Madison Residents?

[Kicking_Television]

Well I'm graduating in December and am looking to pursue a job in Madison, WI. The pay is right, and it's definitely a bigger city with more opportunities then where I am now but still somewhat close to "Home". If their are any of you that could inform me as to the City's advantages/disadvantages, costs, etc etc.

 

Thanks in Advance.

[jff]

I've only visited once, but my impression is that there are lots of college students, male and female, in various states of drunkeness walking all over town starting at 10 or 11 am every day.

 

Whether that's a plus or a minus is up to you.

[jenbobblehead]

I have heard that the pizza places often deliver to the wrong houses in Madison. And then getting your pizza back is nigh on impossible.

[Kicking_Television]

I've only visited once, but my impression is that there are lots of college students, male and female, in various states of drunkeness walking all over town starting at 10 or 11 am every day.

 

Whether that's a plus or a minus is up to you.

 

 

Well my job would be with the Madison PD, so I guess that would be a negative.

[jenbobblehead]

Well my job would be with the Madison PD, so I guess that would be a negative.

Wait, wouldn't that be job security?

[jff]

Well my job would be with the Madison PD, so I guess that would be a negative.

 

It'd keep you busy, but at least you'd have job security.

 

Seriously, don't let my comment sway your decision. I did see some drunk college girls at lunchtime on a Friday, but it wasn't like an epidemic or anything.

[Kicking_Television]

Wait, wouldn't that be job security?

 

Good point. I'm not positive on this either but I would assume UW Madison has a police force too.... Wouldn't be a bad thing to check into.

 

EDIT: They sure do.

[napoleon]

I have heard that the pizza places often deliver to the wrong houses in Madison. And then getting your pizza back is nigh on impossible.

 

but wouldn't that also mean you may end up with someone else's pizza on a night you didn't even order it?

 

can i get a touche?

[fickerson]

i lived in madison from '99 until this summer; feel free to PM me with any questions. also, brianne and skyflynn can probably help you out, they still live there. it's a great place, good luck!

[cryptique]

can i get a douche?

What isn't a fetish these days?

[Kicking_Television]

i lived in madison from '99 until this summer; feel free to PM me with any questions. also, brianne and skyflynn can probably help you out, they still live there. it's a great place, good luck!

 

 

Awesome some fellow VCer's are around. That's good news, considering i'd be moving there all by my lonesome.

[Preferred B]

I went to college here and haven't left yet. I love the city and this general area ... and believe me, there is much, much more to Madison than just the small area surrounding the UW. (Not that there's anything wrong with the university.) Football, Farmer's Market, the capitol, State Street, Concerts on the Square, Willy Street and the Weary Traveler (where I take all my visitors for a late-night meal), the huge summer art fair, the lakes ... and that's just downtown and near east side. Skyflynn is really the master of Madison knowledge, but feel free to PM me with any questions as well.

 

This guy on Flickr has one of my favorite sets of Madison photos ... http://flickr.com/photos/latitudes/sets/614915/

[a.miller]

This guy on Flickr has one of my favorite sets of Madison photos ... http://flickr.com/photos/latitudes/sets/614915/

Those made my day. Absolutely astounding.

[yankee]

Well I'm graduating in December and am looking to pursue a job in Madison, WI. The pay is right, and it's definitely a bigger city with more opportunities then where I am now but still somewhat close to "Home". If their are any of you that could inform me as to the City's advantages/disadvantages, costs, etc etc.

 

Thanks in Advance.

 

I went to grad school there and my parents lived there now. It's a really nice town, with a reasonable cost of living. It's big enough to have things to do (bars, coffee shops, restaurants, live music, etc.,) but small enough that it's easy to get around and it's pretty laid back. Having both the university and the state capital means it has more to offer than the average town its size.

 

Where are you living now? If you're coming from a smaller town, I expect that you will love it in Madison. I'm from Chicago, so after a couple of years there in grad school, it started feeling too small, so I came back to Chi-town.

 

However, I still enjoy visiting my parents there. And of course if you live in Madison, it's just a short trip to Chicago, where there's plenty to do on a weekend visit.

 

As for Madison, I'm a fan of the east side, down by Willy (Williamson) St.

 

Stuff I'd recommend in Madison:

 

Beers at the Great Dane Brew Pub

The AMAZING Farmers Market

L'Etoile when you want a really fancy meal, or Cafe Soleil downstairs for a great croissant and coffee

Jolly Bob's for tropical cocktails and Caribbean food

Monty's Blue Plate Diner

Concerts at the Barrymore Theatre (I saw Wilco there last November)

Aikido of Madison (if you're a fan of practicing martial arts, the instructors are good)

The Sidecar at Cafe Montmartre

Wandering around State Street window shopping and people watching

Chilling in the back rooms of Mickey's Tavern and with the mix of grad students, artsy folks, and bar flies

Dancing at the Cardinal

Getting around town by bicycle

Grabbing a cheap lunch from one of the ethnic food stands on the library mall

Willy St. Co-op for organic and natural foods (and lots of hippies)

The Madison Ultimate Frisbee Association (a great league where you can play the best sport ever with a fun, social group)

Beers from Capital Brewery and New Glarus Brewery (two excellent local micro-brews)

 

Anyway, that's my 3 cents.

cheers.

[Kicking_Television]

Awesome Yankee, thanks for the help. Right now i'm living in Marquette Michigan, it's in the UP, I grew up here and am going to NMU. It's a college of about 10k students, the town is about 30k when it's in session 23k some during the summer. There is NOTHING to do here except bars, so yea i'll probably like it, however Chicago is definitely my city of dreams. but if I get a job offer down there in Madison i'm not gonna shake a stick at it.

[Smokestack Joe]

madison is a great place, id move there if i could, a second home for me

[skyflynn]

I have heard that the pizza places often deliver to the wrong houses in Madison. And then getting your pizza back is nigh on impossible.

 

Skyflynn is really the master of Madison knowledge...

Girl, are you smoking at work? Again?

 

This is a great place. Winter is the only thing besides size that would make me hesitate to recommend it to anybody. If you can do winter and don't need a big city, I think this is the best place I know. Of course, the world is full of things I know nothing about so take that for what it's worth.

 

We'd love to have you. Good luck!

[quarter23cd]

I hear its an ok place if it weren't for all of these guys running around stealing yr pizza: :badger

[KevinG]

I have lived in Madison (or the area) from the age of three until now (less 6 years while I was in Minneapolis and DC). It is a great city, lots to do etc. If you really want specific details feel free to pm me.

 

Also being the UP the question is if you enjoy the fantastic sport of Curling. Because if you do Madison has a great curling club. And leagues are starting up soon.

[cryptique]

Also being the UP the question is if you enjoy the fantastic sport of Curling. Because if you do Madison has a great curling club. And leagues are starting up soon.

Starting my Madison job search now!

[IATTBYB]

Winter is the only thing besides size that would make me hesitate to recommend it to anybody.

 

We all know how mild and temperate those Marquette winters are. I hear the northerly lake breeze coming off of Superior in February reminds many world travelers of the sea breeze in St. Kitts.

[skyflynn]

We all know how mild and temperate those Marquette winters are. I hear the northerly lake breeze coming off of Superior in February reminds many world travelers of the sea breeze in St. Kitts.

I meant anybody else.

[Kicking_Television]

I meant anybody else.

 

 

Ooh yea, I'm not worried about winter anywhere else that's for sure.

[virtualreason]

Monty's Blue Plate Diner

 

Been working there for 2 years. I must say, one of the best places to eat in Madison, without a question.

 

As for my thoughts on the city, I was very bored here this summer; granted 99% of my friends had moved back home and I'm still relatively new to the city. But the lakes and the parks are some of the best I've ever seen. And there's ALWAYS something going on in the city, be it music, festivals, sporting events, what have you. I don't mind that I will be living here for the next couple of years, but I think I'll be glad once I've moved on to a bigger city. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, so I love bigger cities. Madison has always felt a little smallish to me. If I had the option, I'd live in Milwaukee/Chicago/The Cities and do Madison one weekend a month or whenever concerts dictate.

[Serak_the_Preparer]

As for Madison, I'm a fan of the east side, down by Willy (Williamson) St.

 

Stuff I'd recommend in Madison:

 

Beers at the Great Dane Brew Pub

The AMAZING Farmers Market

L'Etoile when you want a really fancy meal, or Cafe Soleil downstairs for a great croissant and coffee

Jolly Bob's for tropical cocktails and Caribbean food

Monty's Blue Plate Diner

Concerts at the Barrymore Theatre (I saw Wilco there last November)

Aikido of Madison (if you're a fan of practicing martial arts, the instructors are good)

The Sidecar at Cafe Montmartre

Wandering around State Street window shopping and people watching

Chilling in the back rooms of Mickey's Tavern and with the mix of grad students, artsy folks, and bar flies

Dancing at the Cardinal

Getting around town by bicycle

Grabbing a cheap lunch from one of the ethnic food stands on the library mall

Willy St. Co-op for organic and natural foods (and lots of hippies)

The Madison Ultimate Frisbee Association (a great league where you can play the best sport ever with a fun, social group)

Beers from Capital Brewery and New Glarus Brewery (two excellent local micro-brews)

 

Anyway, that's my 3 cents.

cheers.

 

I lived near the University hospital (my wife went to Pharmacy school there) so I am a fan of the west side. I can vouch for most all of what Yankee said, and i will add a few things to keep you happy in Madison.

 

Hanging at the student Union on the lake in the summer for free concerts

Hanging out at the Menona Terrace (Frank Lloyd Wright building)

Checking out the other FLW buildings in the area

UW football games

UW hockey games

$1 PBR bottles at the Paradise Lounge

The fireworks on the 4th of July

Henry Villas Zoo (free)

Enjoying the lakes and trails around them

State Street pubs, record shops and book stores

Food and open mic at the Angelic Brewery

Bennett's Smut and Eggs

 

Hope you move there - you will love it. In my opinion, it is WAY better than Chicago; the traffic is managable and the people are friendly. I know there are great neighborhoods in Chicago, but Madison as a whole is pretty great (if there is a "bad" side it is north of the capital). I would move back to Madison if I could find a job there, but UW grads just don't want to move.