Taste of Madison

Taste of Madison… one of my favorite foodie events in Madison (others include Restaurant Week, Food and Wine Show, and Taste of the Midwest). Over 80 restaurants and caterers come together around the Capitol to raise money for Cerebral Palsy – what a great way to support the cause! There’s also beer and wine along with three stages for performers.

I don’t even know where to begin this blog, with over 200 menu items it was so hard to choose! Unfortunately, I neglected to take pictures of all the food I tried on Saturday, but I can still remember many of the dishes. Here are some of dishes I sampled over the weekend: squash curry from Bahn Thai, jerk chicken nachos from Bluephies, chicken tikka masala from Taj Indian Restaurant, hand-battered halibut and coconut shrimp from Joey’s Seafood and Grill, steak de burgo from Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse, fruit kabobs from The Melting Pot, and fried Wisconsin cheese curds from The Old Fashioned. In case you were wondering, I shared with friends 😉

I’m personally a sucker for steak, so I loved the steak de burgo, which is a tenderloin steak smothered in a garlic, herb, and butter sauce with a side of mashed potatoes. It won first place in the American foods category. I also really enjoyed the squash curry and the chicken tikka masala with naan. Although I didn’t try the curry chicken or Dorowot from Buraka (East African cuisine) since I eat there fairly regularly anyways, I was happy to see they won 2nd and 3rd place in the Ethnic category, respectively. I would highly recommend checking out their booth or restaurant on State St, but more about that later. I’m a little upset I missed out on the opor ayam (marinated chicken breast, potato, bamboo shoots, and lemon grass in a coconut broth) at Bandung Indonesian Restaurant, but all the more reason to try it later on. Check out my slideshow for pictures of food/vendors!

If you missed Taste this year, make sure you check it out next year! Feel free to share your favorite dishes from the Taste!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.