Steenbock’s On Orchard
330 N Orchard St, Madison, WI, 53715
Steenbock’s On Orchard Menu
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Address :
330 N Orchard St
Madison, WI, 53715 - Phone (608) 204-2733
- Website https://www.steenbocksonorchard.com
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :11:00 am - 8:00pm
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : No
Take-out : No
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Lunch, Dinner
Parking : Garage
Bike Parking : Yes
Good for Kids : No
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Dressy
Ambience : Classy, Upscale
Noise Level : Quiet
Music : Background
Good For Dancing : No
Alcohol : Full Bar
Best Nights : Thu, Fri, Sat
Coat Check : No
Smoking : No
Outdoor Seating : Yes
Wi-Fi : Free
Has TV : No
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : Yes
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John G.
Upscale restaurant with great flavors, a great atmosphere but not quite able to deliver on quality. Came here for Restaurant Week 2015 and had a good experience. To their credit, it's a tall order to be able to serve a decent 3 course meal for $15 and for the most part Steenbock's delivered, but there were definitely a few flaws for a higher end restaurant like this. For appetizers we had the spinach and bacon salad along with the Moroccan Chutney with Cambozola. The spinach salad was well done with great blistered tomatoes, well cooked onions and a good mix of flavors, unfortunately my "warm" spinach salad came out quite cold which diluted the dish a bit. The Moroccan Chutney also had bright flavors and the cambozola cheese was a perfect mix. Here though, the sweetness of the sauce clashed with the tomatoes to the point where the dish became sickly sweet and inedible. For our meals we had a Root Vegetable Pot Pie and the Pancetta and Herb Stuffed Chicken Breast. The pot pie was the standout dish of the meal. The crust was perfectly savory with herbs baked into the dough and the components were perfectly cooked in a lighter sauce that worked well for lunch. The chicken breast was a bit of a disappointment. It was well matched with the brussel sprout-parsnip succotash and the flavors were definitely there. Unfortunately the brussel sprouts had a more-than-characteristic bitterness and the chicken was badly overcooked to the point of being very dry and stringy. The "stuffing" was actually not a stuffing, but rather a mass of shredded pancetta and herb lumped on top, which only served as a salty (albeit tasty) augment to the dish's already overcooked dryness. For dessert the only menu choice was the Dark Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding. Again the flavor was good with strong chocolate notes that complimented the pudding and the small scoop of vanilla ice cream, but just as in the "stuffed" chicken the dish missed the described mark. The opportunity to use the flaky and buttery notes of croissant were completely drowned in the density of the pudding and the bright notes of the raspberries were lost after two tiny bites. All in all, the service was quite good, the food came out quickly, and the ambiance was a nice, bright, modern flair. The meal was by no means a disappointment, but for what the restaurant is trying to be, they really need to step up their quality control and make dishes that match what's on the menu.
(3)Sherry L.
Oh, I wish I could give Steenbock's five stars, but the service at lunchtime was a little too sparse. It took us nearly 15 minutes to flag down our server so that we could get our check at the end of the meal, even though there were only a few tables still filled by the time we finished our food (which, by the way, also took forever to get to us). Looking back on a few of the reviews, I'm very surprised to find that Steenbock's has been praised for their superb service. I must have missed that memo. Service aside, the food is definitely five-stars worthy. For such a classy-looking restaurant, Steenbock's serves one of the messiest (but also one of the most delicious) chicken sandwiches I have ever tried. As great as it sounds on paper, it is even more impressive on the plate. The guac is a nice touch of color and flavor, and the creamy coleslaw helps to add additional texture to the sandwich. If you are on a date or with anyone you are trying to impress, you'd be better served dining with a fork and knife. Otherwise, dig in and get messy! PS. The sandwich comes served with either a side salad or fries. Go with the fries. We all know that your diet is a futile one.
(3)Corey D.
I forgot who said a restaurant is only as good as its people. Perhaps nobody said that and I can claim it? Regardless, in Madison, Michael Pruett is the most unsung apron wearing, slicing, dicing, sauteing, dude in a kitchen, which makes it easy for me to say the following: Steenbock's is the most overlooked restaurant in the 608. Bold statement time: If you haven't eaten at Steenbock's you're missing out on what might be one of the strongest dining experiences you'll have in Madison. The interior is far warmer than another well known fine dining establishment in town, which sets the scene for an incredible culinary adventure. The service is spot on! SPOT FRIGGIN' ON. So much so that if a server misses a beat, a GM or AGM is quick to swap out a fork, refill a glass, or bring by a new napkin that's fallen on the floor. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not for all the pomp and circumstance. Just put good food in front of me and I'll be ok. BUT if you're going to build a reputation for solid service, deliver. And these guys do. (Something else I can't say about other fine dining experiences I've had in town). When it comes to the food. It's remarkable. Full of flavor, artfully plated and portioned in a way that you can easily savor every bite without feeling like you're over doing it. True that some entrees are pricey as compared to most places in town, but split some small plates with friends, or just simply make Steenbocks a once a quarter place as I've done and splurge after a few months of hard work. You owe it to yourself! My biggest grip about the place... nobody is ever there when I am. Why? If I'm being completely honest, it's in the worst location maybe second to Naples15 which is in a basement. Here's the deal, you can't really see it from the road, the parking situation is abysmal, and I fear that because it feels like a "destination" (even though if you read their website and map your trip it's actually easy) people just pass. DON'T PASS ON THESE GUYS! My fear is the time will come when it doesn't make sense to keep Steenbock's open and Michael will be flipping burgers and sending out cheese curds dressed up in panko or something stupid on the Capitol. Go. Eat. Tell others what you think. Go back with them. Eat again.
(5)Desiree A.
The lobster salad on wheat was to die for. It was so fresh, light, and tasty. We asked to have it on wheat toast instead of what it came with and the waitress was happy to substitute. Wonderful experience for lunch.
(5)Rachel H.
Steenboks on Orchard is the perfect balance between sophisticated and laid back. This restaurant is clearly of the higher end of restaurants but not stuffy, which in turn makes customers feel welcome. The food is outstanding, a personal favorite being their wide selection of lunch salads that provide a healthy, yet still filling and delicious lunch. The day time hostess, I think her name was Willa, was friendly and accommodating. One of the best spots on campus for a decent priced, great tasting meal!
(5)Belinda L.
This is the place for most formal campus lunch/dinner place where guests and visitors are being hosted for meals. Being right on campus and located in the new glassy Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, its geographical location is perfect for formal events. And hence I have been here a couple of occasions. Their menu changes with the seasons as they source local ingredients for their food, which is a good thing. I like places that support local produce, plus, you won't get bored of the same menu year round. For some reason I really like the location and layout. The building it is located is a full glass building. So while dining you can have a full view of each and every happening outside. During the summer months they open up the swing doors, you have a choice of sitting indoors enjoying the cool breeze, or choose to sit right outside to be in the center of it all. As the menu changes I would suggest going with your favorites, or whatever best arose your curiosity of catches your attention. You can hardly go wrong here. I have dined with huge groups where we have ordered vastly different foods and so far the feedback has always been positive. Being surrounded by significantly lower priced eateries (think Aldos, Subway, QQ Express, Ginger Root, Harvest Grains, the Sett and the likes), it is not a regular go-to for students. But if you feel like some fine dining one day on that special occasion, or if you are looking for a place to host visits right on campus, this is the place to go for.
(4)Shruti W.
Disclaimer: This review is for their Restaurant Week lunch. We came to Steenbock's last week for lunch, and I left wondering how it was possible that I had never been considering I work just a few buildings away. The food, service, and ambiance were amazing. Even during a busy weekday Restaurant Week lunch, we had a lovely dining experience. The food was excellent. We ordered the spinach salad and calamari appetizers, burger and lamb bolognese entrees and the molten chocolate cake and creme brulee desserts. The burger was the best burger either of us has had in Madison, and the bolognese (served with tagliatelle) was delicious as well. The desserts were similarly outstanding, and the appetizers were yummy and huge. I could have eaten my salad alone for lunch and been very satisfied. My one criticism of the food was that the spinach salad was served with warm tomatoes in it, which wilted the spinach a bit. I also felt the meals were not particularly cohesive, but since the Restaurant Week menus have limited options I don't think that would be an issue normally. The portions were so big I got a second lunch out of my leftovers the next day. I was seriously impressed with how good the service was. The hostesses were very friendly, and our waitress was extremely attentive and nice. The ambiance at lunch was great. The place was busy and the tables are a bit close together, but you don't feel like others can hear every word you're saying so it's not at all uncomfortable. If you haven't been to Steenbock's yet, you really need to check it out. I know I'll certainly be back!
(5)Stephanie P.
Ate here a couple years ago,had the tasting menu with wine pairing. It was easily the most adventurous and elegant meal I have ever had... It wasn't just dinner but an experience! Thought it easily out matched l'etoile for a fancy dinner; l'etoile did have a more elegant ambience though. Haven't been back since they changed the menu so not sure how it is now...
(5)Jeff D.
I find it hard to describe or categorize this restaurant - I feel the restaurant itself is in an extremely casual setting and yet the food and menu is trying to be moderately upscale... which then also contrasts with the not terribly good service I've sometimes had. I've had some good meals here but the service and food is unreliable enough that it wouldn't be my first recommendation.
(3)Alper S.
This restaurant is distinctly priced for a different sort of clientele. Instead of a $5 lunch from Union South, $5 sandwich from Subway, or $7-10 of food from Regent St., the $12-16 lunch here is going for something different. At this price-point, no doubt you'd expect the quality to be better. It's not. It doesn't fit it's price point... the only thing the place has going for it are the linens and the convenient location in the middle of campus. When we want to show a prospective student a nice lunch, this would be a no-brainer place to take them. It quickly becomes disappointing when you realize you could've had a better deal eating better food at another restaurant around campus. From served lettuce going bad, to the tasteless bolongaise sauce, to the rueben (Harvest Grains in Union South has them beat!!)... it's not a fun experience I wish to replicate. They do dress the place up during the busy times, but if they're not going to deliver quality at all times, then they should stay closed during the quiet times during the day. I don't know what their strengths are; all they seem to have going for them is their location and ability to grab visiting faculty or people from surrounding events in the WID.
(1)Bethany S.
Steenbock's, I give you three stars. One star is for our waitress, who was as cute as the corgi bellyflop video and settled our debate on choice of wine the only way that debate should ever be settled: by bringing out a glass of each. One star is for the building that Steenbock's is in, which has indoor trees, water sculptures and magic touch screen displays to show off the building's green pedigree. One star is for trying hard. Some problems: it was expensive for what it was, the food was only fair, the wine and beer menu limited, and it was nearly empty at seven on a Friday. Not a winner by Madison's standards but interesting to try once.
(3)boots b.
Came here for dinner during Restaurant Week on 1/28/14. We were seated in the section to the left of the bar instead of the main dining room. Maybe because we were just there for Restaurant Week? It's an odd spot and made us feel disconnected from the restaurant. Service was great but the food was below average. Everything came out immediately which was great but made me wonder if dishes were pre-plated and waiting to be sent out. My wine had bits of cork scattered all over the surface. Our server apologized and returned with a new glass of wine. She had the bartender fill it to the rim which was great especially because the glass was originally only filled a third of the way. Appetizers: - Fagioli (soup w/ spicy sausage, cannellini beans & hand cut noodles) was ok, nothing to brag about. - Roasted Chicken Risotto was flavorless and the shredded chicken was rubbery. Dinner: - Seared Beef Flat Iron (w/cipollini onion, goat-cheese chive mashed potatoes & a cabernet demi sauce) was the best dish out of all the dishes we had. - Grilled Lamb T-Bones (w/smoked tomato, cannellini beans, sambuca-shallot marmalade) was disappointing. The beans were undercooked, unseasoned and took over the majority of the plate. But the marmalade was great. The t-bones were really tiny, so not much meat to fill up on. Also, it didn't help that the steak knives looked and worked more like butter knives. So our table shook whenever I tried to cut into the meat! It was very frustrating. Dessert: - Molten Chocolate Cake (w/pretzel ice cream) was boring - I've made better ones at home. The pretzels in the ice cream were soggy and not pleasant to bite into. Chocolate covered pretzels on the other hand would have been a much better choice - I've had this in Target brand ice cream (of all ice creams!) which was way better!! - The Bananas Foster Creme Brûlée was beyond disappointing especially since our server recommended it. I have a huge sweet tooth, but this dessert was way too sweet. And the brûlée part was even more disappointing - the sugar over the custard did not dissolve completely into a nice hard shell, it was a grainy/gritty mess. Overall, it was a total disappointment. We normally wouldn't mind shelling out $$$ for a great meal but this was heartbreaking. Don't think we'll be going back anytime soon.
(2)Meghan H.
Lovely. Conveniently located across the street from Union South. The atmosphere of the place is very clean and sleek, Zen-like. I ordered the Moules & Frites and that was rather delicious. Add to that already delicious combination some onions, curry broth, chili aioli, and grilled bread and you have a win. Aside from the food, our waiter was great. Personable and helpful in offering menu suggestions and tips. He convinced me to order the mussels, and as it was my first time trying them, I was a bit hesitant. Especially given the fact that I was super hungry and not too up for ordering something that I would end up not eating, but I'm sure glad I was talked into it because my meal here was Fantastic. capital F.
(4)Michelle F.
Let me preface this by saying that if I pay $12 for a sandwich anywhere outside of New York or an airport, I had better hear angel choirs singing. Upon its appearance at my table, the Reuben sandwich LOOKED amazing: a towering behemoth of corned beef, cheese, and pumpernickel that promised incipient deliciousness. However, the first bite uncovered the sad truth: the meat was extremely dry and bland. And although no amount of 1000 island dressing would have fixed that problem, hardly any was to be found. I have to admit that I made no effort to recover the liberal chunks of corned beef that pooped out of my sandwich onto the plate. At least that made it easier to eat, and the pumpernickel was good. But in the final assessment, this sad sandwich had me thinking Arby's.
(2)Sarah S.
Steenbock's catered food is of restaurant quality, which meaningfully elevated our guests' dining experiences at our wedding. Steenbock's is tasteful and professional, offering high-quality ingredients in an elegant presentation. They customized our wedding menu to meet our needs and willingly accommodated gluten allergies in multiple types of dishes the night of the event. In our original tasting, we were disappointed by the quality of the beef filet, so they offered us a refined beef short rib dish instead that was tender and flavorful. For our fish selection, we enjoyed salmon in a mustard aioli sauce that was absolutely stunning. For our third dish, we selected the roasted vegetable lasagna, which was probably my favorite dish of the entire menu, even for us meat-eaters! We especially loved Bob on-site, who was incredibly gracious and thoughtful, quite literally catering to our every need. He was a delight. Thank you for a wonderful experience and a deliciously memorable dinner!
(4)Allison O.
Great experience for dinner with girlfriends. Cons: Limited menu and only bar service is wine and beer. On the pricey end. Pros: decent service with very good food. I had the nightly fish special of red grouper. Normally I do not opt for any "fresh fish" in Madison but it was wonderful! Served with a Mediterranean couscous which brought a fresh flavor. It was a hearty serving and before I knew it, I had eaten the entire dish. The special was close to $30 but one of the best fresh fish dishes I've had in Madison. I would definitely go back.
(4)Marie J.
Two people: one beer+ one wine+ one appetizer+ two salads+ 2 entrees+ tip= $140. This restaurant is in the same price range as some of Madison's really nice places (Tempest, Harvest, Merchant, Tornado) where the ambiance is pleasant and service is typically excellent. We would have had a better meal at the Old Fashioned! How I wish we had gone to any of those places instead. Steenbock's on Orchard is too brightly lit, the bad 50s pop rock too loud, there are 3 large TV screens constantly showing photos of their food or sporting events. The wait staff was apathetic and unprofessional. Only beer and wine is served- no cocktails. The kale and fig salad was comprised of such tough kale, it could not be cut with a regular knife; despite being hungry we both stopped eating the salad because we were too tired (of chewing) to finish. The food all seemed to have a slightly burned or smoky flavor, as if everything is charred on the grill. The sauteed calamari was good. I had avoided this place for so long, because of it's bizarre location and cavernous cold appearance. I wanted to go somewhere new, so I gave in to my curiosity. First and last visit to Steenbock's on Orchard. .
(2)Elyssa S.
I went here with my boyfriend for valentines day. Finding a parking spot was a bit difficult so I probably wouldn't come back again in the winter. We sat in the front of the restaurant, which is kind of open to the rest of the building. It wasn't until I went to the bathroom that I noticed there was a whole other part to the restaurant. That room had much more of a restaurant feel to it - better lighting etc. Our waitress was very nice. I'm not sure if the food we got is on the regular menu (since there was a fixed price valentine's day menu). We both got the lamb with puréed potatoes (aka mashed potatoes) and spinach. It was great! The whole meal was very good. The chocolate cake was not too sweet so it was perfect. Overall it was a nice experience. I would like to go back to try the rest of the menu, but definitely in warmer weather and hopefully we will get seated in the back part of the restaurant.
(4)Alexandra D.
it's not the food, location or atmosphere- but the service. The manager is demeaning to his employees and treated our group abhorrently. He made a number of sarcastic remarks when we had an issue with our $$$ wine, and scoffed/rolled eyes... on and on. I will never support this business again, and I recommend that you do not give your support to a place that is managed by a person with this character.
(1)Benjamin T.
First, the (basically) good: the food was delicious if somewhat strangely portioned. The appetizer--a crudo with hamachi, jalapeno, and oranges, was fresh and complex--so it didn't much matter to me that the portion was also massive. I quite liked it. The "surf and turf" entree I ordered--scallops and short ribs--was equally tasty, but two scallops and two small pieces of beef do not an entree make. Maybe it has something to do with the abbreviated restaurant week menu? No matter. The bad was bad enough that I don't think I'll be giving Steenbock's a second try. It mostly centered around the service. Sorry Corey D., I don't know what Steenbock's you went to, but the service I experienced was basically on par with a TGI-Fridays. Way too casual and haphazard for the kind of dining experience the restaurant seems to be aiming (and charging) for. Dishes were not brought out at the same time--and when they were, servers didn't know who ordered what--silverware taken away but not replaced. At one point we had a collection of empty wine glasses taking over much of the space on the table (for reasons I'll get to below), and we had to flag someone to take them away. Like I said, nothing too insane--just not what you ought to expect from a restaurant striving to be at this caliber. To top it all off, DON'T ORDER any champagne unless you like yours lukewarm. Not one but two bottles were sent back, at which point it was revealed that instead of keeping the bottles in the refrigeration unit, they keep them stored in the cellar with the red wine and then attempt to chill them (instantly?) on order. Thought this was pretty much insane. Maybe nobody orders champagne? But if that's the case, take it off the menu. Don't try and convince your patrons that your champagne isn't really lukewarm or that it's meant to be that way. Come on. So yeah, all in all, two stars. Could be four or five if they got their act together. But I'm not holding my breath.
(2)Tom Q.
I knew things were off to a good start days before my dinner. On a (tipsy) whim, I emailed the chef and asked if he could set up a tasting menu with pairings for us. Within 30 minutes I got a yes. Fast forward to Saturday. We arrive and are taken back to the dining room: gorgeous, modern and very inviting. The server walked us through our 7 course menu and the pairings and made sure we didn't want to switch anything out. I'll spare you the details of every dish, but most of the tasting came from the current dinner menu in tasting sized portions. Almost every dish was plated with great attention to detail and some were quite playful - beet salad w/ hazelnut soil was gorgeous and mimicked beets growing out of the ground. As expected, service was attentive and professional. Swapping out silverware between courses would have been nice, but everything else was flawless. This was easily one of the best meals I've had in Madison and a great value as well. Our 7 courses plus (generous) wine pairings ran $100 a head. Considering this place is on par with the other fine dining in Madison, that's a steal. I was bummed to see the restaurant so empty on a Saturday (us and one other table). Yeah, the location is odd (in the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery) but that shouldn't discourage you from going. The parking sitch is weird: you can try to find a street spot or park in a University ramp. Just remember to give your server your parking ticket and they'll take care of it.
(5)Laura G.
Went here last week with a few friends... the food was GREAT! We started off with beautiful salads (beet and field greens), which were very tasty. We got the halibut, scallops, and mushroom risotto for our main meals, and everyone loved it all. We also got the s'mores and carrot cake desserts, very good, but we agreed it was the least impressive part of the meal. The service was exceptional. Our waiter, Donovan, was very helpful and funny! I recommend going here as soon as possible- we can't wait to go back!!
(5)Andrea R.
It's bad when you bond with the table beside you over how bad the experience is... We started with a 3 block walk through ice & snow. When we finally arrived, we were seated next to the only other table that was occupied. We waited 10 minutes for wine, placed our order, and waited 30 minutes for our first course (while watching others who arrived after us eat). We received our bread after the first course, and upon asking for more were told the kitchen didn't have enough. Portions sizes when the food finally made it out were small (we understand restaurant week is a taste, but appreciate restaurants that still fill us up). Food was average at best, though it was tough to tell in two bites. Our server apologized for every dish served, blaming a ticket mix-up for the delays. While she comped our wine, we would sooner have had more bread since we left hungry. Ironically, we bumped into our neighbor table at the union... ordering pizza. Immediately after a $100+ dinner. Sad, but true. We won't be back, and my guess is neither will they.
(1)Sarah K.
My family and I had our first graduation dinner here; it was great. Nice food, good service and great ambience. They have a good selection of wines. I loved their steak and cheese board. I go to this place often for lunch, but I had dinner twice and I loved the back area: private and classy!
(5)April Y.
I ordered daily risotto (with Salmon). Very nice bright and quiet environment where you can have a formal conversation with a colleague. The food is OK and not very expensive. A great place to eat with someone if you are not very close.
(4)Kate K.
Finally made it out here for restaurant week and the $15 lunch was an exceptional deal. Sauteed calamari was delightfully tender in a light tomato broth. The sweet and spicy Korean Style Pork ribs were perfectly seasoned, and the accompanying slaw complemented them amazingly well. Desert was a let-down. The bread pudding was served room temperature and dry and would have greatly benefited from some warmth and more sauce. I'm not sure this is where I'd head for an upscale meal, some small touches were missing, but the food is worth a visit.
(4)Kathy L.
We recently hosted my daughter's wedding reception at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, for which Steenbock's is the caterer. Very simply, it was perfect! The food was really, really delicious! Our family is rife with foodies, and we loved the dinner. We were not served "banquet food" but rather "restaurant food." The components of each dish were very interesting and well executed. Our guests had their choice of salmon, beef short ribs, or stuffed chicken. Everyone I spoke with was very satisfied with their choice, and several were trying to deconstruct their meals so they could try to re-create them at home. Why not just go to Steenbock's and have them make it for you? :) The appetizers were also much better than we anticipated, having had lots of mediocre food at other weddings. The crab cakes, prosciutto-wrapped asparagus were very tasty, and the cheese variety and charcuterie were beautiful to look at as well as delicious.
(5)Ka L.
If you're looking to bring UW-Madison visitors to a fancy place, that's probably where you'll end up. Indeed, for its location and ambience, it totally fits the bill for a good and decent restaurant appropriate for the important guests. Or, on a day where you wanna go to somewhere to feel like an adult but don't wanna venture of campus, this is a good place to go to. I've been to Steenbock's several times for lunch and including the recent restaurant week. I would say the food is decent, but definitely not some place I would return just because of a craving. With regards to restaurant week, the nice thing is that they take reservations, and can comfortably take a group of 10. Food came relatively quickly for our large group of 10, but getting their attention was really hard. Also, standards seem inconsistent, for several of us who got the same dishes, some were really unhappy, and some were really satisfied. For example, one of the chicken was nicely done while the other was really overcooked; for the pork ribs, mine was enjoyable, but another of my friend complained it was too dry. Food: Calamari - surprised it wasn't fried. but the soup was decent and calamari was relatively fresh Pork ribs - fries was wayyyyyy to salty. Pork ribs was reasonably tasty Bread pudding - ice cream was mostly melted, and fell off half of our puddings.. too rich for me. I would definitely say for $15, the three-course restaurant week was a great deal. However, do be prepared to spend at least 1.5 hour to cope with the high traffic volume. Even on non-restaurant week days, lunch does take around 1-1.5 hours at Steenbock's.
(3)Debra R.
There really wasn't anything terribly wrong about this restaurant but nothing very good either. The food was meh - the cheese plate was beautiful but not the best cheeses I've had, my burger was the thinnest slice of tomato I could barely taste it and it was drowned in mayo. There was never more than 2 other tables full in the restaurant. I really disliked the three large TVs showing pictures of the food.
(2)Tarrah F.
This review was from restaurant week. We ate at Steenbock on Friday night and were very disappointed in the quality of the food. I had the soup which was by far the best part of the whole meal. The other 3 people in our group had the risotto which lacked flavor. They ran out of the Halibut by 6:45 which was extremely disappointing since that was the main reason I wanted to go there. Of the four of us 2 had the steak and the other 2 had lamb, both of which were very disappointing. I would never buy either cut of meat if I was cooking it at home. The lamb wasn't a chop, it looked like a shank and was tough and hard to eat, almost no meat. It was served over beans that seemed to need more cooking. The steak was extremely gristly and fatty, I could not eat it, but it was served with goat cheese potatoes and capellini onions that were both really good. The banana foster creme brulee was gritty, molten chocolate cake was over done there was no lava in the middle and the pretzel ice cream was just a marble size dollop of soggy pretzels, no ice cream to speak of. What a joke! To top it of they only served wine and beer which I did not want and we were seated in bar area which is cold and has no ambience. Overall it was a major disappointment and way over priced.
(2)Tavis A.
This is an update on my earlier [scathing] review of the service provided by Steenbock's. Turns out, we must have hit the front of house staff on a *really* bad day: after I wrote my review, my partner was contacted about the mix-up and the situation was sorted. We shared a lovely dinner at the restaurant tonight. The service was attentive, but not overwhelming; the food was creative, delicious, and lovingly presented. From the amuse-bouche, to the desserts we were thoroughly impressed. We opted for the chef's four course tasting menu (I had tuna-risotto-cod-carrot cake; my partner had oysters-lobster-scallops-chocolate), with the favorites being the miso cod on my menu, and the lobster on my partner's. The miso cod had an intense earthy-savoury tang that was nicely balanced by the smooth, moist, and nicely flakey cod. I'm not a lobster-person, but my partner demolished it in short order with conversation grinding to a halt as she ate. Perhaps the only disappointment was the espresso - though, other than a few places in Madison (Bradbury's, The Victory) it's tough to get a solid espresso, and after the perfectly spicy-sweet-airy carrot cake I wasn't too fussed. I think it certain we'll go back - and we're both very glad that we didn't write-off the restaurant after our first experience.
(5)Julia G.
This review is for lunch service. I went with 3 companions for a work-related lunch on a friday, a little on the late side. We had no problem getting a table. Service was prompt, and struck a good balance between friendly and unobtrusive. Atmosphere was okay. I didn't love the THREE televisions I could see from my table, which kind of killed the fine dining feeling. Still, I think the biggest attraction of this place is probably the setting. The ground floor of the WID is really really cool to walk around, like a swanky science mall. The menu wasn't particularly innovative or interesting... mostly sandwiches and burgers with a few more serious entrees thrown in. I ordered a burger with blue cheese, bacon, and caramelized onions, and appreciated that I could choose salad instead of fries on the side. Sadly, it came out looking somewhat unappetizing. The patty was too small for the bun, and the toppings seemed to have been somehow amalgamated into indistinct sauciness. That said, it was pretty tasty, and I would probably order it again. My only objections in terms of taste were that the caramelized onions were overdone and overly acidic for my taste, and that my "medium" burger was MUCH closer to rare. Other people's sandwiches looked pretty unremarkable. Someone in my party ordered soup, asked for bread on the side, and was told that they didn't have bread, only toast points. Hmm. Everyone else at the table had a sandwich served on a bread product of one kind or another, and you can't bring my friend some bread?
(3)Cat E.
the food is really good, especially during lunch time. but the service is kind of slow.
(4)Jon S.
Extremely disappointing. The place was DEAD for a Saturday night. It was so quiet (in a bad way) you could hear conversations between the staff and it was impossible to feel comfortable or relaxed. The meat/cheese board lacked any inspiration. The tuna was downright awful. The main course of scallops was just OK. The bad food, strange atmosphere and the awkward, inexperienced staff made for a very negative experience. I hope it was just an off night, but we won't be back to find out.
(1)Sarah M.
Delicious, fresh food, great service and comfortable environment. I was a little bit worried about where we would park but it turned out that parking couldn't have been easier. I want to go to Steenbock's again on my next trip to Madison.
(5)Beth S.
Excellent food in a futuristic setting. I really enjoyed my meal at Steenbock's. The main dining room was reserved for a private event, so we were seated in the bar area. The atmosphere was great: panoramic windows and a color-changing bar. I had the mushroom pizza, it was topped with arugula and drizzled truffle oil. It was deelish! My husband was also very happy with his blue cheese burger. The desserts were imaginative and yummy: cheesecake in glass and s'mores. We also had a lot of fun exploring the building after dinner. We will definitely return!
(5)