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| - A very mixed bag. The service is atrocious: waitstaff ignore you and are incredibly slow. Not infrequently, ordered items never appear and the staff have (unbelievably) become visibly annoyed when this is pointed out.
That being said, the food is often quite good. I say "often" as the quality can vary wildly. E.g., sometimes the shiitake mushroom soup is superb, other times it is fit to be poured down a sink. Yes, you can send it back (and we do) but consistency should be taken for granted in a good restaurant.
We've lived in Madison for 3 years now and find most of the restaurants sorely lacking. However, the few that aspire to be better than the rest are, by the standards of most major cities, quite mediocre. When La Brioche is good, it is a nice dining experience. On the other hand, if you're there on an "off" day, it is simply bad.
I think it's worth remembering this is Madison, WI, not NYC or Chicago. In a major city, La Brioche would go out of business without question. In Madison, I'm grateful for the few restaurants that even try to be better than average. So, if you're willing to take a chance, you might do better here than at most places in town. And the bakery items are generally quite nice, so at least you'll have a good dessert.
For reference's sake, I've eaten here perhaps two dozen times since it's opened, including breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner, both socially and professionally.
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