of the sunset. I highly recommend the flounder, and I will definitely come back the next I time I am in Madison.

My favorite restaurant in Madison! I loved this place before we went to Paris and when we came back I loved it even more. The best duck confit! The service is great! The atmosphere can get a little loud but it feels like a French restaurant! Great wine selection too!

Having been to Sardine for both brunch and dinner, I would say it is a nicely versatile space that excels at both. In terms of price points, their dinner options are more affordable than I might have assumed while still having a high level of quality. I tried the moules frites which had the most flavorful cream sauce for any mussels plate I’ve tried around Madison. The frites were nothing special, but went well with the dish.
In terms of atmosphere, my only dislike is the open staging area for front of house staff for slicing bread, etc. There’s a lot of commotion, and it just seems weird to observe someone openly washing their hands among guests. Overall, I do enjoy Sardine for it’s great menu options, relative affordability, and excellent service and will return time and time again.

Sardine is my brunch go to spot. They have good cocktails and great breakfast food. Today I had the pulled pork sandwich with egg, tomato and frise on sourdough. It was great and quite filling. I took half home. Another favorite of mine is the buckwheat waffles. The orange cinnamon butter is excellent and makes the dish. In the summer it comes with fresh berries. I have had great dinners here as well.

The mussels and frites are a deal! It was more food than I expected and very reasonably priced. The mussels in white wine had an excellent broth, and you also get 4 slices of baguette for dipping into the broth. In addition, the plate of frites with aioli was much more than I expected. You could definitely share this between 2 people. My BF ordered the beet cured salmon for brunch… it is honestly too small to be a meal unless you were not very hungry in the first place. The salmon preparation was a little reminiscent of herring. I may order the mussels and frites when I come again. Your best bet is to sit next to the window overlooking the lake if you can.

I got the duck confit. It had a nice crispy skin, but the meat melted in your mouth. The celeriac was another tasty part of the dish too. The rest of the vegetables were very buttery, and I wasn’t a fan of that aspect.
The place itself is pretty cool. Its right along the lake with lots of windows. It must be awesome to go during the summer.
I thought the food was good, but it didn’t have much of a wow factor to me. I enjoyed myself a lot, but the place didn’t give me a reason to come back.

Mmm, I had the smoked salmon sandwich with cress, mustard, pickled somethings and a hard-​boiled egg. Arugula salad and fries on the side. I was absolutely stuffed by the time I was finished (couldn’t quite get through the whole plate).
Did not try the bloody Mary, but it looked pretty tasty. Wait service was fantastic – our guy was very attentive, and we had around 18 people in our group. Parking is behind the building along Lake Monona. The view is simply gorgeous.
Bathroom is so clean, and well-​stocked (it’s a bit hot in there, though – weird).
Our group was very happy with the food and drinks. We chatted happily for a few hours and never felt pressured to leave, even after the checks had come and gone.
I’ll definitely hit this place up again – next time in warmer weather so I can sit on the back patio and enjoy the lake even more.

I have been to Sardine about 5 times now– mostly for brunch and a few times for dinner. I really like this restaurant. Its easy to park, great rustic décor, nice lakeside ambience, and a friendly waitstaff.
I think that Sardine is the only place in Madison that I would be comfortable eating oysters! They have great cocktails and I love sitting at the bar with a drink and a few apps.
I do prefer sitting on the lake side though I know its not always possible. Its one of our Madison mainstays!

I miss seafood, especially now that I am about as far away from an ocean as I can be and still be in the US. But when I heard good things about Sardine, I had to try it out.
First, my order: half dozen Prince Edward Island oysters to start. Seared monkfish with roasted tomatoes, squash, haricots verts, and some variation of a Bearnaise sauce. For dessert, a raspberry Genoise cake and espresso. (Side note — Sardine is not $$. The above order was about $ 70. It’s definitely $$$-$$$$.)
See, this is good, no-​nonsense, modern French/​American cooking. Fresh ingredients (although I should have asked how they source their fish), done professionally without unnecessary pretension. Good technique and flavor combinations that aren’t confusing. Also, their wine list is superb. I got a glass of Sauvignon Blanc to pair with the seafood, and the one they had available by the glass was a Puilly-​Fume whose fragrance and dryness worked to buoy but not overwhelm the delicate flavors of the seafood. The service was attentive and sharp. Indeed, I wanted a meal to unwind after a very long week, and I got that 100%.

If you’re looking for brunch in Madison, this is it. Come right at 9, or make a reservation, to get a seat by the windows.
The special this morning was a dish of baked eggs over tomato ratatouille with pesto and parmesan, served with crostini. Everything about it was perfect.
Husband got a half-​dozen oysters, three of their four varieties, and was sequentially impressed with each pair. The plate of cured meats, olives, and duck liver mousse might have been the best thing he’s eaten all week. He’s currently spooning the mousse out of the small bowl because he’s out of bread but he can’t stop eating it. Meats were perfect and sliced just right.
The atmosphere is light and airy. The staff is knowledgable and very obliging. If I could start every day with brunch at Sardine I would be perfectly happy forever.

Sardine takes classic French cuisine and melds it beautifully with Americana food. The fusion is executed well and presented with fineness.
One of my best college friends was visiting UW for grad school with his family. They really wanted some good steak and seafood options so off we flew to Sardine. The restaurant was fairly booked up by the time we called so we made reservations for 8:30 pm.
Upon arrival we were promptly seated by the window and were given an awesome view of the back parking lot and beyond it, lake Monona. I really wish that parking lot wasn’t there because the view is otherwise incredible.
For an appetizer we got the goat cheese crostini. The app was fairly standard but nothing special to blow me away. I would have liked to see significantly more toast served with the dish, as there was more than enough goat cheese present.
Others at the table ordered some craft cocktails, which were apparently quite good so props on the drinks. I ended up with a Lake Louie Tommy’s Porter on tap, which I rather enjoyed. The tap list was small but well constructed with sufficient diversity. Props on the cocktails, beer list, and wine list here.
For an entrée, I ended up with the Arctic Char. The dish was very well presented and didn’t fall into any overdone culinary tropes (looking at you sauce smeared under the meat with a spoon). Great presentation, perfect balance with the leeks, potatoes, beans, and seasoning. I would order this dish again for sure.
My main gripe with Sardine is the service, as others have noted. The restaurant appears to be understaffed so the servers are heavily burdened, thus failing to be attentive to tables. While we were there we had to ask for water twice, eventually a carafe of water was just dumped on our table, and our empty dining-​ware was never cleared throughout the course of the meal.
The food at Sardine well executed, but the poor service is crippling. If you have time on your hands to enjoy a solid meal, Sardine would be a good choice. If you are impatient or have somewhere to be it may be best to look elsewhere.