Toby’s Supper Club

«I’m not sure I trust the system» — feelings of my dining partner and I as we stood next to the bar, Lake Louie in hand, assured that our fish order was on some list that corresponded with a table list that somehow kept us in the right order and would land us a Friday night fish fry eventually.
As stated below, the «system» at Toby’s seems pretty chaotic. There’s no hostess or instructions, and the way to get the process started is just to belly up to the bar and request food. We waited about an hour at ~7pm on a Friday, though as promised (and seemingly in the correct order), eventually we were seated.
From that point on, the chaos gave way to a great meal. Having gone to supper clubs with my grandparents in southwest Wisconsin growing up, my reaction may have been more Proustian than most, but this is the real deal. A vegetable platter with a plate of crackers, including sesame «breadsticks» in cellophane. Quality coleslaw and fries. Perfectly-​fried fish, large pieces of cod and well-​breaded perch. Even one of those rectangular Andes mints to top it off as we settled the reasonable bill.
No extra stars for the dining room (retro, but comfortable) or technology, but our meal at Toby’s was fantastic and a great representation of the unique aspects of a Wisconsin fish fry.

An absolute amazing Friday Fish Fry location! Be ready to wait though! My husband and I arrived at 6:15 on Friday and waited over an hour for a table. The best part is their full bar which has some amazing bartenders behind it. You do not get on the list to get a table until you have placed an order. Just flag down one of the waitresses, give them your order and they will find you when your table is ready. While you wait order a drink. A must try is the key lime pie martini. It is sooo good! All of their drinks are made excellent and their prices are hard to compete with! Our bar tab after 6 mixed drinks and 1 martini was $ 21! Can’t beat that! The fish fry is excellent and I have heard the shrimp is also very good but I haven’t tried it yet. This traditional Wisconsin supper club is a must stop if you are from out of town or even a local! Friday’s are always busy so be prepared.

If you like the actual WI supper club feel, this a great spot that’s not 4 hours north. Very reasonably priced, good steaks, delicious baked potato, and a relish tray. Can’t go wrong other than maybe more sesame breadsticks and radishes, because they rock.
My filet was great but cannot wait to try a strip or maybe the giant shrimp they have.
Go to the bar to put in your name and have the key lime martini or a glass of wine, also reasonably priced, while you wait for a table. Be prepared that this may take a couple cocktails if it’s a Saturday.

3.5 stars
2 ladies walk into a bar… no really. This place needs instructions: there is no hostess, so you must go to the bar, ask for menu, flag a waitress, order food then wait. 2 people was a 45 min wait around 6:45pm. The bar is decent size but it’s «owned» by regulars and their friends. You really have to be aggressive or extra friendly to grab a chair. ²⁄₅
Ambiance: Supper Club: dingy club, more functional than pretty, more more practical than snazzy. ²⁄₅
Drinks: beer menu displayed on wall, couldn’t find mixed drinks, but we figured they’d have an old fashion so we got a brandy OF sweet and a whiskey OF sour. They didn’t muddle, but it was still tasty. ⁴⁄₅
Food: Fish Fry only
Fried Shrimp! These are amazing. One of the regulars clued us into these — they are so fresh and perfect breading. I honestly can say these are the best in 10 yrs. (Coasts included) ⁵⁄₅
Cod — Interesting. The breading on these are something like a nicely seasoned, dry cornmeal. When biting through it, it’s so crunchy. There was a small amount of oil under it, but after 2 large pieces, never had a «greasy» bite. ⁴⁄₅
Perch — slight flour dusting. No flavor. The fish is bland too so I assume the highlight is the tartar sauce. I don’t like tartar, so that fixed that. ²⁄₅
Coleslaw — very good. I like their mix of vinegar to mayo. The slaw is chopped (vs julienned) and wet (kinda «soupy» to dip your bread in). ⁵⁄₅
Hashbrowns — kinda funny. Burnt with literally a piece of American cheese melted over top. ¹⁄₅
Relish — kinda simple, raw veggies + pickles. Pickles were the highlight. Nice little app. ³⁄₅
Overall, I like the food, but not sure if I have the resolve to fight off the bar. The fish fry is what I call «traditional» — no beer or fun crusting here. Well, maybe that cod piece? I would order 4 orders of that shrimp anyday!

This steakhouse is Madison’s best kept secret. Order the Tobys special medium rare and you would love all of the extras that comes with it! Bread, vegetables, hash browns and a salad for under $ 15 with an awesome steak!

Always friendly people and great food. Delicious fish fry and worth the wait.
Tip: Key Lime Pie Martini.

I’ve come to Toby’s twice. Loved it the first time, unimpressed the second. Both times were very crowded but on our first visit we arrived at about 6 and had probably an hour wait, the second time we arrived around 7:30 and had to wait about 2 hours for our food. The first time the fish (we shared a few different kinds) was fantastic (like best in town) the second time it was no better than what you’d get anywhere else. The first time the servers/​bartenders were friendly, if busy, the second time they really seemed like they wished we (or they) weren’t there.
I felt like the strange model of hailing down a server and ordering when you put your name on the seating list was kind of quirky and fun the first time we went. On the second trip it just seemed like a big pain in the —.
Definitely won’t go back later than 6 o’clock on a Friday. May not go back at all.

They have a Key Lime Martini that is super delicious!!! Make sure you order one if you go. Totally worth it.

Strong drinks; perfectly cooked steaks and reasonable pricing, what else is there? A bit of a wait, but worth it. A traditional supper club on the edge of town. Highly recommended kind of going back in time.

Great Friday night fish fry.
You order at the bar (at least on Fridays). When a table is almost ready, they’ll start cooking your food, and serve it when you’re seated.
Free dessert! But it’s a single fun-​size candy bar.

Last night I was at a Local restaurant Toby’s Supper Club​. Super excited to try the fish fry that i had been hearing about. As I’m sitting at the bar with 3 people one friend who happens to be Mexican the guy next to me leans over to me and says «so how does a Ni**er and a Mexican hang out together?» I immediately ask him to repeat him self and he does.
Now plenty of thought run through my head, do I put hands on him??? I have too much to lose. So I get the bartender and explain the story. She does nothing but tell him to apologize. So he sticks his hand out and says sorry. I tell him I’m not shaking your hand and I’m about to remove you from the bar.
At this point the male bartender comes over slaps his hand on the bar and says hey you two no arguing. I tell him «there is no argument this guy is a racist and needs to leave. The male bartender does nothing but says well «he is a visitor from out of town he is staying at the hotel down the road and you see he is on his phone so he is clearly calling for a ride».
At this point I’m even more upset that they are not removing a «visitor» and letting 4 locals be treated like this.
So the four of us get up and leave, I turn around and go back in with a business card and ask for the owner to call me. Come to find out the owner was the male bartender.
Now I am more upset that the owner is slowing this to happen right in front of him. As a business owner you know that reputation means everything to you.

Was really excited to try their fish fry after hearing many raves. Unfortunately, my party of 4 had to leave before we even got our meal due to a drunk patron who made derogatory comments. Bartenders/​management failed to access the situation.

Went to Toby’s last night (Sat, Aug 1^st) and were blown away with how good the food & service was! Arrived with a group (12 of us). They accomodated us quickly and were absolutely terrific! We had called ahead and even tho they don’t take reservations told us to get there before 6 and they’d seat us. Place was pretty packed but they kept their word. From cod to steaks (rib eyes & filets were done to perfection, from med rare to med well), from baked to hash brown potatoes everything at our table of 12 was great! The drinks were excellent and the staff (all family) were delightful! Most expensive dish on the menu was $ 21.95. Prices were all very reasonable. Will make this a regular stop when in the Madison area.

A true Wisconsin experience. An amazing fish fry with a friendly staff who make great drinks.
You will wait a long while for a table but it’s well worth it.

This is definitely a supper club staple for Wisconsin. (This review is for the Friday Fish Fry.)
If you haven’t been before it can seem a little confusing and crowded. Calm down. Nudge your way in and order a drink from the bartender that never forgets. Rail drinks are about $ 3.50 a piece ($ 3.75 for an old fashioned) ridiculously reasonable. They also have a surprisingly good selection of beer and wine. (If you need menus ask while ordering your drink.) Find a waitress and place your order. Find a place to kick it for at least the next hour — that sometimes means hovering if you are looking for a place to sit.
When your table is ready your waitress will seat you. Salads, relish, and bread will all be waiting. I love the classic aspect of a relish tray. The dressings have that old style taste to them so keep that in mind when ordering (a la not Kraft.) Almost as soon as you can finish your salad a very hot portion of fish will brought to you. My dining partner got the baby pike with a baked potato and I had the cod with French fries — we shared everything. The pike was super delicious, a mild fish taste with a very light breading. The cod was flakey and coated and fried up marvelously — a perfect brown. The baked potato was absolutely huge and came with a solid helping of sour cream. The French fries are flat cut and fried up nice and golden. Far better than your typical restaurant fries — they could have used a little more salt for my taste but that’s why there is a shaker on the table. At the end of the meal you also get a sweet treat.
The service is spectacular at every end of the operation. From the bartenders, waitresses, to bus boys, everyone is friendly and willing to get you what you need. I definitely recommend this place for when you have the time to just sit back with some cocktails and a fish fry — our meal took about 2 ½ hours all together — so expect at least that on a Friday night!

Great place! Food was fantastic. I started with asparagus soup and had the prime rib french dip loaded with onions and mushrooms. Best food I’ve had in a long time.
Microflex approved!

If you’re looking for a the Best Fish Fry in Madison, Toby’s is the place to go! Get there early and grab a waitress to let her know what your plan is if you’re looking to eat earlier then later. We love sitting at the bar and having a few drinks first. The system they have there is awesome! The waitress takes your order while you have a drink and then you get seated once your food is ready! I recommend the Cod Fish Fry, shrimp and scallops. Oh yes and they have the best KeyLime Martini!

Teetered between 2 and 3 stars; I’m downgrading my review based on the last visit of 5÷23÷14. Small group arrived at around 8:00pm and discovered the place a bit empty — definitely not shoulder-​to-​shoulder busy as it was during previous visits.
+ Surprisingly quiet, calm and relaxed when we arrived
— One female server was all over us to order; hounded us several times while we sipped our drinks at the bar. When we asked her for a few minutes, she seemed to be put out; we didn’t see her the rest of the night (until table was ready).
+ Gentleman bartender was friendly, fun, helpful, prompt, and professional
— Female bartender was distant and aloof; never offered service/​help
+ Cheese curds at the bar were good; ranch was zesty and great
+ Male bartender suggested we supplement with some pretzels (to use up the rest of the ranch) — great call/​suggestion
Table became ready, and we were seated directly adjacent to the busy kitchen door, which swung open/​closed at least 200 times during our meal.
— Salad consisted of pre-​packaged iceberg lettuce with a few veggie shavings. Dry.
+ French dressing was a wonderful throwback and better than I remember it as a kid
— Perch was rubbery, greasy, and over-​cooked; largely flavorless
— Catfish didn’t taste like catfish; it was very bland
— Hashbrowns were no longer coated in nice, even layer of blended cheese; instead there was a semi-​melted Kraft single glued to the top.
— Our server was very inattentive, hurried, and not super friendly
+ Other server was very friendly, fun, and helpful
I suspect we arrived a bit late, and it was a holiday weekend… regardless, I sort of expected more from this local legend.

I didn’t know this place existed until recently. It’s one of those places that seems frozen in time, and gave me the weirdest, though not unpleasant, sense of déjà vu.
The service was very uneven; one great, attentive, jolly bartender, one mediocre one; one outstanding, friendly, funny waitress, one largely absent and stonefaced one (ours).
The interior is dark, classic Wisconsin tavern. Sooo much so. All the classic beers are available — Schlitz, Old Style, etc., both of which we ordered. It was less busy than usual due to the Memorial day weekend, probably, so we didn’t have a long wait.
Fish fry options include catfish, always my choice. It was hot, a little greasy, and in thin fillets. The flavor was pretty indistinguishable from my companion’s lake perch. Wasn’t blown away, but nothing was bad. The salad was just iceberg lettuce, a bit on the dried out side, but still fine. Rolls (basic white, two of them) also a bit dried out, but we didn’t eat til after 9 pm; probably everything was fresher earlier on. The hash browns arrived with a Kraft single melted on top, completing the feeling of basic home dining circa 1979.

We’ve been driving yo the Dells area and back to the chi-​town burbs for more than ten years always stopping to eat at the same few restaurants in either Madison or Janesville.
I decided to search for something different using Unilocal and that is what brought my family and I to Toby’s Supper Club.
Toby’s is 100% authentic supper club. It is dark and has really low ceilings. The bar takes up at least 35% of the restaurant and is always full. The menu is as expected with multiple fried fish and steak options. The prices are affordable and the cocktails are huge!
You immediately know that everyone in the place knows each other and probably has since childhood. But everyone was friendly even tho we are lowly FIBs !!!
I had the bluegill and lake perch B+. While the fish tasted great I thought it was slightly overdone.
My mother in law had the ribs A. They were perfectly cooked and delicious!
Oh yeah and the fried cheese curd app was coronary good!
If you are looking for an authentic quality meal stop on at Toby’s! You won’t regret it!!!