The Madison

Omg… I love this place. Everything about it is Amazing!

@ Mark P. from Long Beach. You’re upset about $ 150. What if it was a wedding gift worth $ 400.00! This sucks…

Walked by today, 9÷13÷2012 and there is a sign on the door that says closed for repairs… I saw a valet attendant and I asked him when they are going to re-​open and he said it is closed for business. No mas Madison.
Maybe they can turn this into a Morton’s or Smith and Wollensky or another high end steak house.
Sign of the times.

Though the location of the Madison is not in the nicest neighborhood for being a high class restaurant, the Madison is a very beautiful restaurant. I loved the architecture inside and this place is a very classy/​intimate setting.
The service was a little behind when we got there, we waited in the receptionist area for a while before someone got to us; we had a reservation as well.
I ordered the Boneless Half Chicken which was decent, but it was a little overwhelmed with the mushrooms which I’m not a fan of. The shoestring fries were yummy! Overall a good experience.

This review is only for the bar. It’s truly lovely; stunning in every sense of the term. It’s secluded enough away from the diners that you feel as if you’re all alone in some swanky bar back in the day, but the mile-​high ceiling makes you feel like you’ve got all the room in the world! The bartenders are very nice and the maitre d’, or whatever he calls himself, is a true gentleman (and funny!). Their music selections are spot-​on. I had a splendid couple of glasses of wine there. I would go there again, over and over, if nothing more than to find out more about that fabulous building. The barkeep didn’t seem to know what occupied all the space above their restaurant. I want to know… God, are you there?

This is my first post of a restaurant ever!!!
Well what a disappointment!!! My hubby and I wanted to have a nice dinner date at what I thought would be a fabulous restaurant on Saturday evening 3÷24÷2012. I I have been wanting to try this place for a while and would never remember when we’re thinking of a place to go.
This part is too funny: I called in at 7:15 pm to make reservations for 7:45pm
The hostess… proceeds to notify me they do not take reservations after 8pm and since I was calling for 7:45 it was okay!!! WHAT!!! Why did she feel I had to know this info if I’m not calling for seating after 8pm! That should of been the first sign!!!
The ambiance and décor… loveit! The Service was good, but started failing towards the end. We love good food and don’t mind spending money for something good. We’ve been to fine dining and hole in the wall restaurants… if it’s good… it’s good and we’ll definitely go back, but The Madison will never see us again.
We started with the crab cakes… where was the crab… hmmm it looked like a thin pancake with diced tomatoes on top! Not good!
We moved on to the Caesar salad okay not traditionally made dressing, which I don’t mind if it’s good (but one would think at The Madison it would be!) dressing was okay, but the lettuce was wilted and had some brown leaves… strike 2!!!
I was thinking ok… off night for appetizers and salads… dinner will be fabulous!
I ordered the Beef Wellington med rare, hubby ordered the bone-​in Ribeye med rare also… we shared The Madison Potatoes, Famous Onion Rings (as the server proclaimed… everyone loves them) and Asparagus.
Well shame on me for thinking it was going to be fabulous… I’ve had better steaks at chain restaurants… Wow it SUCKED!!! The Filet in the Wellington was gray in color and under cooked… I usually like my steaks Charred Rare, but I’m pregnant and don’t want to eat rare steaks right now! I expected their entrees to be spot on and they were not… gray meat!!! *YUCK* My husbands Ribeye was medium and tough I know they cannot control the the cow, but I just thought quality would of been better… and medium… not cool! So now let us move on to the side dishes… EVERYTHING WAS COLD OR LUKE WARM… however you’d like to call it… I must say not edible or good! Cold mashers…*yuck*
So we are not the type to complain, so we sucked it up, just dealt with it and said to ourselves we’ll never come back… I couldn’t consume my Wellington so hubby and I switched and I barely had 2 bites of his and we didn’t even touch the rings, mashed or asparagus… the busser came over and asked if we were okay I said, please just box the mashed and ribeye up… he noticed nothing was really touched and inquired if something was wrong I told him my concerns he apologized and went on to box up the food I requested. The server then showed up and asked about our comments to the busser… I smiled and said yes everything was cold… I’m just very disappointed! *frown*
She proceeded to apologize and asked if she could take something off for us… if I was the server I would of just taken control of the situation and handled it and not asked!!! We were not here for anything free… we just wanted a great meal.
Server: «I would have the manager come over, but we don’t have one right now»
Me: «Okay no manager really… how does that work out»
Server: «Well you are at The Madison»
I don’t get it!!!
She asked if she could buy us dessert, but again not here for free food and was sooo disappointed with everything… do I really want to try the dessert???
But then I thought let’s try again I want something sweet… I asked to add Chocolate Sampler (which had for types of chocolate somethings on the platter) to the check… she said «okay, but seriously let us buy that for you»!!!
At this point I was like Yes go ahead… if you still have to ask me and not take the initiative to just do it… I want my dessert for free!!!
Dessert arrived and it was the best thing we had that evening… she apologized again and stated I’m going to send the bar manager over, but after 5 minutes of waiting we said forget and left!
So never will we return to The Madison!

YThis would have gotten 5 stars if the bartender hadnt been awful, I mean dont get me wrong our drinks were delicious but [and I am no prude] his language and conversation were awful. We were 2 of the 6 people at the bar and we both had drinks arrive quickly and they were made very well. Im pretty sure he used the wrong bourbon in my husbands drink but my husband was ok with that. We just wanted to have drinks and enjoy the night but after that one drink we were ready to go. He ate his sandwich while pretty much sitting on the bar infont of the people next to us. He asked them «If they bang on the 1^st date» and that wasnt even the worst thing he said. Id go back because this place is sweet looking, totally empty and the prices werent too bad. A big group in a booth might be a better choice next time.

We had a 7 pm reservation for 5 and were seated fairly quickly. It took a while to get a wine list, but once we did, our bottle arrived and was good.
Ordered our food around 7:30 p.m. Menu is a la carte, so we ordered our entrees and several sides to share. When ordering, we were informed that they were out of baked potatoes and broccoli, but gratin potatoes were highly recommended. So we went with those. 7 p.m. dinner on a Friday night at a steakhouse seemed odd to run out of baked potatoes, but oh well.
Finally got our entrees at 9:15 (almost 2 hours after ordering). The wait staff brought the vegetable sides, but not the potatoes. When we were nearly done with our entrees, the waitress came by and told us that they were out of the gratin, so offered mashed instead. They never came. A friend asked for horseradish for her steak and was told «coming right up», but it never was delivered. Steak was okay, but nothing special. Snapper special with citrus sauce had a nice sauce. Duck looked good. Lobster was a large portion.
The waitress offered us dessert on the house because of all of the mess-​us, and brought a nice chocolate sampler, but then forgot to bring the coffee and tea until part way through eating the dessert. When we were nearly done with the dessert, the busboy showed up with 2 bowls of mashed potatoes and wanted to put them on the table like we were going to eat them after everything!
Overall a real mess. Maybe it was a bad night, but the staff seemed fairly unconcerned. And I don’t think I would risk another few hundred dollars to give them another shot.

Ate here for a wedding party.
Salad was OK. Salmon was a bit dry and the potatoes seemed to overdo the entire dish. Too rich. Everything was buttery/​oily and it was pooling on the plate.
Wait staff kept taking our drinks before we were done. Lost a couple glasses of wine and champagne at our table without even a question as to whether or not we were done. It was fine until the free bar ended and people were wishing they still had their drink. Oh well.
Also, wait staff was difficult to find. It was as though they came out en masse to serve and such and then every single one of them disappeared. No water refills. No offer of coffee. It was set on a stand off to the side without a word. In an establishment like that I sort of expected to be served and so I left it until I saw other people making their coffee at the stand. This would not have been a big issue had I at least been told. I’ve worked fine dining before: this is the type of thing you do when someone tells you not to «push» the coffee, since it is included and the restaurant will no make a profit off of the item. It comes across negatively, both on the restaurant and on the staff.
The ambiance is beautiful. I do not claim to be an art expert, but the art seems largely out of place for such a beautiful art deco type room. The place has such amazing angles and lines, it should be embellished, not diminished by bright and bold paintings. If anyone has ever eaten at Kaplans back in the late 80s and remembers the artwork, it is very similar.
The pluses?
The one woman we actually managed to find went out of her way to find us a piece of the cake that was special for people with dietary restrictions.
Sans the art on the walls, the architecture is enough to marvel for hours.
The bar is nice; would be a great place to meet up for drinks on a date or such.

Great place! A breed apart from the expense card corporate eateries in the LB Convention Center area.
I would come back and even spend my own money.

Ahhhhh, The Madison, you make me feel so grown up and elegant.
I have dined here three times and I held a surprise 20^th anniversary celebration for my husband here in 2009.
The experience begins when you pull up to the valet. The attendants are so friendly and helpful. As they open your door, you step out onto a red carpet that leads you to the glorious entrance of The Madison (which used to be a bank way back in the day). Once inside, you are mesmerized by the exquisite chandeliers and floor to ceiling all wood bar where you expect to see Humphrey Bogart sitting while sipping on some bourbon and enjoying a cigar.
The whole experience is so elegant and classy without a pretentious feel. The food is delicious and the presentation is beautiful. Service can be a little slow at times, but it may be because they want you to enjoy the whole dining experience in full. If you want to plan an event, Patrick is *the man*. He worked with me on a very limited budget and provided me with such a memorable evening that it actually stood out more than my own wedding reception.
Like I said, the food is very very good, but I come here more for the feel it gives me. It’s like being thrown back into the roaring twenties full of class and elegance. I love the atmosphere here.
Down Sides:
— Very expensive (which is why I have only been here 4 times)
— Valet kind of expensive, too.
— The Vault, downstairs, where the private events are held is a very, very warm and stuffy room — beautiful but needs better circulation.
Positives:
* Ambience, class, elegance and style like no other I have found.
* Fabulous food
* Takes me back to an era I wish I had lived in
* Beef Wellington and a side of grilled Asparagus with citrus Hollandais sauce is insanely delish!
* You can serve prime rib, salmon and chicken with garlic mashed potatoes, vegetables, salad, dinner rolls and also have cake and coffee service for 50 people on a very small budget!!!
Madison, it’s been too long. I owe you a visit ;)
(photos coming soon)

The Madison was little restaurant off of S. Pine Ave. and E. 1^st St
. I did a photoshoot for my brother’s wedding. I’m glad I came here early or else I can’t find any parking anywhere. They have a small lot from the side of the restaurant.
The ambiance is very romantic for a first date but who would want to take someone for a first date
. Hell no, I wouldn’t pay around $ 60 a person for my first date. That’s a big burn to my wallet. Sorry, I ain’t that loaded (hehe) They have a full bar to your right. The wine tasted good. Service was fast (they better be). I don’t know what’s wrong in the rooms since there weren’t any open windows. I didn’t feel any AC blowing in the room. It felt stuffy in there. I guess they’re trying to conserve energy. The filet mignon was okay, not that juicy. I mean, if you’re paying that much for steak, at least make it worthwhile to eat. I took a chunk of my brother’s rib eye steak, now that was tasty and juicy. I should have ordered this one instead.
Going down in the narrow stairway, they made a dance floor in the basement. The first thing I was was a huge vault door. I guess back then this was an old bank.
There are other better places to eat for a great hunk of steak but this restaurant is okay to check out for first timers around the Long Beach Area.

This is my review on the Madison
We LOVE this place. Discovered it about 11 years ago and we go there for all of our special occasions. I love it just as a date night with my husband. The staff is always friendly and helpful. We have never had to wait to be seated, not even on New Year’s Eve or Valentine’s Day
The historic atmosphere of this old bank takes you back to another era. A must see for anyone who appreciates architecture that is no longer found in our modern world. The live band and piano player makes it a great night out instead of it simply being typical night out.

Ya Ya Ya I came here and my reason, it was right around the corner of our hotel and I didn’t wanna short cab it to 555 lol Im lazy I know. It was so last minute this vist. I was aware of the lame reviews so I knew what to expect. Ambiance is bomb, so I agree with everyone on that. The live music is very good, I don’t remember the band but its 2 guys and they sing a mix of stuff.
The hostess is totally cool and remembered me from earlier making the rsvps and even called me by name when we left, so I like that touch. The waiter on the other hand was not on point. I remember reading about a white gummy bear martini in one of the previous reviews. So I ask him about it and he has no idea what im talking about !!! I told my date to go to the bar and get me one and sure enough they had it! So round 3 LOL I said sir you guys have that martini so go get me that, he came back still confused JEEZ we literally had to write that ish down to let him know whats up. For that it was on the house. Thank you!
Ordered our entrees. When we first sat down the hostess, told us about how infamous their Beef wellington is and people travel all over for it LOL seriously LMF’uckinAO hearing that ish. So I order it and my date orders salmon, Our sides mac and cheese and this kind of mashed potato dish. So this «Famous» Beef wellington was fuccccckkkkkkked up. I never had beef wellington before, but after this one, I might be to traumatized to try it again somewhere else LOL. My date ate his salmon like it was the last meal so im just glad he enjoyed his food, he also grubbed on the mashers like it was the last thing too HAHA. They were just OK and the mac and cheese was just weird, globs of uneven cheese. Just to oily, sowee!
I didn’t even want to try dessert, I just wanted out so I can go back to the hotel for some real dessert *hehe* and a change to go to my Panama joes!
Sorry Madison, I did give you a shot but you need Chef Ramsey up in your spot because you guys need a extreme kitchen makeover!!!

We just had a private party here, a 15-​year reunion. So the evening started off at the bar, fully stocked. It was a open bar for the first hour, so everyone was trying to get their drink before the hour ended. A couple of my friends before me were trying to get the bartenders attention. He had told them that they were next, but jumped to other folks. And by the time that he got back to them, they ordered in time, but by the time he got back to them he told them that it was too late. My friends had started to tell him that they ordered before the hour, but he started to become agressive and threatened not to serve them for the rest of the evening. Not a good start for the evening. Unfortunately, for this event, there were no beverages offered at the table, so we had to go to the bar for everything, for water and sodas. I got a bit lucky, a couple my sodas weren’t on my tab. I guess they were too busy at times that they forgot to add it to my tab.
The food was average. It was served buffet style. Salad with a creamy balsamic vinaigrette dressing, bread rolls, chicken, pasta, and fish. All were just OK. Nothing to write home about. The venue was OK for our little soirée. There were about 100 of us, and the little space for a dance floor was just enough.
It is a very beautiful venue. Very picturesque. A great place for a classy event.
You have to pay for parking wherever you go. The valet parking is $ 6. It was a pain just to go back to your car to get something you needed from your car. They are really understaffed for valet. They weren’t attentive to you at all. At the end of the evening, the valet stand is moved across the street. I’m assuming because of how busy Pine Street can be at that time of the evening. There’s a pay lot just next door to the building. It’s downtown Long Beach, so it’s a bit busy there. And don’t think that the cops are around. As I was waiting for my car, a Long Beach Police van just pulled up, waiting for those drunk freaks to topple out of the bars into their cars.

I came here for my cousin’s reception. And I must agree, this place is beautiful. it used to be an old bank building and you just don’t see architecture and detail like that anymore.
The service was good, but there was no air conditioning that day… in August! The appetizers were okay I suppose, however I really enjoyed the salad that we had, I think it either had cranberries or strawberries I forget. The steak however was not my cup of tea. I felt there was no flavor. And I had just came back from Korea with a stop in Japan… and I swear the filet mignon that I had at the Madison tasted exactly like the steak I had on the JAL flight… economy class!
The only reason for the 3 stars are for the building and the super strong mints they have at the front.

What a disappointment. We walked in for a group holiday dinner for a party of seven and were impressed with the ambiance, but should have walked right out when we went to the bar, my husband asked what kind of bourbon they had, and the response he received was a blank stare and a question as to if bourbon was a «mixed drink.» That should have been the first sign that we were in for a long night of horrible service, which went on to include:
* Ordering our food and then being told ten minutes later that ¹⁄₃ of the items our party wanted were not available. Typically, your waiter will tell you what’s no longer available when he hands out the menus or at LEAST before he takes your orders, no?
* Waiting almost an hour for our (revised) entrees to arrive on our table.
* Ordering a second bottle of pinot noir, only to have it be served to the patrons around us first and then placed nonchalantly on our table as if it wasn’t ¾ full.
* …and having to point to out to our server how that was wrong.
* Realizing that the (new) second bottle of pinot noir actually was syrah too late to return it.
The food was good, but not good enough to make up for inattentive and ignorant service, especially in a place that passes itself off as an elegant restaurant.

The Madison is located along the same street in downtown Long Beach as L’Opera and 555 East. They renovated an old-​time bank, which results in a pretty interesting exterior and interior.
The Madison is a steakhouse. The appetizers (standard fare like crab cakes, calamari) are ho-​hum. But the steak (rib eye) was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. Someone ordered the lamb chops, and they looked good.
The service was okay (though the waiter seemed to disappear for long stretches of time). The menu is very similar to 555 East. I think people like 555 East more. I would have to try 555 East again before making that claim (I’ve had both good and average experiences at 555 East). I’m not sure if I would go back to The Madison, but it wouldn’t be a bad place to go if you had to eat in Long Beach.
By the way, a 3 course dinner here (without drinks, tax, or tip) will run you about $ 50-​$ 65.

Quick & Dirty:
Fancy Shmancy! Went here for a drink before a show at the Terrace Theater and had a decent time. It’s big, old, and I think it used to be a bank. Didn’t eat the food, so if you’re looking for that kind of review… move on to another.
Long & Big:
When you walk in this place it is cavernous. There is tons of wood and a huge bar (that’s where I ended up). This is the type of place that I would picture someone in the 20’s or 30’s to hang out in. The bar is pretty impressive and I wish I had the liver to support it all, but I don’t. Any bar that has a ladder is a good bar to me! The bartender was wearing a tux! Impressive.
We ended up eating oysters. Eh. I have this thing about oysters. They aren’t as good as they sound. If they were as good as they cost then you wouldn’t have to put all kinds of crap on it to eat it. Not like steak. Oysters are something that I could live without for the rest of my life. Bleh, oysters suck. Why do I keep eating them? Oh, that’s right, because other people keep ordering them.
Overall, for the drink and oysters I had, it was ooookaaay. Would I go here again? Why not.
Can you feel my enthusiasm?

Remember the «gilded age» which your Edwardian-​era grandmother might talk about once in a while? Of course you don’t. However, this place echos that era which I’m too young to know about firsthand.
Actually going there reminded me of fine dining in a banquet hall of the Titanic (or I suppose the Queen Mary is close enough). The art and wood finishes really adds an elegant and classy atmosphere. The waitstaff looked quite professional and were polite. The place smelled like a place that simulated Old Money… and that’s not because it used to be a bank.
I came here after reading the other Unilocal reviews and decided to give it a go myself. Instead of splurging on the valet (because I read so many bad reviews), I parked over at the Pike parking structure and walked the two blocks to get here, not before stopping by Borders and getting my parking validated early. I figured I’d be spending a lot of money while at the restaurant, so I was going to cut back on other things to help even things out things a little. This was more psychological than anything.
Once I got to the restaurant, I wasn’t sure who it was that was supposed to greet me, as there were many well dressed people standing around the entrance. I looked like a dumbass asking a couple of men and women, who looked like they could be a mater’d, if it was okay if I sat at the bar, since I was going to be dining solo.
Finally, after not being able to nab the host, I just sat myself down at the bar and was greeted by an attentive bartender. I started with a couple of rounds of Stella and went for the harder stuff as the night progressed. I began taking shots before dinner even made it out. I was actually acting the part of the guy that isn’t supposed to show up to these kinds of places, but with more class than your typical ass.
Here’s a tip if you’re sitting at the bar: Make sure to sit next to the cash register, so that the bartender would always make sure to ask if you’re still good or wanted something else as he or she is ringing someone else up. That’s half the battle right there.
The bartender was cool and the drinks he did make me were pretty stiff, and I asked him if he wanted to join me in a toast. He wanted to, but couldn’t because the owner was present. He was great and actually left off a couple of the drinks from my final tab.
After tallying up my final tab: some crab cakes, a beef wellington, and eight different drinks, the final price came out to the neighborhood of $ 70+ dollars. After tip was written in, it was around $ 85. I was too buzzed and too happy to care how expensive that was at the time, really.
Before leaving, the bartender mentioned that, despite the other large group of people in the bar area, I still outspent any other single douche there with their dates. And this was for a bar experience, mind you. That only made me feel ambivalent as the owner opened the door for me urging me to return.
Pros: Good ambiance, great service, classy old-​world environment
Cons: Too pricey for some, parking can be a hassle
The lesson: I was glad I pre-​validated my parking stub as I ran to make it back to the car before the hour-​and-​a-​half of free parking expired at the Pike. I had the entire Madison experience within 90 minutes!