Madaba has a more relaxed restaurant scene than Amman, with a handful of family-run places that have been catering to mosaic-tour traffic for decades — but still serve good Jordanian home cooking rather than tourist-trap fare.
Haret Jdoudna ("Our Grandfather's Quarter"), in a restored stone courtyard house just east of the Archaeological Park, is the obvious place: long mezze menu, charcoal-grilled meats, a covered courtyard for cooler evenings. Three courses with drinks runs about JD 20 a head. Adonis and Ayola Cafe on Talal Street are smaller, cheaper and good for lunch — try the mansaf (lamb on rice with yoghurt sauce) which is Madaba's regional specialty.
For coffee, Bawabit Madaba has good Turkish coffee and a roof terrace with a view to St George's. Alcohol is served openly here — Madaba is around a third Christian, more than anywhere else in Jordan — and the local Carakale beer is on tap in several places.