One of the greatest things about the state of Wisconsin is the ample amount of bars. Being the state capital and having a population of just almost 300,000, Madison has an incredibly high density of bars. With so many in the area, it can be tough to know which bars are worth your time and which are better to stay away from. The first Madison restaurant review we’ll be doing is Echo Tap & Grill, located at 554 W Main Street.
Madison Restaurant Food Review: Echo Tap & Grill Review
Food (2/5 Stars)
Overall the Echo Tap & Grill menu was about what you’d expect for a sports bar. Their specialty was clearly their homemade pizza, which was incredible and a true 10/10. Outside of the pizza, however, the food left something to be desired.
The original crispy chicken sandwich was average at best. There were clearly no seasonings or spices added to the chicken and the sandwich came with barely any mayo on it. Since the only other items were lettuce and tomato, it was wildly underwhelming, especially with a flimsy bun. The saving grace for the sandwich was actually the fries which were spectacular.
The mini corn dogs were okay but underwhelming as well. Not many come in the basket and some of them were either old or cooked multiple times. Overall, the food wasn’t great but the pizza and fries carried them. With so many great pizza places in Madison, however, for as good as the pizza was, it’s hard to rationalize going to The Echo to eat.
Drinks (4/5 Stars)
The best part of Echo Tap & Grill was their drink selection. Few will go home unsatisfied if they’re looking for a specific beer or cocktail. Echo Tap offers 19 beers on tap and over 30 bottled or canned including two non-alcoholic options for those who may have to serve as designated drivers.
Echo Tap also offers 10 different cocktails, including cosmopolitans, manhattans, old fashioneds and martinis, among others. For a sports bar, they have a pretty impressive assortment, even with having a smaller bar area in comparison to other bars/grills.
On game days, they have some decent specials, such as $3-4 dollar pints along and $10-14 pitchers, depending on the drink. They offer Happy Hour specials as well, including $2-3 beers, depending on your choice.
Pricing (3/5 Stars)
For what the food was, the pricing was too high. With that in mind, it is Madison. To expect there to be low prices at any Madison restaurant or bar is asking a lot. It was $12 for a 12″, $14.50 for a 14″ and 16.50″ for a 16″ one-topping build-your-own pizza, with each additional topping costing $2 or more depending on the size. Specialty pizzas ranged from $16.50-21.50 depending on the size as well.
All of their sandwiches were in the $10-13 dollar range, except for the grilled cheese which was $9. The best value was the basket of fries appetizer which gave you an entire basket of fries for $6.75. The worst value was clearly the mini corn dogs, which were $8.75 for just a few corn dogs in each basket.
Echo Tap & Grill Review (3/5 Stars)
Overall, the Echo Tap & Grill did little to separate itself from any other sports bar in the Madison area. While the pizza and fries were good, the other food was average at best. The drink selection was impressive, but with everything factored in, there was plenty left to be desired.
There are certainly worse Madison restaurants to go to, and the Echo Tap isn’t a bad time, but if you’re looking for one of the top options in the city, you won’t find it here.
