The Plaza Tavern

The Plaza! Wow what a fun, cute and welcome feel you’ll get when you walk in.
Not too busy for a Saturday afternoon but there were around ten people. A few families with babies in strollers came in after us, so a good place for families too.
We had the plaza burgers; which were good.
Plaza sauce is great; tastes like sour cream, mayo, and ranch dressing powder.
We also ordered the half order of fries. Too small for two and we should’ve known better, but we were trying to watch our weight. They were so good and crispy we could’ve both ordered the whole order and eaten them all.
Nice brew selection; and I had a crisp apple Crispin Cider! Really great!
Probably will go again.
Service was sweet and polite.
Food was good but not great.

The classic Plaza Tavern… never fails. I’ve been coming here since I was a kid. A true gem in Madison. You can’t the cheap beer and delicious burgers.

I love this place and went here during college and when I return for holidays always come here.
The burgers are thin-​which I like. The food is super good bar food and the interior is perfect.
Wish there were more places like this around!

Thursday night $ 5 double long islands. Let me say that again, Thursday night $ 5 double long islands. Let me sing it again (Sisqo voice), Thursday night $ 5 double long islands.
Have one, maybe two. Probably three. Plus this place is cool looking as all hell. Try to get in there before 10pm because the undergrads will show up en masse. The space inside is large enough to accommodate all, but you don’t want to wait in line if you can help it.

Great nostalgia at this joint. Still looks the same as it did when I was seeking in here underage in 1997. Although, a lot less smokey now. I’m sure it looks the same as it did in 1977. Favorite parts: the artwork, the Ms. Pac-​Man/​Galaga machine, bubble hockey, the booths, and the Plazaburger.
About the Plazaburger: it is currently $ 5.25. It is the same size as a McDonald’s hamburger and pretty much the same quality. However, it is actually cooked and not microwaved. I guess that makes it worth another $ 1.50 over the $ 1 menu burger. It also has the great «special» sauce, which is delicious! Maybe that is worth another $ 0.50. That brings it to about $ 3. My point is… you should get almost two (or at least a double) at that $ 5.25. Way too pricey, but it is a Madison fav and Johnny Cash and Bill Murray have been here before, so…

It is hard to find a dive bar in Madison that isn’t full of sweaty freshman taking ownership over the shuffleboard table. The plaza guarantees at least one game to play and cheap drinks along with the best neighborhood sconnies in the city. Don’t miss this place if you are looking to shoot some quarter pool or pinball.

Honestly, I don’t understand why people like the Plaza Tavern?! It looks like a guetto, trashy, rundowned bar, and it doesn’t seem the owner cares too much about the business at all! Plaza Tavern isn’t real competitive with the other bars downtown, they have no lines Friday, and Saturday nights, except for Thursday night, but who cares, that’s not a weekend night!!!
As far as entertainment, they have no live music, no bands, they don’t provide what most college kids want! I honestly don’t know why people like going, it’s just really boring, a dive!!!

Large retro dive-​y place with very friendly staff. Thanks for the recommendation of the amber beer on draft! It was great!

Plaza burger was really good. The service was absolutely horrible. She gave us our bill right away before asking us if we wanted anything else. She was very short with us and was not friendly at all.

First I would like to disclose this should be a two part review; one for the food and one for the establishment itself seeing as how I don’t eat here a whole lot.
The Plaza is one of my typical pool haunts, it features two 7′ tables that are in decent shape, and play pretty well. Quite a few decent shooters regularly play on these tables, especially the front table closer to the bar. Some nights it can be particularly hard to shoot here given the crowd though, ESPECIALLY on a Thursday night; you will need to usher 1 – 3 people away from where you’re going to shoot, every single shot. Don’t count on not getting bumped after that, either.
The back table is situated in what looks like a cafeteria, plastic chairs and all. I tend not to shoot back here, as people are in your way sitting down back here; its much easier and less «that guy» to move a standing person rather than a seated one.
There are decent drink specials here especially on Thursdays, $ 2 long islands and $ 2.50 craft beers like tap Mudpuppy Porter (!!!), which explains the crowds. After 10pm you will more than likely wait in a line to get in.
If it weren’t for the crowd here I would not frequent the Plaza. The staff provide prompt service, and are pleasant until they decide it’s time to kick everybody out, which is quite early compared to most bars. Patrons are usually on the younger side, lots of college students and the like punishing their livers before/​after finals.
The food, however is over-​hyped to maximum effect. The Plazaburger is a frozen patty grilled and smothered in a sauce that tastes like a sour cream/​thousand island blend seasoned with french onion mix. Contrary to popular belief it’s a mediocre burger and somewhat small, rather than an epiphany or a majestic hunk of cow covered in essence of the gods. Not terrible, but why the hype people? I also had fries, they were fries.
Overall not a bad place for a cheap drink, shooting some pool and the shit with folks.

I have no comments about their food, as i’ve never had it. But I will give a handy bit of advice. If you’re looking for a place to go out on a Thursday, this is the place to be. You might have to wait in line for a little while, but once you get in, it’ll be grand. It has good drink specials, fun staff, a lively atmosphere (Personally, I always see a lot of people I know there), and some classic activities like darts, pool, table hockey, and arcade games. It’s a blast!
On any other day, it isn’t nearly as exciting. Barely anyone there, and the drink specials aren’t as nice. If you want a more calm place on a weekend, then the Plaza might be your niche, but there’s better places for that purpose.
Plaza is a 2 on a normal day of the week, but it’d be a 5 if every day were a Thursday, but sadly only 1 day is. So i’m giving it a 3.

If you’re looking for a bar with good specials and that solid old neighborhood bar feel, Plaza’s your place. Cheap drinks every night of the week, plenty of TVs, pool, lots of seating. This place has everything a classic bar should have, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else — which is why I love it. Higher end bars aren’t always a bad thing, but whenever you want to ditch the fancy drinks and get some good bar food instead, Plaza’s here for you.
Oh and DAT BURGER. Pretty sure most of the world’s problems would be solved if everyone just ate a Plaza burger with cheese curds and some Plaza sauce on the side.

Thursday night is the only night I have ever and will ever go to Le Plaz.
$ 2 Long Islands and $ 2.50 select craft beers on rotation (Hoppalicious, Bedlam, etc.). Play table hockey for $ 1 and gloat over your friends all night! Winning is temporary, bragging is forever.
Visit the Plaza for a trip to the past. If you find yourself feeling like you’re in a bad 70’s disco dream (velvet paintings included)… don’t worry, you’re not dreaming.

The Plazaburger. It’s their thing.
No, the patties aren’t grass-​fed massaged Kobe beef hand formed or anything like that… it’s all about the sauce with this here monster.
That sauce is the stuff I’m sure lots of Madison legend is made of.
It’s some sort of aioli ranch dill-​onaise hybrid, and this sauce? The biz nasty, folks.
The Plaza Tavern boasts a bar food menu replete with items for you to dunk in that storied sauce.
Cheap drinks, a dive-​y feel, Big Buck Hunter/​other assorted video games, one of the most random genre-​spanning playlists I’ve encountered in awhile, and really friendly bartenders. Giant-​ass paintings of landscapes adorn wood-​paneled walls. A back room with a pool table, beer neons, and well… you get the idea.
Were this spot in MKE I’d definitely hit it up for some curds and a few beers every now and again!
Cash only; there’s ATM on site, however.

Stop by American Apparel, pop on your high-​waisted short shorts and let’s get our hip groove on to a jukebox playlist. Now, our chosen jukebox dollar ditties probably won’t play until tomorrow’s bar crowd comes through but no biggie, this «Wonderwall» request will do. Limbo under the pool stick as that guy goes to break and your next long island’s on me, girl.
The place isn’t fancy by any means but it’s a college kid favorite, which means people-​watching is prime on a Thursday when the long islands are only $ 2. Education is expensive, amiright? And when you’re trying to keep up with the youngsters as they down their drinks, treat yourself to a Plazaburger and be thankful you did. This cheesy, greasy goodness, as truthfully described on The Plaza’s homepage, «is sopped with secret sauce and delicious.» S-​o-​p-​p-​e-​d. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

This is the most underrated bar in Madison.
Not for the average bar hopper, but incredibly fun. You will see every type of person in The Plaza, for better or for worse.
The food is extraodinary for how simple it is. Get the Plaza sauce with everything. It is the best condiment I have ever tried, and I will never know what it is. I love the cheese curds with a Cheese Plaza burger.
Thursdays are the best for $ 2 long island nights. It gets very busy, so be sure to get there around 10 – 11.
Some of my favorite servers no longer work here, but they always have the most interesting people working.
Don’t buy a song on the jukebox. You will never hear it. Luckily the staff and customers have an enjoyable taste in music, so you won’t be dissapointed.

Drink when you’re thirsty. Eat when you’re hungry. Sleep when you’re tired. And when you want to walk — stroll. These are the primary tenets of mountain time. It should not be confused with Mountain Time — the time zone 2 hours behind New York — that guides residents of the Rocky Mountains. No, no, this is something far different.
This version of mountain time isn’t kept track of on your iPhone. It exists in your soul. Ticking away each second until you’re ready to meet your maker. There are no heroes in mountain time. No clocks. No capes. Extremes thrive here. Your ascent begins at daybreak and ends at nightfall.
I once climbed the mountain at the Plaza. With a local buddy who goes by Bart — son of JR, father of Cock — we had a few pitchers ate burgers and sang late into the darkness. I’m not from Wisconsin. But I could be. We all could be. If you don’t believe me, try the Plaza.

About as close to a ‘real Wisconsin’ joint as one may find downtown. Mostly full of locals after a long day of work.
Beer is a little on the pricey side, $ 4.50 in a dive bar feels like a buck too much, but it was a nice draft of Spotted Cow. Their big attraction, the ‘Plaza Burger’ is a fairly priced frozen patty cooked – but unfortunately not seared – and dowsed in a strange concoction of sour cream and mayo. If you ask me it’s just a package of French Onion dip with some extra seasoning. I wouldn’t say I loved it but I can say that I ate everything on my plate. There are better burgers abounding within a 10 minute walk.
Worth a stop through for out of town-​ers, and those looking for a chill place to avoid undergrads downtown while unwinding with a burger and a draft.

To those fellow reviewers who mentioned the Plaza Tavern feels like a bar out of a movie where they know your name and drink, you are spot on. I left this place feeling like a character from the movie «Going The Distance.» It just has the nostalgic feel to it. The Plaza Burger is good, the This place feels like a small town bar where everybody knows everybody. One thing that disappointed me was they are not open on Sundays. Overall I would recommend going there for the Plaza Burger and cheese curds.

A no frills Wisconsin establishment at its finest. I’m a fan… the booze is cheap and the food is good.
The place really gets kickin’ later at night on the weekends with a fairly diverse mix of people. They’ve got a jukebox that I somehow always manage to pump with some 1970s Rod Stewart gems… SOMEBODY’S got to get that crowd MOVIN
I’ve been here more than a handful of times and have never left unfulfilled.