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| - I dined at Graft for the first time this past Saturday. Initially, despite putting the location into my phone's GPS I was unable to locate it and a friendly mom with a toddler in tow pointed me in the right direction. I then realized, despite being fairly familiar with downtown, I didn't initially find the restaurant because it's location is very inconspicuous. Even the signage is minimal. In the end, I found this to be an endearing part of the restaurant. The restaurant is so good it doesn't need to gloat - in the end the outstanding food and customer service will speak for itself.
Upon entering into the restaurant I immediately noticed the bright and welcoming environment. This is not a stuffy, upscale space. It is upscale don't get me wrong, but unlike other fancy restaurants in the Madison area it has a very welcoming feel to it, as though anyone despite appearances or background is welcome to enter and enjoy a drink at the bar without judgment and as part of the family. The clientele and staff is diverse and this adds to the overall positive and welcoming environment of this restaurant.
After enjoying a glass of Prosecco at the bar we were seated at nice table directly next to one of the large windows that overlooks the capitol. The seating benches are sprinkled with little pillows you can use to support your back and get cozy, which I thought was a nice added touch. While glancing out of the large window beside me at the capitol, for a moment I felt as though I was somewhere other than the city I live in, only to be reminded indeed a place with a view this incredible exists right here in Madison.
Our server, Heidi, did an incredible job making recommendations to us, she even convinced me to try the fried chevre, despite my hesitations about goat cheese. In the end we sampled what seemed like endless small plates: the brussels sprouts, roasted beets, fried chevre..all incredibly fresh tasting, bursting with flavor and light fare. Still feeling hungry after the initial samplings I was excited when the graft mac & cheese arrived because I thought the dish would be more filling and richer than all of the previous dishes - indeed it was delicious and a much welcomed sampling of comfort food on a vast menu of modern favorites - but amazingly this dish combined wonderful taste and texture without being overly heavy or filling. This impressed and left room to continue trying more food.
Next we tried the beef tartare, scallops, shrimp and grits - made with Hooks 5 year cheddar (the only suggestion I have is to please add more cheese! There is no such thing as too much Hooks cheddar), the big eye tuna, more big eye tuna (thank goodness we ordered two plates of it), the quail, the short rib, the pork belly..I had never tried pork belly and the name made me question what in the world I was about to eat but that too had a burst of flavor to it and I can now safely say I enjoy pork belly. The garganelli pasta was outstanding. It had the tastiest, creamiest, meltiest cheese on it -burrata, the creamy inside of fresh mozzarella cheese - I now have a new favorite cheese to add to my list. I wish I had discovered the existence of this cheese sooner!
The desserts were also impressive, particularly the chocolate crème served with cinnamon shortbread. I am not a chocolate lover, so I was surprised this was my favorite dessert item, but something about the creaminess and cool refreshing aftertaste made it so delicious and it was cholateley without being chocolatey (if there is such a thing). The profiteroles were fluffy on the inside and crunchy on the outside amazing, and the house made coffee ice cream tasted like an upgraded version of the Haagen Dasz rendition. The carrot cake was also tasty, however, my personal preference is not mixing nuts into desserts so for that reason the profiteroles and chocolate crème were my favorites.
Lucas, the owner, introduced himself to us, a very friendly person with a down to earth personality who clearly has a passion for running this restaurant and making his customers happy. The same goes for the impressive floor manager, Sarahjane, who was busy coasting throughout the restaurant with a smile making sure her customers were enjoying their dining experience and gracing them with friendly hugs and outstanding hospitality. Chef Travis also stopped by our table and took the time to explain to me the spices added to the pumpkin seeds in the brussels sprout dish. Our server Heidi exuded positivity as well and was very attentive to our table and all others. The camaraderie of the employees is noticeable. After dining here you really leave the place feeling as though you are a part of the Graft family.
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