Toby's Supper Club

I absolutely loved everything about this place! The atmosphere was fun and inviting! And all the food was absolutely delicious! We had cheese curds and pretzel bites to start. I loved the pickles and the relish tray. And the fried chicken and the steak were delicious! I highly recommend trying Toby's Supper Club! Also, make sure you go to the bar first to tell them you want to eat. They will give you menus and send a server to you.

A nice joint for lunch or dinner. On one day, I ordered the fried chicken, it was tasty and the sides included fries, coleslaw, salad, bread and butter. Bread was warm and nice, although not baked in-house. The fries were very tasty as well. On another day, I tried top sirloin steak, it was of average quality. I don't think this place is your destination for steaks. Next time, I will order fish and check it out.

We had a great time. Lovely staff, great service, wonderful food! Go have a Key Lime Pie Martini. Or two. Or three if you have a designated driver. Great prices, great service. Our only regret is not finding out about this place years ago!

This place rules so hard. I will definitely come back next time I’m in Madison. Never had perch before but it was delicious. Don’t skip the key lime martini. I’m gonna make some at home now - what a little treat.

This is a classic working mans Wisconsin supper club! It's definitely a must stop on your Supper club adventures! Excellent service, excellent food, excellent drinks. Go early, have a drink at the bar, and chat with other customers. Great environment.

Talk about retro supper, clubs! This place is outstanding the bartender, Kelly, is the hardest working fastest working bartender I’ve ever seen. And the nicest. The waiters and waitresses are moving fast. This isn’t some fake retro place. This is the real deal! It has been here I guess for almost 100 years. Food is outstanding all the help is perfect and I had one of the best old-fashioned I’ve ever had. I will never go through Madison Wisconsin again without stopping at Toby‘s. We were coming back from South Carolina where we spent the winter and ate at so many food places I can’t count, but this place because of the atmosphere and the friendly help ranks it at the top. You won’t be sorry. It’s a little strange that you sit at the bar they give you a menu you order and have a drink, of course, and then they tell you when your table is ready.. it is just a supper club and you cannot get the evening meal until 5 PM when they start serving. You do not want to be much later than five as I believe this place really fills up.

Went to Toby’s tonight for the first time. If you have never been there before, when you arrive go to the bar. You will get a menu. When you are ready to order, tell the bartender. Then a server will come over to take your order. When your salads are ready they will take you to your table. Great atmosphere, the old fashioned was excellent and the prices are very reasonable.

Walk in front entrance, proceed to the bar and order a drink, receive your menus, wait for a waitress to take your order and seating will follow shortly after. A unique ordering process but with how busy they get I can see how it streamlines things for them. Good business management! The food and drinks are really well made using very fresh ingredients. My wife and I split the curds which were obviously frozen but super tasty non the less! She had the pike walleye and I had the shrimp and perch. We both agreed their fish tastes the freshest! Seriously though it tastes just like when you catch and fillet them yourself.... Hash browns were very buttery with a nice crunchy shell and a soft interior. Simply perfect. Salad dressing homemade and dangerously addictive. I reccomend the french blue cheese. Prices were fair and service was acute. Our wait time was about an hour and fifteen minutes before being seated. Plenty of time to hang out side with a drink and work up a bit of a buzz!

This was the 2nd time I've been to Toby's. The first was years ago and I wasn't impressed. This said, this evening I was impressed. Toby's is old school. Service was outstanding and the prices are modest at best. Two drinks, cheese curds, two old fashioneds, two steak dinners (filet and NY Strip) with a 20+ percent tip and we were still under $100. Drinks were good... spread that comes with the dinners is substantial: Relish tray, rolls, bread sticks, cinnamon rolls, and choice of potato, and choice of salad, homemade coleslaw or cottage cheese. I really appreciate the great prices and that everything comes with to make a full meal. You order your meal at the bar and when it's ready you're seated at a table. This works out really pretty slick. The bartenders and waitstaff couldn't have been more accommodating. Steaks were good... I might have preferred a little more aggressive seasoning on my steak, but the flapper was food and the sear very nice.

Toby's Supper Club has been going strong for over 50 years! Experience a Wisconsin style classic old fashion supper club! Toby's is well known for their drinks, fish fry specials like fried pike, chicken, steak, seafood, and cinnamon rolls served on Monday through Thursdays! They even have frog legs on the menu! My husband and I visited Toby's supper club on a Friday night after 8pm. I heard Toby's supper club gets extremely packed/busy, so we purposely went close to closing time. When I called, they told me they don't take reservations for Fridays and Saturdays its first come first serve. When we arrived, Toby's supper club was still very busy even at 8:30pm with a-lot of guests, a full bar, and a pull tab machine with people pulling tabs! If you have never been to Toby's, there is a sign at the front, explaining how they do things. They basically start you out at the bar, when you know what you want to order a server comes and takes your order, when a table is ready the server lets you know but it is definitely first come first serve. We started out with drinks at the bar and eventually a server took our dinner order when we were ready. Definitely try their most popular cocktail the Key Lime Pie martini which actually tastes like a delicious Key Lime pie! When a table was ready, our server seated us. We had the ultimate Wisconsin supper club experience! The ambience was dimly lit with candles at each table and old fashion crackers, bread rolls, and a veggie/relish tray ready at our table along with the soup and salads that came with our meal! I had clam chowder soup for an appetizer which was delicious! We both ordered ribeye with a side order of their jumbo butterfly fried shrimp! The fried shrimp is a must try with perfect golden crispy batter fried to perfection! My husband and I both ordered our ribeye steaks medium well. The steaks were super tender, juicy, and perfectly cooked! However, the steaks had absolutely NO seasoning or flavoring! We both had to heavily season our steaks with salt and pepper. Our loaded baked potatoes were pretty good! We had an amazing server! I think her name was Christa. She was very attentive, friendly, and had a great sense of humor! I could tell that she had been a server for along time! She made our experience very enjoyable! We plan to go back to Toby's to try more menu items. It is definitely worth visiting Toby's for the delicious affordable food, great fish fry, the cocktails, and the experience of a true Wisconsin supper club which is super fun!

Wow, what an interesting place...we met my college friends there for dinner on our way to Green Bay. They have you order your dinner at the bar and when your table is ready they set you and your salad and veggies are on the table waiting for you. They even had a pull table lottery machine too. I ordered the fried chicken and boy was it good. My friend had the pork filet, her husband had steak and my partner had the top sirloin. Everyone's entrees were so good. The baked potato my partner had was so hot it took 15 minutes before he could eat it. The rest of us had the hash browns and they were so good too. The place is far from fancy but the drinks are good and the food is solid!

Good service with great prices! It was a little odd the process to get a table. You'll need to go to the bar first, get menus and then a server will come to you at a standing table to take your order. A table will become ready and then you'll be seated. Be prepared to wait though. Those fries are worth it!

Great food and drinks. Be prepared to wait anytime after 5:30 Had not been for sometime due to the popularity of people knowing the good is good and plentiful. Went Monday around 5:30 and did not eat until 1 1/2 hrs later. Luckily we were able to sit at the bar, ordered drinks. Bourbon old fashioned and a beer. Large beer selection including craft all in cans). You order entrees at the bar and when your food is ready they seat you Wife ordered the seared salmon and I had the frog legs. Hash browns come on a separate platter and were perfectly fried Service was attentive considering how busy it was.

This was my first supper club experience! We walked in and I was shocked at the amount of people I saw at the bar! The place is popular for their old fashions! Everyone at the bar had one! I didn't have one but my husband said it was very good and cheap!! We ordered the pretzel bites as an appetizer to enjoy while sitting at the bar and they were good but the seasoning on them I wasn't a big fan of unfortunately. After a while we decided to order dinner! If it's your first time coming here, arrive early! The wait is long! We waited 45 minutes but it was okay because we just enjoyed drinks at the bar. You order your food and then you get called to your table when it's almost ready! Once we were called to our table, they had bread, veggies and our salads ready! It was all simple but tasted so good! Our steaks shortly came out and I was so pleased!! My steak had to be cooked medium well and they achieved it perfectly. It was still juicy, not dry! My husband's steak was also delicious! The baked potato was probably the best baked potato I've ever had! It was the perfect texture and I was obsessed! The staff were so nice and checked on us often! Despite the wait, it was so worth it! The prices especially! I highly recommend!

This dinner was a bit of a let down unfortunately! Maybe there was a new chef? It took us over an hour to get our food served. My hubby got a steak that was very poorly and unevenly cooked and my salmon was extremely underdone. The parmesan peppercorn dressing for the salad was tasty! The flavor on my salmon was very very good but again, was undercooked. The hasbrowns were good even tho the "cheese" is a slice of american cheese which just looks funny when it came out but did the trick. It was very busy inside and not a calm relaxing environment as the bar is quite large and right in the middle of the restaurant which has limited seating as it is. The place is always packed with cars so maybe this was a flook of an experience. The waitress was nice at least!

I took out dinner from here on a Friday. Food took about 50 minutes to be ready. Prices were reasonable and there was a lot of food. Pan fried chicken was my favorite item. It was fried crispy. Clam chowder was good as well. Hash browns didnt have flavor. Coleslaw was good, and there was a lot of it. Fried cod was ok. Clam chowder was a good soup.

is a TRUE old school supper club. Bar opens at 4pm and dinner service starts at 5. Prices are reasonable. They haven't jacked up the prices as many other area supper clubs have in recent years. Maybe this is why they're kept their loyal customer base. Either dine early or dine late to avoid the long wait for a table as they don't take reservations. Upon arriving you place your dinner order. Once a table is available you will be seated and your appetizer or soup/salad will be waiting for you along with relish tray that includes radish, carrots, celery, green onions and pickles. There is also a bread basket with fresh rolls and bread sticks and homemade cinnamon rolls. This gets better. Yep! Dinners include home made soup or salad and a side. The soup never disappoints and I recommend ordering the loaded baked potato which comes with cheese, a generous amount of bacon and green onions. A meal in itself. Tonights soup was chicken pot pie. Creamy, full of veggies, lots of chicken and a home made stock garnished with a pie crust wedge, I wanted seconds. The pan fried chicken was juicy, crispy and oh, so good. This is reason I come here. The pan fried blue gill, a generous portion, is the reason my husband readily says yes when I suggest we dine here. Of course we order the loaded baked potato as our side. The rail brandy old fashioneds are inexpensive and what you'd expect from a rail drink. It's part of the super club experience. In closing, it's with mixed feelings that I post this review. I love this place and want it to prosper. I actually want you to give it a try as truly is a treasure. On the other hand, I want you to stay away. Less customers means a shorter wait time. Call me selfish but I posted the review anyway. Enjoy your dining experience.

Fantastic Wisco super club! Great food and service. Perfect atmosphere for Wisconsin! Very reasonably priced, clean and friendly. Had the Friday fish special with hasbrowns and a side of chowder. Must!

The shrimp are the most fantastic thing on the menu!!! Gigantic and butterflied. They don't skimp on quality either.....they sometimes aren't able to get this shrimp in around Sept and they decide not to get a lesser option. Love this!! They're so lightly breaded and if I'm craving something else on the menu then I always add a few shrimp as a side. Lol Note: I've never seen better bartenders at a supper club. They always acknowledge you and know who's waiting. Another similar place in town must train their staff to never look up from the liquor bottles. Definitely a unique experience at Toby's.

It was everything you'd want from a supper club. The atmosphere was good. The food was good. And the service was also good.

Toby's is the perfect supper club. Staff is amazing, drinks are stiff, and the food is perfection. And the best part? Cheapest in the Madison area!

Always a great meal and good drinks. If you go there you have to be patient especially if it's busy as they don't take reservations. But it is so worth the wait.

Great Wisconsin old school and feel "supper club". The walleye was excellent, key lime martini was a nice touch from Key West (I presume) I'll be back when I make it back to Wisconsin.

Great steaks at great prices! But, usually pretty busy so count on a wait most times.

I've been to plenty a Friday Fish Fry, but I think this was my first full supper club experience with the fish fry. We arrived around 4pm to get a spot at the bar to wait for our table. You order with a waitress in some sort of order (known to staff, completely confusing to me, I'm impressed with their ability to keep track of everything). Eventually, we were seated at a dining table as our food was ready. Food was plentiful and yummy, no real complaints. In the course of our waiting for a food, our group went through 3 domestic beers and 5 Old Fashioned's... our booze bill was like $49.... absolutely outstanding! Service was incredibly efficient for the process. The ambiance was straight out of whatever year Toby's was built, and I imagine it hasn't changed much since. That's not a dig, I quite enjoyed it. I would definitely come back, but not sure I'm willing to sacrifice my entire afternoon for a Friday fish fry.

Toby's was exactly what we were hoping for in our visit to Madison. A traditional, old school super club. The place was packed Friday evening, but the bartender found us two spots at the bar and served up two old fashioned drinks. We checked out the menu and ordered, then when our table was ready, the food was promtly delivered. We did the NY strip and a chicken dish. Amazing people, service, ambiance, and a great price. We will definitely go back.

We really liked this place! We got the scoop on how it worked and stopped in on a Friday night. The interior reminded me of someone's basement with the paneling and dark carpeting. They were swamped! We stood at the bar with drinks for about an hour before we were seated. It was very cozy and we talked we some of the others waiting to be seated. I had some fish and hubby had a steak and it all was good! I was really cold in there, so dress accordingly. Also the parking was a big area and people just parked however they wanted so be ready for it. Think of this trip as going to someone's house for dinner the first time and you will be good.

We ate here because I keep seeing TikToks about Wisconsin supper clubs! There's this couple that travels around and tries them out. So when we were in Madison, I looked for the nearest supper club and found Toby's. We were confused at first, as it was really loud and there wasn't a hostess stand, but we found someone at the bar to seat us. (No wait on Monday night about about 6 pm.) They brought us a bunch of veggies, pickles, pretzel rolls, and SWEET ROLLS. Sweet rolls and beer before dinner? Yes please! Everything was very good, and so inexpensive. I can't believe my daughter's complete filet Mignon dinner was $23 and delicious. That meal would have cost twice as much downtown. I ordered the fried cod--because that's what the TikTok lady always orders--and it was impressively crispy and well-cooked. And only $15, complete a potato and salad and the veggies and bread. My husband had a salmon special that was a bit over cooked but really tasty. I loved the atmosphere. It was very Wisconsin in all the best ways, and the servers were so nice.

You need to understand supper clubs before going. Are you interested in good food and spending time in an environment with lots of conversations and there's no rush to get the food and get out. Then this is the place to go. What to expect is going to the bar, it'll likely be full unless you're there early. Early means 4pm on the weekend. You'll sit at the bar having a drink, you'll start to wonder how and when do I order. Ask for a menu, know what you want because suddenly a waitress will ask you want you want and you'll order. Awhile later you'll be told where your table is and the salads soup and relish tray will be there. The food is good and by the time you're eating it's likely you're 2+ drinks in and having a good time. So keep in mind this is about the experience as much as it's about the food. If you're in a hurry and need to feel there is a schedule this isn't the place for you.

I brought my friend from out of town on a local friend's recommendation. We are from the Northwest and this was our first supper club experience. The first word that came to mind when we walked in was "hectic". There had to have been minimum a hundred people packed in there, the majority standing and waiting for a table. I understand that this is part of the charm of a supper club: hanging out, waiting for your table, socializing. However it was such a big crowd that it made the prospect of socializing a bit intimidating, although in the end we did get to chat with some friendly people while we waited. The second word that came to mind was "disorganized". After asking how we went about getting a table, a server told us to go to the bar, place our order, and get put on the list for a table. After standing in line at the bar, the bartender told us he would put our name on a list and we could stand wherever and they would "find us" amongst the 100+ people to grab our order. After 30 or so minutes the bartender walked over and told us we were "next". Another 15-20 minutes passed and we saw that we were getting skipped over. We asked a different server and she told us that there was no list and we should just tell her our orders... So by the time we placed our order, we had waited 50 minutes and been told three different things by three different employees about the ordering process. Not too long thereafter, we were seated at a table with pickles, some vegetables, bread, and our chose sides. I had salad with blue cheese dressing. The dressing was thicker than any I have had before, like it was cream-cheese based, and tasted heavily of chives. I actually really liked it. For my main I got a 12 oz ribeye, medium rare. The steak was cooked perfectly, tender and juicy, but could have used some seasoning, even if just a dash of salt. Luckily our cheese curds were nice and salty, hot out of the deep fryer. The breading was a little thick with a nice crisp to it. Our waitress was super attentive especially give that she was incredibly slammed between all her tables, taking orders from people standing around, and trying to navigate through a thick crowd of people. All in all, we had a good time, even if it was a bit of a scramble and a wait at the beginning. It definitely felt like the Midwestern cultural experience that we were looking for. If you are ok with waiting a while for a table, and navigating the confusing waitlist/ordering system, the payoff is good food and a fun unique restaurant outing.

A small family owned supper club in Madison, no reservations and very much the old style supper club, ambience and food. Compared to the other prices in Madison a true bargain.

Visiting Madison and Toby's was recommended. We loved it. Had walleyes and steak. Atmosphere was loud but fun and funny ( why do guys like to show you pics of the fish they caught?) Will return next time we're in WI

Let me start by saying we wanted this to be awesome. We came with the supper club attitude, we read the helpful reviews and they described the game plan. Take a seat at the bar, get menus, get in the queue for placing a food order, then get a table. The guy at the bar kept skipping us, meaning groups that came in after us were placing orders and leaving for tables. Not fun. No apology, just a shrug when we asked to be waited on. The menus has a section in large print that describes how they cook steaks. So one medium rare, described as Red and warm, coming up. When you go to the table the relish tray, rolls, crackers, butter and cinnamon rolls are waiting. The soup of the day, Mexican corn chowder, was hot, homemade, and delicious. The rolls - yummmm. All salad dressings are house made and the blue cheese was outstanding. Then arrived the main course. Obviously the chef did not read the menu as the steak was brown all the way through. The funny part is when the waitress checked in on our meal we said the steak not as ordered but was medium well. Her reply 'oh, okay, good' and off she went. Perhaps somewhere there was a red steak in front of someone that wanted grey? The chicken was good and the hash browns were delicious. It is loud, raucous, and we very much wanted some Wisconsin Supper Club deliciousness. Not tonight.

Found this place on instagram and put it on my list. Luckily we called ahead and found out that it's best to get there early and hang at the bar bc it can be quite a wait for dinner which starts at 5. We arrived at 4:20 on a game day and got seated at 5:15. Traditional supper club. Relish tray and all. Fun atmosphere. Definitely a lot of locals here. Plan on chatting with folks at the bar. You haven't been to Wisconsin if you haven't been to a supper club. And here's a tip, get the chicken drummies. Omg. Love the.

Ohhhh my goodness the Key Lime Pie martinis! Get one. Get a couple. They are absolutely delicious! This place is kind of a riot. We had never been and most of the fish fry aficionado folks around here will tell you it's a must-do. If you aren't familiar with WI supper clubs, don't wait to be approached. Belly up to the bar where you'll need to get a menu while you place a drink order, and then someone at some point will come around and see you with said menu and then take your order. You'll be seated when it's time to eat. Anticipate roughly 1.5 hours if you get there at 5. Now the fish fry itself isn't all that memorable but by the time you sit down you are starving and possibly half in the bag, so it tastes pretty good. The breading on the cod was a little too thin/light for my taste but the cod was cooked nicely. Hashbrowns were ok; could have used some salt or seasoning of some sort. I laughed out loud when I saw the "hash browns with cheese" option which was a square of American slightly melted on top. I love WI supper club cracker baskets and this one had various packaged breadsticks and several types of dinner rolls, and there was also a crudités dish minus any dipping sauce. Friends had the deep fried pickles and they agreed they were simply the best they've ever had, so there's that. All in all, a fun Friday night experience. Worth it for at least one visit! I would love to go back for a martini but it wouldn't be worth standing in the crowded bar to do so unless I was eating again and there are other fish fry experiences I have my eyes on this winter. Stay tuned!

More than a restaurant. It is a classic Wisco experience - have an old fashioned your way, talk to some friends, order at the bar, and enjoy your meal starting with a relish tray at your table. Family owned and managed, and it shows in the best of ways. If you go on a Friday, prepare to wait a LONG time. Just what it is. Or arrive at 8:30 or later. Better to go on another night if you like to be served right away. Bar has plenty of TV's to watch any game. Staff is friendly when you ask to put one on - which is different than many places where they act like it is a massive chore. Steaks are great. Fish fry, and amazing shrimp - even for the land-locked Midwest - is excellent and prepared in a proprietary manner. One amazing meal that is not highlighted is the pork ribeye. Simply world class. Reminds me of the famous mutton chop at Keene's in NYC. Juicy, meaty, succulent. Excellence. Get some homemade dressing on your salad, or the darn good New England clam chowder if a special. And their potatoes also are amazing. Their hash browns are never greasy but always moist and delicious. Add to all this consistency due to a family that understands food service and are very friendly, and fair prices, and you have a classic. Hope you enjoy as I often do!

Food was delicious and we didn't have to wait long. Service was excellent and fast. Was a great time! Will go back as soon as possible!!

This was one of our stops to try all the "Best Fish Fry's in Madison". It was incredible! Tip, Toby's opens at 3 PM and dinner service starts at 5 PM. Get there early if you want to be seated quickly, it gets very busy very fast! We showed up at 4:55 PM and waited about 30-40 minutes for a table. But the bar is pouring great drinks, so the wait was fine. Also! They'll bring out apps while you're waiting. We tried the cheese curds for an app, a lot of breading and a big chunk of cheese. They were great! I would say, they could be cooked a tad longer to make the inside more melted. After ordering drinks, the bartender handed us menus to look over. At 5 PM, the wait staff came around and took orders from people with menus. Twenty minutes later, our waitress showed us to our table. We were quickly served a radish/carrot/celery plate, pickles, rolls and coleslaw. The COLESLAW!!! It was so creamy and delicious, honestly the best coleslaw we've tried in Madison. I ordered the 2 piece cod and a loaded baked potato. SO GOOD. The fish was delicious, the baked potato was amazing. I loved my meal. Definitely understand why this place is considered among the best!! My husband got the bluegill, it tasted like a chewier, less breading cod. It was yummy! He also got the hashbrown, YUM! And Brussel sprouts- we would probably skip the Brussel sprouts next time. But everything else was amazing. Waitress was super friendly and we loved Toby's!!

We are so in love with Toby's. Their Friday night fish fry is the best. The atmosphere is wonderful and entertaining. Let me give you a tip on how to get things done here. There is no host/hostess. Make your way to the bar, get your hands on menus (the bartenders will give them to you). Place your drink order with them. Let the bartenders know that you are ready to order. They will let a server know and that server will come take your order. Once your table is ready, they will get you to your table. What to order......well, Friday's are for fish fry's. We've had the perch....amazing flavor. We've had the cod......lightly breaded and flaky. The shrimp, wow is all I can say. The most hidden secret on the menu is the pork tenderloin, incredible flavor, so tender you could probably cut it with your fork. The clam chowder on Friday nights is great with lots of clam. If you come in the middle of the week, the bread on the table will have cinnamon rolls on it. The drinks at the bar are great, but don't be shy or you won't get one. Old fashion is spot on.

Steaks were very undercooked and not seasoned. Ordered medium but received very rare steaks. The cocktails were the only great part of this restaurant.

I'm extremely torn on this review. We did not make it to Tony's before Covid hit, so I was really trying to not be so critical. We knew they started serving at 5, so we arrived at 4:30. The bar area was packed already, with little dining areas surrounding it. There were two bartenders who not only had to make old fashioneds and other complicated drinks, they were also the only ones around checking people for the "list" they said they had. At 5:00 three hosts came out and started to get orders taken. They would then tell a group of people their tables were ready, but in huge clusters. So almost 10 tables would sit at a time, which I'm sure is a little overwhelming for the kitchen. We I was 8 months pregnant when we ate here as well, and to get to the largest dining room, you have to go around the bar, which only has a one-person wide space to cut through. So I was feeling like a burden, because no one ever moves when you'd ah excuse me, so I was literally having to say it and wait until they did. We sat down at the same time as 5 other tables and it was a tight fit. Again, being pretty pregnant, Made it hard to stay close to my table but also meant my chair was in the aisle in other people's way. You get soup or salad with your meals and we also ordered cheese curds. My husband got the clam chowder and I got the salad. Both were average, and the cheese curds were yummy! I ordered the filet with hash browns. Both were delicious! I did ask for au jus, and they were able to get me some but they had to make it. My husband got the sirloin and deep fried shrimp. He was talking fan of the sirloin, but loved the shrimp. Here is where I really don't know if this is normal practice or not. We barely saw our server. We had to wait until our food came to receive water. The kiddo who was setting and bussing tables was running the show. She was so friendly, got us our waters, brought us our food, and checked on us frequently. I just really hope the servers share their tips with them, because they worked their butt off. After waiting 20 minutes for our check, we were told by the server that she was so far behind that she needed us to pay at the bar. The bar where there still were only two bartenders, and now they were slammed with it being peak dinner time. I had to wait in the small hallway to pay, and every time a server had to get through, I lost my spot in line,. Thankfully a kind gentleman let me go in front of him. I just don't know when we will be back, not sure yet if we want to give them another shot.

Hoped for food on a Friday night so I called ahead. They don't take reservations but told me they had tables and no line at the door. By the time we got there that was no longer the case. Sadly they had no front desk - people need to know that you "check in" at the main cash register at the bar (and we didn't know that walking in). There are no signs to direct people so flow was chaotic. Decided to leave and drove a mile or so south to Maple Tree Supper Club where things stepped up nicely from a first-timer customer point of view. Left these folks with 3 stars because the customers already there seemed happy enough but we were not that happy.

What a trip! We had read the reviews and had been warned about "the process" for ordering. Even with that knowledge it was one chaotic experience. OK it did not help that it was just written up in the Isthmus Magazine - even at 4:45pm on a Friday it was three deep at the bar. I am guessing some of the regulars had been there for hours. Both times I went to the bar to order drinks I waited at least 10 minutes - you need extreme patience to eat and drink here. In between drinks orders we did snag a waitress to take our order and then waited an hour (their wait estimate was pretty accurate). What a weird system! I must say the wait staff and bartenders (just two) were busting their butts - no slackers here. When we finally got called to our table it was set up with our coleslaw, the supper club standard relish tray and a basket of rolls and breadsticks. It has been decades since I have seen this... We both ordered the perch and it came out piping hot as did the big plate of hash browns with the slices of American cheese melted on top. The food was very good but I am not sure I can tolerate the crowds and their bizarro service model.

Toby's is a solid supper club. Came here on a Friday night with a large group. We came early around 4 so there was no issue getting a table, however it got quite busy starting at 5. The place was packed by 6pm. We got curds, pretzel bites, and onion rings as starters which were all hot and fresh. The pretzel bites were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. The curds and onion rings were perfectly crispy. We also got a complimentary bread basket & veggie plate. For our main meals we had a variety of steak and fish with salads, baked potatoes, hasbrowns, and fries. Our meals came out all at the same time which was impressive for a small-ish supper club. Everything was delicious & the wait staff was friendly. Nothing to complain about here. If you're looking for a casual supper club Toby's is the place for you.

The fish fry here is amazing. We went on Friday and the place was packed but totally worth the wait. This would be one of my top picks in town for fish fry. The place is a little hidden right off of 51 and 12/18. Inside space is kind of small and tight but there is a bar to eat or wait at for a table as well.

Toby's is a beloved local supper club that has good and affordable food in a casual setting. Toby's does not offer any reservations and it gets busy on the weekends for dinner. I would suggest going for dinner on the weekdays to avoid long waits. It can be confusing for people who have never gone before on the procedure to get a seat. I had trouble the first time so let me share the procedure. First, when you go in, proceed to the bar to ask for a seat. The bartender will give you a menu and ask you to wait at a certain spot. While waiting, you can order a drink and I would suggest getting an old fashion (I think it was $4 for one a few weeks ago). They also do other drinks like the grasshopper which is also delicious. Second, you will have to wait a bit even if it doesn't look too busy so have some patience. You also have to wait because the servers have to get the table ready with the relish tray, bread basket and silverware. Once the table is ready, a server will come by and take you to your table. The menu here is large and everything is good. I typically get the $13.95 Toby's Special which includes a 6 oz sirloin and a side (some potato dish or vegetable dish). The sirloin is cooked well and just the right size for me. The atmosphere here is also very casual and low key. Come and get a great meal at an awesome price and enjoy the charm of a local establishment!

Had to stop in one more time before leaving town. This time we brought friends and family. Steaks were great. I had bluegills and shrimp. Terrific again!!

Fish Fry Nirvana! In the endless quest for the best FF in and around Madison, this was our most recent stop. Benny got us on the list at 4:00 and Kendra was our food server. I call them out because they went way above the norm to make sure we had the full experience. Thanks for finding us a T-Shirt too. After several well made old Fashioned's we were seated at the Blue Moon table and the dinner started. It's a well oiled machine for sure but it is loud and high energy. The food was super good we had Perch and "Canadian Walleye" and several different sides. The fish was THE BEST. Everything else including the homemade French blue cheese dressing was top shelf. One not so great thing was the breaded French Fry's, always a deal breaker with me. But in the big picture this is now the one to beat and it's not going to be easy. Thank You for the best Friday Fry ever!

It is so completely confusing in there. The food is decent but the pile of anxiety that comes with trying to order makes it not worth the time in my opinion.

Love this place. Had CA folks needing a WI fishfry. Old fashions/cod/bluegill/pike-walleye/hash browns/baked potato/clam chowder/salad/green beans (CA remember?)/relish veggies/rolls-all were relished (pun intended!)

Tobys is a dive bar on the edge of Madison that happens to serve food In the the tradition of rural Wisconsin dining establishments. Like some other old school places, the huge bar is the centerpiece with a couple of bartenders working at light-speed to make and serve drinks for the large noisy group. Perhaps owing to the low ceiling, the din is high here on a Saturday night. We came for dinner but it takes us quite a few minutes to reach step 1-"checking in at the bar" again due to the frantic pace of the bartenders. After ordering a couple of old fashioneds we were given menus and directed to sit at a high top just off the bar that were just opening up. Next a very pleasant young waitress finds us (maybe after 10 min or so) to take our order. When the salads are ready (all entries come with salad and potatoes), you are directed to one of the tables around the edges of the restaurant. Once seated it was another 10-15 min before the main course arrived. Food-wise it's nothing gourmet or fancy although they do feature fried blue gills on the menu as well as steaks and chicken. My beef filet was priced unbelievably low ($25 with potato and salad) but wasn't of high quality and was very undercooked despite their very specific notations on the menu as to temperatures and color ("medium means hot, pink center"). On the positive side it's a great value -mainly because drinks are dirt cheap-old fashioned with Makers Mark whiskey-priced at an unbelievable $5 each (about 1/3 the price in a larger city). A good experience if like us you enjoy old school Wisconsin supper clubs.

My first review in 2029 and first time to Toby's Supper Club. A group of us wanted to try supper clubs and Toby's popped up to the top of the list. We didn't know what to expect since some supper clubs are no different than a normal mid range restaurant. Toby's located off the highway and well lit at night with red neon roof lines. We made a reservation for 4 at 6pm. Oh - despite what is in yelp, they do take reservations. Parking lot was crowded when we got there 10 mins to 6. We were surprised by the crowd already gathered inside. Interior lighting is dim and we were sat in the back corner under a super bright round white neon sign. Don't look directly into it. Staff were very warm and welcoming and since we had a reservation, there was no waiting time. Menu is simple. Steaks, fish, shrimps, potatoes etc. no fancy names or how it is prepared whatsoever. You will find something for everyone. After ordering, placemats and silverware were set along with a basket of buns and stick crackers , butter, fresh vegetables (celery, carrots, relish, and green scallions), and cinnamon buns! Dessert came out first!! That's before our soup and salads that came with the meals. Buns could be warmer and softer though. It was on the fry side. Each dish cane with a choice of soup or salad, potatoes (baked, fried or hash). No Caesar salad but they have a long list of dressing as choices. If you ask "what dressing do you have?" You get to be impressed by the wait staff listing them out quickly. If they have Russian soup, take that. It is good. We tried the hash and they brought out a big plate for us to share. We had steaks, shrimp special, deep fried cod and lake perch with shrimps. All the dishes were good. The batter on the cod and lake perch was light. The batter for the shrimp is a tad thick. Definitely try the lake perch. Overall it was s great experience. I was worried about greasiness and salty food but none of that. Salted just right for me. Only the hash and battered shrimp was on the greasy side.

Toby's is great if you're looking for that classic supper club Friday night fish fry. The food is on point. The fish is wonderful. The sides are wonderful. The other menu options seem to look great, though I usually just go for fish so I can't say for sure.. The service is also fantastic. If you go on a Friday, be ware, you will 100% be waiting a while and you will 100% find yourself in a frantic, chaotic environment until you're actually seated at your table. The wait staff and bar tenders are wizards though - buzzing around swiftly keeping everyone happy. I don't know how they juggle the crowd and keep their orders straight all at once. It really is impressive. The building itself is more of a dive - it's got that rustic Wisconsin charm to it. If you know, you know. I recommend this spot for a good Friday night fish fry.

Very disappointing. Ribeye was flavorless, bread was stale, potato steamed in aluminum foil, relish tray laughable. There was nothing good.

The staff is very friendly. Food is always excellent. The cod is the best I have ever had. Classic supper club with candles on the table. My favorite place to eat when I am in Madison.

I was so disappointed tonight. I have been to Toby's on multiple occasions over many years and have taken new people here. I come here not because the food is so great but to keep the supper clubs still alive and well but not after tonight. Tonight was a disaster. First mistake. Ordering an Old Fashion. If any of you are from Wisconsin, this is a drink any Supper Club bartender should have mastered. Mine was thrown together, no muddling of fruit. Just a lot of alcohol and no afterthought. It might help if the female bartender would smile at least or Be personable. Toby's is known for the full house and long wait but tonight was inexcusable. It was a Friday night and Valentine's Day but that doesn't change anything because Tobys never takes reservations and it's a first come first serve. It's always the same story, keep guest at the bar for as long as you can because that is where they make their money. The food is good but not exceptional. I arrived at 4:30, it was already crazy busy. Hard to find parking and absolutely no seating at the bar. You can't sit at a table until they take your order. They didn't start taking orders until 5. We finally got a seat at the bar around 5 and placed our order at 5:15. Long story short we didn't get seated until 7:15. I've waited an hour here before but not 2. There were people seated and eating way after us. There was definitely a loss between waitress and kitchen. By the time the food arrived We were so over hungry and still had to drive back to the west side we took our food to go. We expressed our concern with the waitress who didn't show a lot of concern and then we proceeded to talk to Tony, the bardenter/part owner who replied: What do you want me to do about it?. Really. Well I hope after all their older clientele die off and they haven't taken care of the next generation this place will die with them. Hope their Dad will be proud of the way they are running his dream for him. Sad to say I will give my money to other Supper Clubs and this will be my last visit and won't be recommending this place any longer. Very Sad after 15 years.

We went to Toby's on a Saturday night. I had heard that they are extremely busy and that the process for ordering food is unorthodox, so we got there at 4:00 although they do not start to serve food until 5 o'clock. Every seat at the bar was already taken. We asked the bartender if we could sit at a table next to the bar and he said yes, so I ordered us a couple of cocktails and we sat at the small table, admiring the lively atmosphere. About 15 minutes later, a young woman dropped off menus for us, and at about 4:45, another young woman came and took our order. By this time, the whole place was packed with people. We realized we shouldn't have chosen a table right next to the bar because everyone who came in had to go to the bar to get on the queue for a table. The restaurant was extremely loud, so much so that it was really difficult to have any kind of a conversation with my friend. Also, the temperature in the restaurant was uncomfortably warm even with the cold breeze every time the door opened as patrons entered. We had ordered the cheese curd appetizer and they were nothing special. They tasted like breaded frozen cheese curds, not hand dipped cheese curds. Around 5:15 our salads came out along with a bread basket and what was described as a relish tray. The relish tray consisted of two small celery sticks, two green onions, and two radishes on a plate. The bread basket was four small packs of cellophane wrapped breadsticks and two rolls. Our salads were iceberg lettuce and sliced radish. I ordered the blue cheese dressing and the ranch, which were both delicious. We were also given two mushy pickle spears on a plate. At about 5:30, our food came out. I had the ribeye and a baked potato. The ribeye was done medium rare just as I ordered it, but it had absolutely no seasoning on it. So while it wasn't horrible, it was not very flavorful. My baked potato came with sour cream, and it was hot and fluffy. My friend had the sesame ahi tuna which came with rice and a vegetable. Again, it wasn't horrible, but it was nothing memorable. All in all, it was a good experience, but I don't think we would return to Toby's. It's just too loud, too chaotic, and the food was a little below average.