Fun and kids love this place. terrific ice cream and ice cream treats. I haven't eaten a meal there there in a long time but the food used to be really good. Take a ride on the carousel. The place is for sale so hopefully it doesn't change
Unique deli with so much atmosphere. You have to experience it to believe it!
We liked the atmosphere but took 67 minutes to get our food
We have never been in here! However, they are getting 5 stars! So my daughter is reading a book in 5th grade called "WALK TWO MOONS". This place is mentioned (pg.51). So we looked it up to see if it is real....AND IT IS! So, thanks to the author; Sharon Creech! We had fun doing some side research!
This review is based on the experience of dining here. We are from out of town, so we decided to stop in for dessert. We had a chocolate cake sundae. The cake was pretty good, not out favorite, but definitely good. The atmosphere was a joy; we had more fun exploring all of the toys than anything els...
Very friendly staff, great service, good food and a very kid friendly restaurant
We rode the carousel, are dinner, gobbled the ice cream and say it's amazement at the decorations. This is at least the third time we've been here and we are from Missouri. This is a must see in Madison.
This place is amazing for the atmosphere so that is 5 stars but i give it 3 stars for the food. Expensive and not high quality. Stop in for ice-cream and atmosphere for the win.
One of a Kind Ice Cream Shop
If you want to visit an ice cream shop that is sort of magical and circus like, then go to Ella s Deli.
When I stepped inside, I expected Bozo the Clown to greet me. That s how crazy, fun and unique this place is. Since I visited during the winter months, the outside...
Neat atmosphere but every little thing seems to cost extra
Love the carousel passes, but food is greasy and over priced. Menu is too large. It makes choosing very difficult.
Burger was great desserts are awesome salad was good size . Scenery is one of akind
It's cute and whimsical inside, but I wouldn't go there unless you're bringing a child.
Honestly the food was ok, and it's an interesting place to go but the prices are outrageous in my opinion. I'd come here for ice cream but different not dinner/lunch again
Over priced food that doesn't come with and sides. Large confusing menu. Service was ok. Experience was fun for the kids but not worth the money.
It seems like a fun place to bring kids, but the novelty doesn't make the price worth it. My cheese steak sandwich had a couple slices of extremely dry roast beef and the fries were very limp and oily. The shakes barely have any flavor considering the price and the portions are very small. The ice c...
Price isn't worth the portion and quality of food. Wait for food was much longer than expected. Probably never go back having been there once.
This place is unique and is a must-see, but it was noisy and not very clean. The menu is extremely busy and it is hard to decide with all of the choices scattered in different sections. A little over-priced, but we would probably go again.
No seating if you just order ice cream. And the outside trash cans were over flowing.
Good food, kinda rare to have a kosher menu. They have great options for little kids. Decorations to the overwhelming max are pretty fun. They have a good draft rootbeer and an ice cream counter, and in case nobody else mentioned it there's a freaking awesome carousel! Take your kids there.
Honestly as someone struggling with a budget, i was shocked to find out that prices had taken a big jump and even several of the staff were shocked, one of whom pretty much said she wouldnt pay for the food at the prices. my typical meal i enjoy a side of coleslaw, which isnt served in a huge contai...
Okay. So. We are all excited to come to this place.... unless you like screaming kids and pushy elitest soccer mom's. Don't go. Good icecream, bad customers, hard workers, screaming children, and good atmosphere.... it sorta evens out to an okay time if you ADORE headaches.
The once wonderful Ella s shows evidence of lack of upkeep. The once bound menus are falling apart. The ice cream area smells like it has not been cleaned in days. The men s bathroom faucet has come loose from the counter. It looks like some of the toys have been sold. All the wonderfully custo...
Most of the appeal is the nostalgia, having gone here since I was a child. The icecream is always amazing. The food is usually good. It is however looking less maintained than it could be on the interior.
I loved our experience there. There is always something to see.
Thjis place is always fun to stop and visit. It is a blast from the past, and very unique. However, their menu is very large, repetitive and offer some unappealing food options.
Visiting from out of state. Interesting place to visit at least once. I suggest for ice cream instead of food. Food was okay, but over priced. Had the Ruben. Kraut was good, but very little meat on the sandwich. Glad we went, but won't be back.
Love this place. The dessert menu is amazing and huge! The carousel is adorable. Many decorations are outdated, but its forgivable because of all the positives about Ella's.
So very sad to hear this wonderful place will be closing. I'm keeping Hope alive that new owners are found and continue the great atmosphere and family friendly fun.
Food isn't very good, prices high. I know it is a, Madison attraction.... But..
Great food, attentive service but a little slow, fantastic magneto man and friends table, so much to look at! I always feel like a kid at Ella's Deli!
Lots of things that move to look at. Come at night when the carousel is beautifully lit up.
We went two weeks ago ridiculous priced food processed chicken strips chili cheese fries were disgusting why in Wisconsin would you use a instant cheese sauce the service was bad the waitresses was not friendly and when we checked out the girls weren't either would never go back I gave a 1 star beca...
Simple food wild decor. Great for kids or adults with short attention spans.
This place is great to go sit and have a lot to look at and see while eating. But the food is awful. Ordered Mac and cheese for my kids, all it was was noodles with nacho cheese sauce. The sandwiches we ordered looked like the buns were from Wal mart. Nothing was exceptional, all was mediocre or les...
5 reasons for 5 stars
- Only place in Madison to serve Matzo Ball soup
- Delicious and fresh Ice Cream creations
- Unique and rather well kept up animatronic creations zoom around in the ceiling
- They have a carousel with antique wooden horses and mechanics
- There is a Mutoscope that works !
...
A very magical place. Very very sad to see it close. :( :( :(
Great food, great waiters, great entertainment. You can see some neat stuff. Going to miss very much.
Always a cool place to stop...but in desperate need of cleaning and upkeep. Don't know about the men's but the women's bathroom is falling apart. Everything is dirty and/or falling apart. Food was decent but overpriced. Waiter was very nice.
Awesome place to eat and super fabulous service! We had the 'goof fer' waiter. They should have a server school here!!
Best place in Madison. Someone please buy this place. It means so much to so many people. Much love to all employees and owners.
Iconic Madison Deli just not what it used to be. Clean with good service, but the food quality has suffered and is not worth the price. Kids love the displays, but most are in disrepair and not working.
I'm a regular customer and I love the roundhouse burger and chicken marinara but, the wait for the food is just not worth it. After waiting 40 minutes, I asked if our food was almost ready and I was told that our food was just being cooked. I said how I was sorry but, I wanted my money back at this ...
Over priced for quality of food. Very disappointing
I'm not a huge fan of the food offered it's a deli so it's your average sandwich place, but the grilled pound cake sundae is to die for. Grab your kids and head here for dessert! The carousel is a nice ending after being entertained by all of the vintage mechanical toys at Ella's.
Awesome fun place for the kids, and the kids at heart
The inside was great and the kids loved the carousal but the food left something to be desired. I paid $10 for a baked potato with a like broccoli and cheese, I could have made this at home.
An era is ending and the first victim is food quality served with high prices. In it's heyday it was awesome.
I had been going to Ellas for 20 years. I recently moved back to Madison so i stopped in to show someone what a neat experience it was. The minute we got in, there was no customer service. No acknowledgment when we sat down, just a "you ready?" Rude. When we finally order, the food was OK, but no on...
Very interesting. Selling soon so inside just to see the circus decorations.
Excellent food and a great experience, they have so much to see it is well worth the visit. Waited a while for our food on one trip, but not terrible. Friendly staff but busy.
Ella's is a really weird place and that's its main attraction. I had the Ella's Traditional Breakfast and was happy with it. Good lox.
You will be amazed!
So many things to look at an explore! It has a circus feel to it (in a good way.)
Huge selection of food. I only tried a few.
This is must if you have kids, it's so fun. Its great even if you aren't a kid. I couldn't imagine this city without Ellas Deli :)
Food was as it always is (above average) but service was abysmal. Server did not introduce herself, had to flag down for water refills, no food check back, only one napkin provided for two orders, I could continue. It was unpleasant enough for me to leave this review here.
Outrageous prices for the quality of the food and service. Waitress was lousy and inattentive. Soup took longer to come than the rest of the food. When the soup did come, it was practically a bowl of warm water (four packs of crackers helped). The waitress neglected to refill coffee, bring email wat...
Fun place. Great menu. The interior needs some surface TLC.
Ella's is always fun for the kids! Love coming on their birthdays.
The place is creepy with all the motion items hanging from the ceiling. Can't stand it. Also, I like ham in my omelette. Good luck with that.
Let me start by saying I used (key work used) to LOVE this place ever since I been a kid I have came here and now that I have 2 boys I bring them here because there is no other place on earth like here. BUT and this pains me to say this the Ellie's deli of today is not the same as it used to be. I'm...
Madison must see! Travel to Madison from 2 states away!
Stick to ice cream and enjoy the atmosphere. Menu items are over priced and sadly when your food arrives all inspiration to finish your plate walks away. I was so disappointed
I visited for the first time in nearly 20 years yesterday... the inside is as I remember it. Very interesting place for both the young and young-at-heart. Those looking for peace and quiet are likely going to be disappointed.
Even though I came during one of the busiest times of the day, servic...
One of the most fun and interesting places for lunch. Food was great and the decorations are awesome. Bring kids.
Sorry to learn that it is closing. Glad to introduce two more relatives with their families to it last summer.
Best place for kids in Madison. Remember going here all the time as a kid and riding the antique carousel! Love you Ella's!
Great place to bring kids. The food was good, but the portions were small. Neat place but overwhelming after a while.
Super good ice cream and very cool stuff to look at while you eat said ice cream.
I'd been told Ella's Deli is a Madison staple, but I was pretty disappointed. It had more the feel of a Denny's than anything else. My corned beef was a bit dry; there is better corned beef in Madison. It was a step down from kitchy with a lot of stuff but not a lot of appeal.
A Madison experience that will be comming to an end on January 21st.
Closed after many years. But what a place when they were open.
The atmosphere seems fun for a few minutes, until all the noises start to kind of get to you. The portions are very very small (including the drinks) and you get no sides included. Prices are outrageous for what you get. Breads on the sandwiches where tough (not a term I thought I would need to use ...