9. Restaurant Magnus

We had a small wedding reception here in June 2007. From the moment we booked the private dining hall in February until our wedding day, everyone had been kind and accommodating. As a physician, I have attended numerous dinners sponsored by drug companies at 5 star restaurants. More often than not, the food was inferior during a group function. This was certainly not the case for our wedding. All the guests(including the children) commented on how well their food was prepared, especially the Kobe beef. The staff were friendly, attentive, and seamless. With the quality of the food and service, we were very pleasantly surprised when the bill arrived. I don't live in Madison, but have dined at many top restuarants in New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Philadelphia and find Magnus to be worth every penny for the quality of food and service that is provided.

Since it opened Restaurant Magnus has consistently been one of my favorite places to eat. The food is excellent and I have never had anything, but superlative service from the wait staff. They've always gone out of their way to accomodate any special requests we have had. They also have a great bar that makes Madison's best caipirinhas (Brazilian rum & lime drink.) There is a tapas menu with a wonderful selection of items including my favorite, Ximxim (a habenero pepper and coconut milk stew with cashews, shrimp, chorizo verde, blackened chicken and beef.) Throughout the week they have live jazz music as well. It is not an expensive dinner out, but the entire experience is worth having over and over.

First off, I'd like to point out that I am currently studying the culinary arts, so I hope that when you read this you give me a little more credit than the average joe. Restaurant Magnus is an exceptional restaurant, and I was simply horrified when I read the only previous review for this restaurant. Clearly, "Ron" has no idea of what he speaks. Anyone who has any appreciation for meat understands that a well-done steak is completely and utterly a faux paus, and ordering a steak so cooked is an insult to any chef in any restaurant. [...]The chef was merely trying to do this "Ron" a favor. [...] Also, I am a personal friend of the head chef at Magnus and I am constantly in awe of his ability to create and present foodly works of art. Magnus is an exquisite and unique restaurant that deserves every ounce of its glowing, and growing, reputation as a fine dining experience. I hope that anyone who reads this decides to negate what "Ron" has written [...].