Madison eats better than a city its size has any right to. The local food culture is built on good Wisconsin ingredients — dairy, pork, craft beer, summer produce from the farmers' market — and a university population that has pulled in Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican, and Ethiopian restaurants well above the Midwest average.
Cheese curds are the local snack: fresh squeaky curds from the farmers' market are eaten cold, while bars and fish frys serve them battered and deep-fried. The Friday fish fry is a Wisconsin institution — nearly every bar and supper club in the city participates, and the battered cod or perch with potato pancakes and coleslaw is the correct thing to eat on a Friday evening.
State Street and the streets immediately off it have the highest concentration of restaurants in the city. The Williamson Street (Willy Street) neighbourhood on the east side has a more local, less touristy cluster of restaurants and bars.