We actually came to Merchant twice during our long weekend in Madison, but wish we had left it to one.
We stopped in Saturday late afternoon for a drink and a snack. Based on this brief visit alone, this review would have been 5 stars. Easy to snag seats at the bar, beyond amazing bartenders who knew exactly what to recommend in terms of beer despite their obvious strong suit being cocktails (totally regret not getting one), and delish cheese curds.
Our visit on Saturday was so great that we decided to come back for brunch on Sunday morning before leaving town. Brunch was underwhelming. Their menu is somewhat small, the food took FOREVER, and the end result was just okay. My boyfriend wasn't thrilled with his tiny breakfast sandwich on a biscuit. I thought my croissant sandwich was pretty good although I subbed bacon for the ham. We got a side of fries since there is no potato option and those were pretty good (aioli was yummy).
Maybe we had too high expectations based on our brief visit the night before, but I don't think we'd return for brunch. I would come back for a cocktail and the cheese curds if I'm ever in the area again.