Of all the coffee shops in Madison, this is probably my favorite one to do work at. On my spring break adventure to Madison, Barriques was a must-revisit. The clientele is a bit older than the other campus-area shops (which is kind of nice), largely due to its proximity to the capitol. In a pleasant way, its a little bit less of a scene.
They play good music, the employees are friendly, there are outlets throughout for their free WIFI and if you don't have a computer, they've got a few that you can do internet searches and check your email from for free. In my world of coffee shops, they have the most ideal tables- Large enough to spread out your papers/laptop/food/coffee and still *be comfortable*. yay
Any of you who need to get out of the house to get work done, Barriques is like a gourmet, un-sterile library. And I mean that in a good way...