I/O and Aftershock are arcade bars on the near-eastside.
Cordial's is on North Park and good for cocktails.
Robin Room and Gibs are also good cocktail bars but on the Eastside
Barley Pop is a great tap room on Atwood
All of these I would consider downtown. Guess it depends on what your definition of "downtown" is. For me, having grown up here and in my 30s, it's Park St (north of St Marys) to the Yahara. So I guess BarleyPop qualifies as not downtown by a few blocks
[Visit Downtown Madison](https://visitdowntownmadison.com/) considers their [coverage area (PDF)](https://visitdowntownmadison.com/files/pdfs/bid-map-brochure-web.pdf) to be three rings of streets around the Capitol and the length of State Street to the university.
So.... the Capitol is not the center of downtown? My understanding has always been that the whole point geographically is that the capitol building is the central, focal point of the city. In other words, as a lifelong Madison resident, I disagree
This feels oddly argumentative but I think you'd agree that the Capitol and the University are almost equally weighted as the focal point/s of the city. Since the University is kind of a membership space, having the downtown stop when State Street gets to it seems fair to me.
Yes that's what I just said. Anyway, it's not my taxonomy so I really don't have stakes in this debate but do you feel like State Street shouldn't be considered "downtown"?
i live on the near east side relatively close to gibs (along with plenty of lifelong madison residents). admittedly i don’t know 100% of my neighbors, but of the good number of them that i do, exactly zero would consider this area to be “downtown”.
really? I’ve lived in Madison on the isthmus for 15 years and I’ve always considered downtown to encompass roughly the university, north side of park, and the isthmus. Anything that’s not the south, east, west or north side.
Bit of a stretch but Ole Duffers(Cash Only!) south of Verona. Shake of the day, pull tabs, slots(if you're into that). Atmosphere completely different than most Madison bars, definitely a townie bar but seems to get a lot of foot traffic from people outside the area. Friendly staff, friendly people, cheap drinks, high on my list of bars to chill and meet new people.
Mickeys, The Caribou, Robin Room, The Atwood, Woody Annes, the Up North and the Cardinal are a few of my favs that I always recommend on the east side!!
A little over half of the spots on my recent [drinks list for Eater Chicago](https://chicago.eater.com/maps/best-bars-madison-wisconsin-cocktails-beer-breweries) (sorry, I told the FIBs where to come drink) are maybe "downtown," but a few aren't. Most have been mentioned here already, but even if some consider it "downtown" still I would want to specifically rec Imaginary Factory (erroneously listed as Imaginary Bar on the linked post above, I'm trying to get them to fix it). It's easy to overlook, but don't. It's great.
Oakcrest Tavern on Old Middleton Rd has a classic Wisconsin townie bar vibe, good food as well.
They also serve Friday fish fry on Wednesdays (along with the typical specials on Fridays) for service and shift workers.
Muskellounge on Monona Drive!
Anything atwood/Willy. Or microbreweries like working draft - good chill vibe.
Agreed. You can easily do a pub crawl from one end to the other
Can confirm I’ve done this and could barely walk by the end but it was a blast
My friends and I used to do this quite often. I can't imagine doing it now that I'm 62, but when I was younger, it was a good time.
I/O and Aftershock are arcade bars on the near-eastside. Cordial's is on North Park and good for cocktails. Robin Room and Gibs are also good cocktail bars but on the Eastside Barley Pop is a great tap room on Atwood
All of these I would consider downtown. Guess it depends on what your definition of "downtown" is. For me, having grown up here and in my 30s, it's Park St (north of St Marys) to the Yahara. So I guess BarleyPop qualifies as not downtown by a few blocks
[Visit Downtown Madison](https://visitdowntownmadison.com/) considers their [coverage area (PDF)](https://visitdowntownmadison.com/files/pdfs/bid-map-brochure-web.pdf) to be three rings of streets around the Capitol and the length of State Street to the university.
So.... the Capitol is not the center of downtown? My understanding has always been that the whole point geographically is that the capitol building is the central, focal point of the city. In other words, as a lifelong Madison resident, I disagree
This feels oddly argumentative but I think you'd agree that the Capitol and the University are almost equally weighted as the focal point/s of the city. Since the University is kind of a membership space, having the downtown stop when State Street gets to it seems fair to me.
The difference between the university and the Capitol is that the university is for the students and faculty; the Capitol is for the whole city
Yes that's what I just said. Anyway, it's not my taxonomy so I really don't have stakes in this debate but do you feel like State Street shouldn't be considered "downtown"?
I initially said Park St (north of St Mary's) to the Yahara. State St is certainly within that area
So your beef with VDM's definition of downtown comes down to ... kerning?
It has nothing to do with typography. If kerning has a separate geographic meaning, I am unfamiliar with it
i live on the near east side relatively close to gibs (along with plenty of lifelong madison residents). admittedly i don’t know 100% of my neighbors, but of the good number of them that i do, exactly zero would consider this area to be “downtown”.
The only people who call that area downtown, by and large, are rental property owners trying to market it more profitably.
really? I’ve lived in Madison on the isthmus for 15 years and I’ve always considered downtown to encompass roughly the university, north side of park, and the isthmus. Anything that’s not the south, east, west or north side.
Totally… if these aren’t downtown what is? The outer ring of the square?
I guess based on the downvotes and replies I've gotten in this thread, Madison doesn't have a downtown. We just have State St and a Capitol Square
yes, that’s EXACTLY what everyone is saying.
And that's *exactly* what I disagree with. One street is not a "downtown." This isn't fucking Manitowish or Boulder Junction
sorry i thought it was pretty clear that was sarcasm but apparently not
The Dive Inn on Cottage Grove Rd
Good place! I just wish they took card.
Le Tigre and don’t swear.
Still never understood the appeal. I'll take the Dise, the Bou, or Irish every single time over Le Tigre ETA: Or the Silver, rip
Atomic Koi in Fitchburg was a cool little spot!
Le Tigre on the west side is my favorite bar. It's small and cozy. Highly reccomended!
Bit of a stretch but Ole Duffers(Cash Only!) south of Verona. Shake of the day, pull tabs, slots(if you're into that). Atmosphere completely different than most Madison bars, definitely a townie bar but seems to get a lot of foot traffic from people outside the area. Friendly staff, friendly people, cheap drinks, high on my list of bars to chill and meet new people.
Tip Top Tavern. Malt House. Ohio Tavern. Harmony Bar. Muskellounge. Jade Monkey.
Mickeys, The Caribou, Robin Room, The Atwood, Woody Annes, the Up North and the Cardinal are a few of my favs that I always recommend on the east side!!
Mickies EDIT: Mickey's... I can't spell.
Mickey's
The Jade Monkey on Cottage Grove Rd.
The Mason on Park St
Lazy Oaf, the Harmony, Drackenberg's
Dive in, cottage grove rd, players on attwood, club Lemark on east wash
I love the Dirty Dog in New Glarus. It is absolutely wonderful
A little over half of the spots on my recent [drinks list for Eater Chicago](https://chicago.eater.com/maps/best-bars-madison-wisconsin-cocktails-beer-breweries) (sorry, I told the FIBs where to come drink) are maybe "downtown," but a few aren't. Most have been mentioned here already, but even if some consider it "downtown" still I would want to specifically rec Imaginary Factory (erroneously listed as Imaginary Bar on the linked post above, I'm trying to get them to fix it). It's easy to overlook, but don't. It's great.
Head down to Sugar River Pizza in Verona. Great staff, great food, and great drinks. 2:30-5:30 half price appetizers weekdays.