Town 220 Bistro - Madison, GA - June 19, 2007

Dining from 6:00p - 8:00p
Health Rating: 80/95
Average Cost per person: $35.66 (including appetizers and alcoholic drinks)

Overall EATS Tour Rating

Food: B+
Atmosphere: B-
Service: C+

Meals ordered

Taylor Little
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Dish: Costa Rican Tilapia
Food: A-
Atmosphere: B-
Service: C
Review: I enjoyed our trip to Madison, a nice change of pace from Athens. We originally planned to eat at the Icehouse but it is only open Wednesday through Sunday so we ventured across the street to Town 220 Bistro in the antiques market building. I spent many a summer in Madison so I always have a good feeling when I go there although things have changed considerably.

For an appetizer I had the calamari, not the best I've ever had but it was greatly helped by the two sauces with which it was served. I tried a little of Stephanie's crab cake appetizer and did not like it - it had a strange foretaste (sort of like aftertaste but this is an instant first bite reaction). I chose the roasted eggplant soup over the salad and I was not disappointed. I've never cared for eggplant but I went out on a limb and found an eggplant there and they made soup from it and it was good.

For my entree I had the Costa Rican Tilapia. Nice piece of fish. It was delicious, cooked just right and seasoned to perfection. Tilapia is my favorite fish and this one did not disappoint. I sampled Natalie's Ahi tuna steak and it was also very good.

The atmosphere was a mixed bag. The bar was populated by a good number of older (my age actually) women who have sampled the latest procedures the cosmetic surgery business has to offer, not that there's anything wrong with that. There was also a guy with his shirt more unbuttoned than David Hasselhoff and he sported two hoop earrings - not something you see everyday. The restaurant is in a huge open space with very high ceilings and big windows looking out on a garden area. The choice of music was a little strange, jazz one minute and a Sade CD the next. My fellow diner Matt likened the space to a hotel's restaurant, similar to what you might find near the airport during a layover in Cincinnati, Ohio. I can't really disagree with that.

Service was lacking. The server was nice enough but seemed slow to check on us, bring us drinks or refills and take our orders. This would have been more understandable had it not been so early and there were few patrons there.

All in all I enjoyed the experience and would dine there again.


Matt Keedy
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Dish: Steak Pommes Frites
Food: B-
Atmosphere: C+
Service: C+
Review:Having not spent any time at all in Madison, it was nice to leave Athens for one night and sample a restaurant that I had never been to, nor heard of. Our intended eatery was Icehouse, but they are not open on Tuesdays, so we ventured across the street. My first impression of Town 220 was that I had stepped into the hotel bar and restaurant at the Hilton or Marriot. A very interesting use of space, but no character. The restaurant bar is not separated from the dining area in any way, so I took notice that this must be one of the Madison socialite hangouts due to the large number of older women and men in the bar and their familiarity with the bartender and waitstaff.

I did not order an appetizer, but both Stephanie and Taylor were kind enough to let me sample theirs. I found nothing special in the crab cake and the calamari was breaded well, but chewier than I have had it elsewhere. Along with my entree I chose a salad which was labeled mixed greens with a basil vinaigrette. They delivered on the mix greens, but I could taste no basil vinaigrette on the salad. For an entree I chose the Steak Pomes Fritas which I ordered 'medium'. The steak was served to me 'well', but remained fairly juicy, so I was not completely disappointed. Looking around the table at the presentation of the rest of the meals, I found mine to be lacking any panache. Renaming this dish and serving it with a garlic mashed side would bring my rating up considerably. It just seemed like a better choice of side for this dish than fries.

The service was par at best. The restaurant was not very busy at the time of our meal, yet I consistently went without a beverage throughout. When I was able to order another drink, it would take 5 minutes to get it to me from the bar which was 15 feet away. If I recall correctly, our meals were served by someone else on staff and our waiter failed to ask if everything came out to our liking. It is a small thing, but if I were able to voice any concerns over my meal, it may have resulted in a better rating.

Stephanie Sharp
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Dish: Porcupine Shrimp
Food: B+
Atmosphere: A
Service: B-
Review: The name should have been a clue about what this dish was all about. The description of the entree was something like..."prawns wrapped in phyllo dough..." I was expecting some sort of dumpling type presentation of the shrimp. Instead I was presented with what looked like shrimp wrapped in a sort of hay - and the texture definitely felt like hay. It made the shrimp taste dry because of the hardened hay like material it was covered with. The rice pilaf it was served atop was very bland as well. This is not a dish I would ever order again. Looking back on it - i'm convinced past diners named this dish because their mouth was stabbed with dozens of tiny needles!

Having said this, I was very impressed with the overall feel of the restaurant. The interior was very roomy and large in scale, yet cozy and comfortable. Great light. I managed to sneak a couple of bites of the tilapia one of my dining guests ordered and it was excellent. There are definitely items on the menu I would order, when I return to Town 220 Bistro - i'll just stear clear of the Porcupine Shrimp.

Virna Mendoza
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Dish: Ceasar Salad and Calamari
Food: B-
Atmosphere: A-
Service: C
Review: Overall my dining experience tonight was average. More than anything the service was not very good. Our server was just not that attentive and was very slow at taking our orders, checking in on us and refilling my water (my glass was completely empty 3 times).

The food on the other hand was alright. I ordered the calamari and a ceasar salad as my entree, as I like to put the two items together to make a "calamari salad." When I ordered I had requested that both items come out at the same time but unfortunately I was served my salad first. It, of course, sat for awhile as I waited on the calamari so the salad ended up being too wet by the time I was able to put it all together. The squid itself was delicious and I really enjoyed the red pepper aioli that came with it. Calamari salad is one of my favorite combinations and have ordered this at many establishments.

I did try a bite from Natalie's and Stephanie's plate and thought both dishes were excellent. I would definitely be willing to go back and give them another try as there were several other items on the menu that I found interesting. I also really like the atmosphere. It was a large open, loft-like space with modern finishings but at the same time very casual and not over done. Another feature I like were the windows into the kitchen so that you could see the cooking and prep process.

Natalie Rittle
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Dish: Nori Fumi Seared Ahi
Food: A
Atmosphere: A-
Service: C
Review:The tour stopped in Madison, Georgia this week whose claim to fame is it's the city so beautiful General Sherman refused to burn it.
Not having been there in probably two years, I was pleasantly surprised to see the square has grown and changed and now includes some really neat spots, one of which we tried, Town 220. The open three-story restaurant featured modern decor, most notably the light fixtures, yet situated among exposed brick and an open fireplace - cozy and trendy at the same time.

I started with one of my favorites, a glassy of Poppy Pinot Noir, and as usual, it didn't disappoint. The wine list was eclectic and offered a variety of choices both by the glass and the bottle.

For the food, I chose a salad with my entree, a simple mix of field greens with a tangy basil vinaigrette dressing. It didn't wow me but was fresh and good nonetheless. The bread and butter that was served was rather tasteless.

For my entree, I chose tuna - seared rare. It was wonderful! The portion was huge and the tuna steak itself seemed to be rubbed in a succulent mix of spices that gave the fresh fish a rich flavor that was accented perfectly by a mix of fresh ginger and nori atop the steak. The tuna rested on a pool of wasabi ginger buerre blanc sauce and was accompanied by mashed yucon potatoes and sauteed veggies that consisted of sugar snap peas and carrot rounds.

The service was slow, made worse by the fact that the restaurant was very crowded. It seemed as if the waiter intentionally tried to slow the meal by not taking our actual orders until every bit of the hors devours and then didn't place our entrees until all of the salads and soups were finished.

All in all, I thought it was a good experience and I will be back....if for nothing else than to re-experience the tuna!