Willalby's Cafe

What a great back alley diner! Had a pancake, eggs, toast, and sausage. Their pancakes are the second best in Madison imho which is sayin’ a lot because I’ve tried a few dozen places in Madison. Good food and great/friendly 5 star service!

Just know it takes an over an hour to get your food. Youll see this place as 4.5 stars but if you read most of the reviews it will say it takes forever to get food. Make sure you have a snack before you come or if you have blood sugar troubles like myself bring a snack. Waiter was super nice. The women’s bathroom there are holes in the walls with tiles on the floor. Not clean at all, it’s down in a basement that is also not clean. I was sitting on the stools and could see the cook eating food while cooking. I understand people get hungry… like myself waiting over an hour for my food… but do it on a break. I would prefer not to share germs with someone I don’t know. Definitely will NOT be coming back. It was $36 for two people (skillet and omelet).

Let me start by saying that the food was surprisingly delicious. I had one of the best omlettes I've ever had there. The actual building and vibe is a little weird but okay enough to come back i suppose. The servers seemed kind to us but were just chatting at a booth for most the time. They only accept cash which we didn't know so we had to use the ATM for a fee.

My son and I enjoyed the entire experience at this spot. The playlist, staff, food, old school decor and coffee all hit the spot!

Great place to hang out for a morning to kill some time and enjoy delicious food. As a vegan, I was elated to have finally found vegan French Toast! It did not disappoint. I also ordered the vegan skillet which like the French Toast was equally as awesome. Expect the food to take a while as there was limited staff (at least when I was there). But with the wait comes exceptional food!

I'm visiting from Indianapolis and decided to stop in for breakfast based off the reviews. The place was packed so I had to sit at the diner which was a pain bc i have scoliosis and the diner seats don't have backs. Once I saw a booth open up I grabbed a seat only to be told to move back to the diner bc that seat is reserved for 2 guest or more. Once going back to the diner a non paying customer with antennas waved at me as it crawled past the diner. Everyone watched it and continued with their food. I just could not. Indianapolis would never. Idk if the roach was the sous chef or what but I can't do insects and rodents around my food.

I would give a 4.5 if I could. The service was great! The food review is a mix. I had the Guillermalby's Omelet, everything was great except they use jarred salsa. My husband had the Hart’s Content Omelet, and loved his. The coffee and bread were delicious. The hash browns were bland.

🍞☕ I almost didn't walk over her from WYSO. Now I always will. Willalby's Cafe hit on every piston. The coffee is unexpectedly great, because I expected a humble diner joint - but this is barista level. It was so good with soy milk and they have almond, too. The service was awesome, fast and so friendly. I got the vegan French toast with all the fruit they had, and the veggie sausage was homemade, hot, meaty, and frigging delicious 😋. The toast was crispy outside, soft inside and had a buttery center in the stack. WOW. You guys are kicking ass. I'll be back!!

Love this little hole in the wall place. The Food is amazing and the wait staff is entertaining and friendly. If your ever on Willy St check it out, You won't be disappointed!

I'm a fan of this place! It's a good old fashioned breakfast spot, cash only, simple menu, great service, unlimited coffee refills. The decor feels like a homey diner, from the wooden booths to the countertop. The food was home cooked, classic, and delicious. I was very happy to have gotten a seat at around 9am on a Saturday. One time I tried to go around 11am and they had already sold out! So, plan accordingly and like I said, bring cash as they have an ATM in the back, but don't make any exceptions. Cash is king here. Happy eating!

Super chill, super welcoming. Just a short walk for me currently and always meet people from the neighborhood. Nothing better than getting a cup of coffee and an egg sandwich early in the morning at Willaby's.

No nonsense greasy spoon serving up solid breakfast fare. What I love is that it doesn't try to be anything that it's not-a throwback diner with reasonable prices. The waitstaff is quick to refill your coffee cup. Open early for those early risers. Pro-tip: Don't check out the basement where the bathrooms are located.

A very tiny spot where every single seat was taken when I went in on a Friday around noon. Simple menu with cheap offerings. I got a banana waffle and we got hash browns to share. Waffle itself was kinda meh to me but great potatoes! All the savory options people were getting around me looked delicious so regretted not getting one of those. The salty melty butter was a yummy contrasting addition to the waffle but my friends who got french toast mentioned it was almost too salty. Great quick service!

If you're looking for a tasty meal at a very reasonable cost, look no further! We were able to be seated immediately at 930 on a Saturday but by the time we left, most tables were filled up. The service was routine and gave us coffee and water refills continuously, which was awesome. The place itself has some age but it has a very old school diner vibe, which we really appreciated. The omelette I got was absolutely loaded with veggies and the hash browns and butter toast were nice and crispy. Great experience overall, highly recommended!

This is a great breakfast spot in Madison, with friendly service and very good food. The old diner feel adds a lot, as well. A western omelette was served hot and stuffed with a great, thick peppers, onions and ham dice with melted cheese throughout. The hash browns are a nice accompaniment rather than the more prevalent home fries. My hot beverage was refilled without waiting. The food did take some time to be served but a quality breakfast like that is worth the wait.

Somewhat hidden jem for breakfast off campus. Classic dinner. Not a lot of seating so get there early! Staff is always so kind and friendly.

One of my favorite breakfast restaurants in Madison. I think it's very underrated! Huge portions for such an affordable price. I always get one of their pancakes and I've never been disappointed. My favorite is getting it with banana and walnuts. I love their vegan/vegetarian options as well. My whole family loves this cozy spot on the east side. The place is small, so you may have a wait on the weekends.

Wish I could say I had a great experience but I didn't! I came to Wisconsin to visit a family member and we decided on Willably's because we liked their menu options. Our food was good but our server wasn't the best. When our food was brought out I noticed my sandwich was missing the egg ( I ordered an egg, cheese and bacon sandwich; as it's listed on their menu). I did not think it was that big of a deal, I just wanted my egg... I politely waited for our server to come back and immediately our server was rude and defensive about how I only ordered a bacon and cheese sandwich..... As I didn't want to argue over an egg, I let our server know our conversation was pointless and ate my bacon and cheese sandwich. In the end the server tried to make up for their rudeness by eventually offering to remake it. I declined as I believed it could have been suggested in our initial interaction. Good thing the server let me know they took the egg price off my sandwich ( as I questioned why it would've been there in the first place if I only ordered "a bacon and cheese sandwich"). When we paid I will not lie, we did not leave her the best tip. She followed us out and yelled at us to never return.... Good thing I wasn't going to!

Would you wait 30 mins for a waffle ? If so this is the spot for you. Maybe if the cook was making more than one dish at a time... slowest breakfast in town. Heading elsewhere to actually eat breakfast.

This was a fun place to visit on our travels. Located on a street with lots of foot traffic, a fantastic Ace Hardware store, lots of little antiques stores, and interesting restaurants, Willalby's fit right in. There were lots of eclectic things on the walls. No two coffee cups were the same. People were happily jammed into close quarters. Tommy, with his flowing hair and brightly colored onesie, brought us great coffee and took our order. He also apologized when he realized he didn't turn our order in right away. We had plenty of time to fellowship with our coffee and to visit with the people at the next table and to watch people parade in and out of Ace Hardware. The omelettes we ordered were wonderful and huge! Mine was the Hart' Content, and it was packed with perfectly chopped/grilled veggies and lots of bacon. My companions ate most of their Willalby's and Ham/Cheese Omelettes too. Each omelette came with perfectly prepared wheat toast and has browns. The hash browns were yummy soft on the inside and deliciously crispy on the outside. Our local host told us we had to have one of the pancakes. It was bigger than the plate. We put that in the center and dug into it from all sides. Suffice it to say that we took away enough leftovers to fully satisfy three more people. What a great breakfast in Madison!

I wanted to try a new place for breakfast, and I came across Willalby's cafe. Great atmosphere, the breakfast was amazing. I am very picky when it comes to my bacon, and it was crispy which I love. It is a cash only restaurant but there is a ATM in the back of the restaurant. Aaron was great, he was funny and just had a great personality. The only small very small issue was the music was a like loud. It did not bother me but I could see where some people might have a problem with it

Best greasy spoon on the isthmus. MSN staple. Love the vibe on the inside. Super memorable service.

Sometimes places like Willalby's can be intimidating. If you've never been you might feel out of place because of all the regulars. Or you might read the reviews and think it isn't worth the "hassle" of paying cash, or waiting for a table. Let me stop you right now. GO INTO WILLALBY'S! This gem is incredible and soared above and beyond the reviews here on Yelp. Now, we read the reviews and planned accordingly. We stopped and grabbed cash on our way. We also chose to go early in the morning on a weekday based on reviews noting a wait for a table, or slower food service when busy. We rolled into Willalby's at 730am. Behind the counter a server greeted us and said we could sit anywhere. We picked a booth in the middle and reviewed the menus that were already at the table. Being up to date on the Yelp reviews, we knew they had good, giant pancakes so that was definitely being ordered. The server came over with coffee and got my wife her drink. We ordered and then took to admiring the art. Our food was out quickly - so I'm not sure why others have had issues. There were at least two cooks in the kitchen when we arrived and two more joined before we had left. Plus the two servers behind the counter. Everyone was incredibly nice and the food was great. The pancake is in fact huge so plan on sharing, bringing a big appetite, or taking some to go. Don't sleep on the sausage patties either. Delicious! And our eggs were cooked to perfection. We're already making plans to go back.

Come very hungry. Had the Harts omelet!!! Wow Also spouse had sausage and cheese omelet! Great hash browns ! Service good. Very neighborly atmosphere!

My husband and I have been trying out new restaurants for breakfast. This week we went to Willalby's Café. The establishment was very busy, with no tables available, so we sat down at the counter. As we were looking through the menu, my husband noticed that you can only pay with cash. Off we went to an ATM several blocks down the street. There is one inside the restaurant, but we didn't want to pay the fee. We were lucky when we arrived again, that a table was open. We sat down and someone arrived at our table shortly afterwards to take our beverage order, and we received our drinks promptly. Unfortunately, we did not order the food at that time and we had to wait at least twenty minutes before our waiter arrived back to take our order. During this time, the waiter came back and asked if our order was taken yet. We replied no, then he said he would be back, and then proceeded to start cleaning tables off, then serving others and then finally arrived back to take our order. I'm not sure why he couldn't have taken the order before he started taking care of other duties. This was at the time that many people had finished their meals and left, and only a few people were sitting at the counter. It took about fifteen minutes to have our food arrive, and the food was hot, which was a bonus, meaning it wasn't sitting in the kitchen for a while. I ordered the Hart's Content Omelet, filled with bacon, spinach, onion, mushrooms, tomato, garlic and cheddar cheese. I must state that the omelet was quite large! I was expecting everything to be mixed into the egg, as most breakfast restaurants do, and was happy when it came out with the inside filled. It was one of the best omelets I have eaten in a restaurant to date, although it was rather salty, most likely from the bacon. The hash browns were wonderfully crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. My husband ordered the Fair Oaks Skillet with hash browns, meat sausage, green pepper, onion, mushrooms and Swiss cheese and a side of corned beef hash. He said the skillet was decent, but he didn't care for the chunks of sausage in the skillet instead of it being broken apart and distributed throughout the skillet. He thought the corned beef hash was canned and not freshly made. I did taste the corned beef. I felt that it was very crispy on the outside and very little corned beef on the inside, and my husband agreed that for the price, it wasn't worth it. I do think that we received two orders of the corned beef hash, as I had asked my husband if we could share it and I believe the waiter put in two orders, instead of one, which we did not order. Thus the $5.00 charge on our ticket. If you are planning to go to Willalby's Cafe, be prepared that it can get busy and you will have to wait outside until a table is available. It is a smaller establishment, so it can get noisy, especially when they decide to turn on music, which was quite loud. Tone it down. The inside is outdated and could use a fresher appearance, but the food is decent. Will we be back? Probably not, as it was too loud due to the music and the small space, which made it hard to hear anyone speak. We were happy to leave for some peace and quiet.

Fantastic throw back breakfast spot with the friendliest service in town. Has some very good vegan options, try the vegan biscuits and gravy. Usually busy so be prepared to wait a short time and enjoy this place! Cash only.

I can't believe this is my first time at this old-school Madison breakfast spot. It has a hippie vibe, I think it's cash only, and the interior is aged and cozy. But it's not crowded, the service is great, and we really liked the food. Classic breakfast, well done.

The food and the vibe are wonderful here and I come for breakfast every time I'm in Madison, but it seems they only want to cater to youngsters. I came last week an hour early to have breakfast with my brother and to have a coffee and read while trying to relax from a grueling trip. As I walked in, punk music blared and at 7am I was not in the mood. I tried to hang but gave up and went elsewhere. We tried again the next morning and the music was loud but the 3 of us decided to stay. By the time left the place was half full and we were yelling to hear each other, as was everyone else in the place. Ridiculous and disappointing and not how I want spend early morning breakfast. I was thrilled when this little old-school diner survived Covid, but I won't be back.

Stopped in for a quick bite this morning and had a very disappointing meal. I ordered scrambled eggs, wheat toast and sausage. Super basic. The food did come out quick which was nice, but it was not real good. The eggs were OK, fluffy enough, but also kind of burnt tasting. The sausage was very thin patties and way overcooked, also incredibly greasy. The whole plate was grease covered and the toast had a strange flavor. It also had entirely too much butter on it. Really only the eggs were worthy of being eaten just to get something in my stomach.

I can't believe I waited so long to try Willalby's! I love an old-school, no-frills diner and this hit the spot for a fun breakfast with my coworker. Tasty diner coffee in fun mugs - I imagine all are different! I got the Denver skillet and my coworker got the Mediterranean omelette. Both were huge! The skillet was superb with melty, quality cheddar and no shortage of ham and peppers. The toast was great and sopped up my runny yolk. There was one guy working the counter and serving us everything. Seems a little more chill on weekdays than weekends. Great service and low price. Hope to come back!

A classic diner experience that you can't miss. They have all the classics mixed in with some of their special skillets and dish of the day. I had their two eggs scrambled with hash browns and toast. I loved their hasbrowns, the classic shredded potatoes. Plus their toast was probably the best toast I've ever had (ignoring the fact that it's soaked in butter haha). As someone who normally doesn't eat the toast at breakfast I finish every slice here so that should tell you something. It's sure to be crowded on the weekends so come early if that's your plan. It's cash only as well but there's an atm in the back so don't worry. Quick and friendly service. A great breakfast/brunch spot that'll satisfy everyone.

I love willabys but today was just different... The waffles literally disintegrated, burnt to a crustotherwise good

Number one thing you need to know: the food is gas. So damn good. We went on a Saturday morning and both got omelettes. Wait was long cause the place was packed, but it was a Saturday morning ‍ YOU HAVE TO PAY IN CASH, however there's an ATM at the back with the cheapest fee I've ever paid (1.75). Coffee is solid, I had to serve myself from the pot cause they were so busy but with all that included, this place is damn good. I had the Mediterranean omelette and it was 11/10. The bathrooms are pretty creepy but oh well. Don't come here if you're in a rush or want a classy establishment. This is a straight-up kitschy diner. Also the soundtrack was totally unpredictable and I loved it.

Cheerful staff, fun ambiance and GREAT food that gives you everything you want in a yummy homemade diner's breakfast. Conveniently close to the bike trail and downtown! Will return!

Great place Great service Lovely omelettes = light and fluffy We'll b back! Come join the cool kids for breakfast

A small little dinky dinner! Above average food and really big pancakes! If you like pancakes, then go here! A little busy and dirty when we got there but the staff was pretty small so I didn't really care. Overall, it's a good hole in the wall for breakfast if you are in the area!

The diner itself is cute and cozy. The food is good. Unfortunately the service is horrible. We waited an hour before our food arrived. In the first thirty minutes they changed our order because they didn't have the supplies needed to make the order. It would have been nice if they would have checked to make sure the supplies were available before the beginning of the order instead. Tables came in after us and were served and left before we had our order arrive. Our order was missing and I had to tell the waitress that we had been waiting for an hour. We figured after waiting an hour we should at least have our tea comped from the bill as a courtesy. We tried to politely tell the waitress what was wrong and she wouldn't listen and talked over us and walked away while we were talking. We talked to another employee and told him of the situation about having to wait an hour for our food and the order not being correct. We are vegan and the order came wrong, there was real butter on the toast, not vegan butter. We were also missing food from our order. The guy insisted it was vegan butter because the menu said so, not actually checking with the kitchen. After we talked with the guy (either the manager or owner) he agreed to take the tea off our order. He came back to our table and told us that this is just how their restaurant runs and actually told us because they comped our tea to not come back. Both our waitress and the guy were insulting and minimizing, saying everyone has to wait long, I come from a family of professional restaurant people, one being an executive chef, another a sous chef, even at peak hour in a restaurant you shouldn't wait over thirty minutes for food, much less over an hour. If the order isn't correct, it should be made so. They didn't treat us good at all. They were not courteous or friendly, once we lodged a complaint. They don't seem to take feedback well at all and blame the customer for their mistakes. Where's the accountability? I've never been treated this way in a restaurant. The way they treated us was as bad as posting a sign on the outside saying you can't come in if you identify a certain way we don't agree with. This was my first time at this restaurant and will definitely be my last.

This is the best breakfast restaurant in Madison. Great food, fun atmosphere, very friendly waitstaff. The prices are even reasonable and the servings are huge.

Great place for breakfast! The omelets were awesome and the hash browns looked like They were cooked to perfection. Great mix of eclectic music, from Boy George one minute to 90s Hip Hop the next. Will be back! Not much seating so be prepared to wait on a busy day.

Come on down. Open for in house or to go dining. Clean, casual, not costly. Nice folks too!

Neighborhood dinner with the best chocolate chip pancakes. The coffee is super good too! If we lived in this neighborhood .....we would be at this diner everyday.

Wonderful selection for traditional and vegan breakfasts. All food was delicious and as ordered. Three staff members that we came into contact with all have a gift for feeding folks! We had never been to Madison before and were welcomed and accommodated from the time we stepped inside. Came back the remaining morning that we were in town.

Oh, Willalby's - you were a trip. Three stars for my particular visit with a potential for four overall. I stopped in for a weekday breakfast midmorning. There was one server and one person in the kitchen. It took awhile for the server to come over to take our order, but no big deal. I landed on hot chocolate, a pancake, and hash browns with American cheese. The server came back with a giant mug and let me know that they were almost out of hot chocolate mix but she improvised with some chocolate syrup. I appreciate the effort but it turns out hot water and chocolate syrup don't mix and the taste is not very pleasant. I wasn't able to let our server know, though, because she only stopped back once to drop off food and the mug hadn't cooled enough to pick up to try. My pancake was great - as big as a dinner plate and thin with crispy edges. No complaints there. My hash browns were also done well, except they came with cheddar instead of American. I'm not sure if it was a mixup or if American wasn't an option - the server didn't mention anything when I asked for American cheese and if that wasn't possible I'd have appreciated a head's up. While we were waiting for our food someone came in for a pickup order and left a small tip. The server spent the next minute or two loudly mocking the person to the entire restaurant. "Oh, wow! A whole dollar! Gee, whatever will I do with these riches?" Not her exact wording, but the gist of it - very sarcastic and clearly voicing her displeasure. It was kind of funny but also kind of inappropriate. It took a long time for her to come with our bill after we had finished eating, and while the service didn't warrant a 20% tip I can assure you I left one anyway (I almost always do, if not more, but I was hyper-conscious of being called out to the remaining patrons after I left). Effective for the server, but doesn't really make me want to come rushing back. I also chose not to mention my hot chocolate at the end of the meal - it sat there full but I wasn't asked about it, nor was it taken off the bill but after the tip rant I didn't think complaining about my drink was wise. Long story short this is a neighborhood joint with no lack of customers - whether you're treated well or not there's always going to be someone else coming in the door. Plus their pancakes are legit, so to be honest I'd probably put up with the lack of service for the perfect pancake.

Was super excited to try this place out! Menu looked amazing, heard lots of great things! Not so much, especially when mickeys is right around the coiner. I highly recommend NOT returning your eggs to be cooked thoroughly unless you want crispy eggs. Disappointed, wasn't even asked how my eggs were after being recooked. Minimal staff could be the issue I guess. I will tell ya one thing, never going back again!

I love this place. Servers are kind and no one gives a shit. Very low key, hole in the wall with great food. Also, BRING CASH

Fast service, waiters were so kind and fun, and the food was great! They only take cash but also have an ATM in the back

I left speechless and not in a good way. This morning, a decent sized group of us decided to try out Willalby's after noting that Lazy Jane's had a 30-45 minute wait time. One member of our group has a severe lactose allergy (a true allergy, not simple intolerance), but with many items on the menu being noted vegan we were assured she would be able to pick out a tasty breakfast that fit within her dietary restrictions. Upon being served our food, the waitress informed her that the cooks had accidentally put cheese on top of her omelette, but that she could "just scrape it off and be fine." She then explained to the waitress she had an allergy and that scraping off cheese would likely leave her very ill. The waitress seemed to lack understanding and said she would "check with the cooks, but they might not agree to remake it." The cooks did oblige the remake only to then come out and confront our group member directly, saying "honey if your allergy is that bad you shouldn't eat here anyway" with a condescending tone. The waitress apologized for him when he left saying that the cooks are all rude and she has to deal with this all of the time. In short, you're right sir. We shouldn't (and won't) be eating here again. Thanks for the tip!

It's hard not to love the gritty charm of Willalby's Cafe. The popular old school diner on Willy Street has limited seating (five weathered wooded booths and counter seating for 14), so be prepared to wait to get a table on weekends. Service is friendly, but it takes a while for the kitchen to keep up, so Willalby's not the place to go when you need a quick bite. Their breakfast-centric food is top notch, the potatoes in my skillet were perfectly prepared and I loved the flavor-packed sausage. Willalby's doesn't take plastic, but there's an ATM in back if you're light on cash.

I thought people were queuing to get a tattoo, at 11am. Wrong, it was for this great diner. I can't believe I've missed this place these last 4 summers in Madison. I had the special banana walnut French toast - fantastic! My friend had the buttermilk pancake with banana walnut and couldn't finish it - rare for him. You could taste the buttermilk, it was perfect. The waiter/host was really friendly and attentive. Another favorite restaurant in Madison!

I love little breakfast diners, and this place was no exception. Great location, service and food with a nice dose of personality. I had to chuckle when my coffee was served in a mug with a chipped up rim and a pot leaf printed on it! One of my new favorite breakfast places in the Madison area.

1/2 hour after ordering food an employee (may have been owner or manager) told us we needed to change our order because they didn't have the ingredients; we did so. It was an hour total before we were served. Yes they were busy however we watched customers, at different tables, that came in after us be served and leave. At 50 minutes we asked about our order. We were told it would be five more minutes and watch our server pull out ticket and move it up to be cooked. My order was incorrect, when I questioned the server she had to check to be sure I was right and asked if she should have it corrected. I said "Don't bother I've waited long enough." She began chattering on about service and being busy. I had another question about the food and my server would not give me a chance to explain my issue. They talked over me turned and walked away. During the first hour I had ordered a hot tea for $3, which I drank early in my visit. After all the troubles we had I thought it proper to have the tea comped, after all what does it cost for a tea bag and hot water? In talking to the manager he agreed. He then came back to our table and very rudely told me that because he comped the tea we were to never come back! I asked him to repeat himself because I couldn't believe what he was saying. My family and myself have been in the restaurant business for 45 years. We would never have treated a customer so badly. Myself I would have comped the whole meal even if the customer was wrong. If you are thinking about eating at this restaurant, you may consider my experience. They need not worry about me ever returning. If I could I would give a half star!

Good old fashioned diner. Skillets are good, French toast good, coffee always full. Can be a bit greasy, but is a diner actually good if it isn't? Wait could be long during covid but only because of social distancing.

Ate here once and no plans to come back. Pros: delicious french toast (it was on "special" but still $5 for two slices). Cons: Bad service. Burnt hash browns (there were 5 of us and everyone's hash browns were super burnt). Chipped coffee mugs (I understand they want eclectic mugs but why broken ones?) After getting our food, I decided I wanted to order another side to go with my meal. But our server never came back to our table after dropping off our food (not to ask how things were tasting, refill waters or coffees). What was more annoying was watching as our server (female in crop top) just stood around on her phone the whole time. This is a tiny restaurant, but she couldn't be bothered to walk to our table in the front? So I wasn't able to place another order and no one got anymore coffee or water. Will not be back.

Willalby's is not a high-end establishment. I think the wide range of reviews can be explained entirely by expectations. They aren't trying to be trendy or popular. It's a hole in the wall greasy spoon on Willy Street that offers cheap food and great music. If that's your scene and what you are expecting, you will be delighted by this quaint and charming, old time Wisconsin style breakfast joint. Between the wood paneling, eclectic plates on the wall, and the oldies music, it's definitely not for everyone. The service is not over the top, but they will feed you. No sugar coating or sweet talking here, but they do have character and will fix any blunders if they come up. There is a small menu, but they welcome substitutions and/or add-ons. The food fits the price. It's much cheaper than your typical Madison breakfast, so you can expect it will also be much simpler. I ordered the B.E.S.T. sandwich with avocado and it did not disappoint me, but it didn't impress me either. The hashbrowns, though, were delightful. I give 3 stars because the food is very average, but I would still recommend it. I think this is a great location for when you don't want to cook, but want a hearty breakfast for a great price.

Incredibly small hole in the wall that hasn't changed a day it seems in years. I just recently got back to Madison a year ago and started coming here again. Talk about survival of the fittest and with everything from the slim quality breakfast menu and quality home cooked food, to the rustic diner atmosphere and friendly staff, this is by far an old east side favorite off Willy Street for many. HUEVOS REANCHEROS, BEST IN MADISON

Why did it take an hour of drinking coffee from chipped coffee mugs to get our food? We had well over 60 minutes of built up hype for probably the soggiest and least exciting breakfast sandwich I've ever had at a diner. Please only eat here if your schedule for the weekend is completely open.

Really small simple food. I really like their breakfast though. They have achieved that really satisfying state of grease taste and happy foodliness.m The servers are all pretty good. Friendly (some more than others) and effective. They don't poach eggs but they don't poach endangered species either so guess it all works out for the betterment of the universe.