Mariners Inn

Outstanding iconic seafood / steak resto in Madison. My go to place for fried cod and steak. The servers are top notch. The food is as good as it gets. Why go to Lake Como? Mariners has that old world charm.

I would echo the complaints about service, we felt unwelcome. The server never filled our waters in a three course meal and when she finally noticed said well it's the end of the meal so why bother. A big contrast from the welcoming host and the experience we thought we would have...The food was average though the shrimp was very fresh. My partners steak was over cooked mine undercooked. Overall did not feel like a good value experience at the price point.

Our server, Marina was fantastic. The owner at the host stand was incredibly welcoming. It was a special outing for us because we went to Mariners the first New Year's Eve that we were dating, and so we came back this NYE, six years later. There's nothing better than the ambience of a supper club, the taste of a perfectly cooked steak, and exceptional service. They had a special NYE menu. We would like to get back there for the full menu due to more expansive offerings but we still loved everything. It was a fun night out and we hope to return before they close.

Went here on a Friday for fish fry, and had a good experience. Love the nautical, old world feel to this place. Dark woods were accompanied with bright windows that had great views of the Yahara. We arrived a little before our reservation time, which was earlier in the day. We enjoyed a beverage at the bar while we waited to be seated. It was still pretty empty when we arrived, but I like that they stick to reservation times. By the time we were partway through dinner, the place was crowded. Our server was very exuberant and knowledgeable of the menu. We enjoyed our fish fry and I very much loved my french fries. No ketchup needed, here! There was a great ambience around us, and we debated with a few tables around us whether the swans outside were real of fake (spoiler - they're fake). We ended with a Brandy Alexander which was more drinkable than needing a spoon, which is fine but not my preference. We also had some kind of chocolate mousse which was a delight and I'd probably get that next time.

Good ambiance, felt like a stereo typical supper club. Got a glass of wine at the bar before heading back to the table. Got curds and bruschetta for apps, the bruschetta was the better of the two. Got two different steaks, the 6 oz sirloin and the NY Strip. The strip came out way too raw and we sent it back, but was cooked perfectly medium after it came back from the kitchen.

Great classic supper club feel, although not truly a supper club. Great service, great food, great drinks. It has a rustic mariner decor, boat cleats for door handles, nautical charts on the ceiling in the mens room. Our waiter was attentive. I had the bone in ribeye which was expertly prepared, perfect medium rare. The cheesy hash browns were good. I had the Manhattan straight up which was good. It's quiet on the north side of the lake.

I debated writing this review for a while but hopefully someone sees it who can make some changes. We ate at Mariners Inn not knowing it was restaurant week and had such a horrible experience we left laughing at how genuinely bad everything was.Starting off strong, we had a reservation and were on time. We were told to wait 15 to 20 minutes. Kind of defeats the purpose of a reservation, but it was a nice evening so we waited. When we were sat at a table, it took 40 minutes to get drinks and have someone take our order. Drinks were wrong twice. I don't think they ever brought one person's drink, despite ordering it multiple times. For some reason after I asked if they had a kids menu they just brought out a plate of chicken fingers. Thanks for that, but it unfortunately took another hour for the rest of the table to get food. Taste of Madison menu was really limited and we were informed they were out of the steak featured on the menu along with some of the sides. We made a compromise but that's when we started to realize things were... odd. The meal included salads which were the most pathetic thing I've ever seen. A few pieces of iceberg lettuce on a plate. We joked that it looked like they forgot the salad. For 45 minutes we weren't checked on by wait staff. We had to flag down a different waiter to see where the rest of the food was. When the food came out the waiter said "sorry, we're out of lobster so here's some deep fried shrimp instead". There were a few other weird substitutes and everyone had something wrong with their order. One steak was completely raw through most of it and just charred on the outside when it was ordered medium. Vegetables were bland. The baked potato didn't come with anything on it or with it... just a potato. The hashbrowns were soggy from the amount of oil they used. There was not a single thing good about the meal. The prefixe meal came with dessert. The waiter asked "did you want dessert?" In a way that seemed like he hoped we'd say no and our whole table was confused. Of course we did, it was included and we've been there for 2 hours at this point. We asked for it to go. The dessert order was wrong and what we got was laughable. The chocolate mousse looked like someone sprayed some chocolate whipped cream in a box. The key lime pie was a 2 inch square. They somehow messed up the cheesecake, it tasted like it was either previously frozen or left out to rot before they put it in a box. Throughout all of this our waiter acted like he was annoyed we were there. It almost seemed like someone was going to jump out and say they were playing a joke on us. I felt bad for my dad who paid the bill for food that we all thought was awful. We wasted a perfectly great evening at this place and felt like we were just scammed. Not to mention, I was 9 months pregnant and worried about whether I was going to get food poisoning. I never want to see a small/local business fail but this one seems like it might have to. You can't treat people this way and take their money. But, it's a night that none of us will forget, as much as we want to.

The view is wonderful, the drinks are perfectly poured (go for the old fashioned), and the clam chowder is amazing. The chowder has a secret spice (maybe rosemary with some bacon?) And it is enhanced with some Wollersheim Prairie Fume. The stuffed mushrooms tasted great by themselves without so much hollandaise sauce on them. Ask for it on the side. Service is fast and friendly, make a reservation as they don't start sitting for dinner until 5 pm (we made the 4:30 reservation), and plan about 2 hours for dinner. We had the fried perch and walleye. The walleye is by far superior, not needing anything but a little lemon (the tarter sauce ruins the flavor of these delicate fillets). The perch needed some tarter sauce to cut the fishy-ier flavor but they were also good. Check in with Yelp for a free glass of wine!

Loved coming here for restaurant week. I started with the clam chowder and it was excellent (was so good I finished it before remembering to take a photo). It had a lot of clams in it and was very creamy and delicious. I went lighter with my entree and had the Admiral's salmon. It was very tasty and filling with the nice addition of shrimp and crabmeat on top of the salmon fillet. The lobster cream sauce that was added was a very nice touch too and very savory. I would definitely order again. The key lime pie was my selection for dessert and it was the best key lime pie I have ever had. Good texture, creamy pie filling with a hint of key lime so you know it was there but was not too tart. I also ordered the house cosmo martini and it was excellent. Very smooth but it was a strong drink, you likely will only need to order 1 to feel a good buzz. The restaurant had a nice interior where we ate, nice rustic wood look that takes you back in time. While the restaurant is on the lake and had outdoor seating, it was not as scenic of a view as I would have thought. The restaurant is in a cove part of the lake so you are blocked from viewing the whole lake and the land by the restaurant was more marshy with high plants blocking the views. So if you are looking to come here for a scenic view for a romantic date or birthday celebration, you will likely be happier going to another restaurant in the Madison area with a better view of the lake.

We went here for graduation dinner and the food was extremely below average. Cheese curds were definitely frozen, from a bag. Steak was mediocre at best. I would never even consider going back. Service was also bad, our server was borderline rude and seemed very put off that she had to take care of us while dining. Overall, super disappointed.