Ella's Deli Reviews

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 else.

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 carousal was closed but that didn t stop my eyes from wandering at all the animated, fun stuff that was going on. Batman is flying around; musical choirs of puppet men are playing instruments and that s just the beginning.
Even the clear top tables have trinkets, and memorabilia displayed in them like baseball cards, and Pez toys to name a few. I did pause long enough to get a scoop of ice cream as I continued to wander around the shop. It s also a deli, but all I wanted was a moment to be a kid again and Ella s gave me that.
Overall: Only thing I would recommend is that they hire someone to give all those great pieces a good cleaning. So many of them were very dusty and full of lint.

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 cream is sub par, I would very much prefer to go to one of the chocolate shops in town for ice cream. I can see it being fun for kids, but not for the food.

The service itself was very good, and the place has an interesting atmosphere. I consider the price for the food offered a complete waste though. The few things I did enjoy were the fried pickles, the soup and the coleslaw.

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 container, and used to cost 1.75 (which was a little expensive then honestly) now has jumped to 2.75 for the same container... and they didnt even FILL the container. I cant afford to eat at the new prices unfortunately so i guess i wont be there quite as much as i am now :( the whole experience sort of was soured by the expense, to the extent i couldnt even eat my otherwise yummy Reuben . guess my dogs lucked out this time. Another thing that could use a bit of work is the "new" cashier.. understandably its hard learning a new job.. but several things could have helped her immensely.. such as a price list of all the foods served, instead of flipping back and forth thru the menu and having to go hunt down someone to tell her prices. I think a bit more help at the register her first... month or so maybe would make it a whole lot easier for everyone. Kudos however for having cleared the handicapped parking and access points of ice and snow, its always nice to see some considerations for handicapped persons.

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 custom toys will make this restaurant difficult to sell.

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 because the ice cream was good!

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 less.

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 !

Those are the reasons why, the food and service try and overall - I don't have dinner here it is expensive. That said - another American Landmark that shows just how much pride goes into maintaining the one if a kind animatronics. Do have ice cream, matzo soup and ride the carousel in any order! See it before some conglomerate takes it over.

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 point. The hostess said from afar that the food was going to be ready, but I politely restated that I was sorry I would just like my money back. The manager's response to this was to walk the food in front of us with an unpleasant look on her face. The hostess I was mainly dealing with was very polite and said she was very sorry and that the food would be free, however, her manager insisted I was in the wrong and snuck just our appetizer in the bag. I am someone who often stops by restaurants on the go, as I spend most of my time in my car for my job, but I have never seen such miscommunication with the chefs and their waitresses. At no point were we told the wait for the food would be long or checked in on while we waited. To say the least, I will not be ordering from Ella's Deli again.

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 one asked how our food was or if we wanted more drinks. In fact they didnt come back until he handed us our check and told us to pay up front. I guess I didnt want anything else anyway! When we do go to pay, there was three of us waiting and no one there to help us for a long while, even though there were plenty of staff just standing around talking to each other. When she does come up. She doesnt say anything, takes my money and gives me my change. No "how was everything?" Or "sorry for the wait" or even "have a nice day", she didnt even ask if i wanted a receipt. Just rude.
I was embarassed and very disappointed with my experience and very sorry to say that i will probably never come back.

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 water glasses, etc. Then the price...that finished off the apatite. Yes, the decor is busy and would keep the short attention span of a child and the ice cream is good, but it is not really worth the trip unless you just get ice cream to go or ride the farris wheel in the summer. Enjoy.

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 ok with the high prices but the service is what I can't look past. The hostes asked how many people I told her 4 and if we can please get a both that would be great. She responded back sorry no booths left I replied back ok we will wait she told me I can wait please follow me to your table. So we followed her. After this our waitress came up she asked for our order for both food and drink I though ok seems rushed but we come here a good amount of times so we know what we want. So we ordered and she messed up both our drinks no big deal I just let her know and she replaced them with the right ones. Then a little while passes and both my boys and my wife and I are out of our drinks and she never brought more to us even when I asked 2 times. Now fast forward we got our food that was good then went to pay the bill was $52.73 but 1 of my sons got a big lollipop for $3.50 but the cashier told me my bill was now $57.75 and I though wait that does not add up so i told her that and she told me back sorry I already swiped my card. Now we all know she could of voided my card and rerang me out but she just asked how much I want to tip and that's it. So I did not say anything and just paid and now I am in my car writing this. By no meets I am not looking for a free anything I am just letting from one local business owner to another local business owner my experience with your business. I wish nothing but the best for your business and I hope this long review helps you out.

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, service from the wait staff was excellent; I waited only about 5 minutes to be seated.

The only real drawback I see is related to the menu. Although the food is good, don't be surprised to spend around $15 per person.

I'd definitely like to come back here one of the next times I am in Madison, but it's not something I'd do on a daily basis.

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 for bread) and the meat is typical of a grocery store deli. Service was sub par. Will not ever go here again.