re: Wisconsin - who's going?

Awesome thank you!

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Hoopsgalore, anything you'd change or add?

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Thursday dinner at Tornados then Paul's Club or Great Dane Brewing after.

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If you're staying around the Square, make a stop at Lucille. They have an open-air bar on the main floor and a cool, subterranean cocktail lounge downstairs. Genna's is right next to Tornado and also a quirky set-up with a good crowd. Young Blood makes much better beer than Great Dane, but I understand why you'd want to check out Great Dane. Plain Spoke is a cocktail bar that is second floor above street level. Argus is a fun, divey place that might be worth getting a beer. Coopers Tavern has a great beer list. Seating can get tricky if bar seats aren't available, though.

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Friday Jordan's Big Ten Pub for dinner. Was told the atmosphere at Jordan's is great and to get there around 5 as it gets crowded. State Street Brats or Wando's bar after dinner.

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I have a couple thoughts...

JBT has a popular Friday Fish Fry, yes, but it sounds like you may be stopping through a couple other times on Saturday. There are plenty other bars/restaurants with Friday Fish Fry around the Square (i.e Settle Down Tavern and Heritage Tavern), if that's what you're looking for. That will be may more fun than Regent on a Friday. My opinion is, wait for Saturday but I totally understand if you end up going since it's on the earlier side, anyway.

As for after, Brats will probably have the most Bama fans of any bar on State and the Square. It's the generic meet-up spot for away fans in Madison. No clue how old you are / late you'll stay out, but Double U, Chasers, KK, Danny's, Wando's, and Brats are always wild bars. They will, undoubtedly, will have very long lines as the night moves.

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Saturday morning Sconnie Bar or Jordan's for pregame then walk to Camp Randall. After game - Lucky's 313, Red Zone or back to Jordans or Sconnie.

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Lucky's is way more fun before the game than after. JBT is right across the street, too, for convenience. Now that I'm not an undergrad and doing house parties on Breese and Lathrop before games, we all usually go to Lucky's before a quick pit-stop at Sconnie as we walk into the game. Quick warning, though, that Lucky's gets a line early.

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We're all in upper 30's and 40's so not looking for college bars unless it's a must visit spot early before the students come out. What's the best people watching bar to post up at on a Friday afternoon?

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100%, absolutely make it a point to stop at the Terrace at Memorial Union (not to be confused with Union South). Mentioned in my earlier post that downtown Madison is on an isthmus between two lakes, Mendota and Monona. The Terrace lines Mendota and is, easily, the most recognizable and popular place on campus. Great setting to grab a pitcher of beer and bite, hang on the lake, and listen to live music. Best people watching, for sure, though not a "bar."

After the Terrace, walk over to Brats and hang on the patio for more people watching / hang with other Bama fans. It's on State Street, which is a pedestrian-only street that connects Capitol Square to campus. Once the dinner hour ends, some of the bars I mentioned earlier (Brats, KK, Double U, Chasers, Danny's) will get exponentially younger and I'd recommend making your way up to Capitol Square. Beautiful walk around the Capitol with a decent number of bars lining King (i.e. Lucille) and E Main (i.e. Argus).

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Lucky's looks fun pregame but looks like it gets packed inside. How hard is it to get a beer on gameday? Also any idea what time Lucky's opens Saturday?

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Lucky's does get crowded, for sure, but a ton of space and I've never had much trouble getting a beer. They have a few bars scattered inside + ton of TVs. Pretty much every beer garden / bar on Regent will open doors between 7am - 9am for an 11am kick. JBT is 7am, for example, and I'm pretty sure Lucky's is 8am. Don't quote me on Lucky's, but you can go to JBT first and look across the street to see.

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Thanks again! Hope you make the trip to Tuscaloosa next in 2025

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That's the plan!

Other random activities/ideas:

- Walk through the university's Arboretum. Bit too far to walk, but quick drive via rental or Lyft/Uber.

- Capitol Square and "start" of campus (Library Mall / Bascom Hill) is connected via State Street. Walk between the two with a loop around Bascom Hill and finish off with a beer on the Terrace at Memorial Union.

- Madison is on an isthmus and, more specifically, campus lines Lake Mendota. Walk Lakeshore Path from the Terrace to Picnic Point. Quite the walk, but very relaxing and good way to burn some steps after the food and beer. This route also takes you near the west side of campus, which includes UW Health (second-largest employer in the state) and some of the non-revenue sports complexes.

- Walk SW on Monroe St. near Camp Randall. Grab an early AM breakfast at Mickies, walk it off near Lake Wingra, then stop at some boutiques on Monroe.

- Dane County Farmers' Market is one of the most well-known in the country. Pretty sure it opens at 6:15am, so can make an early AM stop before heading down State or Regent for bars, beer gardens and tailgates.

- Willy (Williamson) St. is an eclectic, cool street chalked with restaurants, ethnic food, and taverns. Mentioned earlier in the thread, but my immediate recommendations are Weary Traveler, Grampa's Pizzeria, Mickey's Tavern, State Line Distillery, Working Draft, and A Pig In A Fur Coat.

- New Glarus Brewing Co. is worth a go (30 miles from Madison). There are better breweries out there, but the "allure" of New Glarus is no distribution outside Wisconsin. I don't understand the "Spotted Cow is overrated" crowd. It's a very solid cream ale that drinks light and perfect for summer. Personally, I love Totally Naked in a bottle. Anyway, no worries if you can't make it out there since New Glarus will be on tap at almost every bar in Madison.

- Friday Fish Fry is a big part of Wisconsin's culture, so I'd recommend going to a bar/tavern for one.

- In case you missed my previous posts, Capitol Square will be a bit more put together if you're going out to drink on Friday night. You'll see a good mix of alumni and young professionals, but bars will still be pretty damn crowded. As you move further down State (and the immediate streets around it), it'll get progressively younger and wilder. UW-Madison is a school of near 50K, so you can imagine how long bar lines will get at spots like KK, Chasers, Double U, Danny's, Brats, etc. If this is your plan, my advice is to get somewhere early and stick. Said it before, but Brats is the informal, default bar where you'll see the most away fans.

- Camp Randall is unique in that, it's literally in the middle of a neighborhood, but still on-campus. You get the best of everything pregame - bars/beer gardens, house parties, tailgating, and university events (Badgerville at Union South, not to be confused with Memorial Union). Bars/beer gardens will open as early as 7am for an 11am kick, so plenty of time to drink.

- Finally, too, they're permitting the sale of beer, seltzer and wine in Camp Randall! Been a long time coming. Historic stadium, as you may know, and it's a pretty big party when we have a worthy opponent coming. Unfortunately, wasn't all that often when we were in the old B1G West. This year, we get Alabama, Oregon, Penn State. Way more exciting.

Happy to continue providing any recommendations, especially if anyone is considering Chicago (I currently live here and we have over 26K alumni throughout Chicagoland) and/or Milwaukee.

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I've seen Friday afternoon at State Street Brats mentioned several times on other boards so there should be a large Bama crowd there.

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It's one of the "oldest" bars in the immediate downtown area and the namesake / Red Brat is pretty synonymous with Wisconsin. I put oldest in quotations because it has undergone heavy renovations over the years. There are two floors and a patio that lines State Street, so undoubtedly gets pretty crowded. As I said, has become the informal spot for away fans to congregate. Highly-recommend you go there to mingle with Alabama fans, but don't let that deter you from checking out other bars like the KK, Chasers, Double U, Wando's, Danny's, etc. KK, specifically, is one of the most well-known bars in Madison.

I'm not much of a country guy, but I should probably acknowledge Whiskey Jack's and Red Rock Saloon are super lively bars along State Street.

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You may have already answered this but where would you go to watch the late afternoon games? We're staying downtown so anywhere between Camp Randall and the square will work for us. Preferably somewhere that serves food.

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Bars are going to be slammed after our game ends. Depending how quickly you get back to State Street, you may encounter lines. I wouldn't expect anything too comfortable, but plenty of TVs at all the college-aged bars, including Red Rock, I mentioned above. Not as many traditional sports bars around Capitol Square, unfortunately.

You could also try doubling back to the Regent beer gardens / bars after the game, too. I haven't really done that before, as I just try to bum rush my way back to State Street before lines really stretch.

Bama fans are in for a treat when they visit Madison.
Kudos to the Bucky posters on here with some really detailed great advice.
I will put a couple cents in here myself:
Friday night. My favs. Maple Tree or Tobys for fish fry in nearby Mc Farland. Also...the Essen Haus would be an excellent choice on the isthmus with a live german polka band and dancing.
I would shoot for the Terrace, Essen Haus and the KK/ Brats for Friday afternoon/night.
Saturday morning Mickies. All the beer gardens on Regent. (Is there a special Bama tailgate?) Pregame Marching band at Union South. House parties on Breese Terrace. Traveling tubas and percussion sections to tailgates. It should be a wild scene. At least as much as an 11 am kick will allow.

During the game. Expect the students to be late. They wont likely all be there until the end of the 1st Q. Still, good atmosphere. Band Run on pregame show. Buckys arrival. Nat anthem and intro video. Team entrances.
Atmosphere should be great. Warm weather. Both undefeated.
CR classics: eat sht fck yu chant; slow, fast,reverse wave; traveling tubas 4th quarter, percussion and dance squad traveling, build me up buttercup sing along; student section video race prior to Jump Around; 5th quarter.
From a Bama perspective you will get CRs best if the Badgers are winning going into the 4th. Jump Around would be epic. If the Badgers were to pull the upset- that would be very tough to take as a fan i understand- but the 5th quarter show would be pretty amazing too with songs and dancing in celebration. Unique show in college football. Maybe even a field rush.
Post game- as others have said- Brats and other bars will be options but could be busy.

I appreciate Bama making the trip. 1st time in 100 years. Even LSU would not do a home and home (although we did get to beat them in Lambeau). It seems like we have played Auburn a lot over the years too in bowl games.

Hope ya'll enjoy the trip. I will stop by and socialize with fans that come up. Its like a celebration party of college football and fall weather.

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Sounds like State Street Brats is the unofficial Bama bar Friday afternoon and Lucky's/Jordan's on Gameday.

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Said it before, but will encourage everyone to check out a few bars before settling in at Brats. Capitol Square is beautiful and chalked with bars/restaurants, Willy Street has a great stretch of restaurants, Terrace at Memorial Union has the best setting for beers in Madison, and some of the other college bars (i.e. Chasers, Double U, KK) are worth a look if you really want to turn your night up.

Now, be careful about time because lines at college bars, including Brats, is a certainty once the evening hits.

ETA: Regarding gameday, Regent Street is packed with bars and beer gardens, including Jordan's. That is the easiest way to do things as an away fan, but there are traditional tailgates in smaller lots / yards and house parties along Breese and Lathrop (across the street from Camp Randall). You get the best of everything, which I appreciate - Camp Randall lines campus and pretty much in the middle of a neighborhood.

My brother is living in Iowa for now and is considering it.

I have 2 extra in Bama section will sell at fv