Bradbury's

In a word: A coffee shop that serves a few crepes.

The specs: #0345
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JM had an orange juice.
Nichole ate the market crepe (trout, brebis, and arugula), a day old maple oat scone, and a flat white.
The bill was $12 plus tip.
JM gave Bradbury's a B-; Nichole gave Bradbury's an A (see our grading rubric).

After hearing about Bradbury's creative use of local foodstuffs and their baristas' expertise with foam, Nichole had developed a big crush on the place. So much so that she snuck in ahead of this official visit for a cappuccino now and then. Each cup of which, at Bradbury's, is beautiful and delicious. Unfortunately our haunted camera ate more photos*, but the Internet picks up the slack.

We went on a Saturday when Bradbury's was using mostly farmers' market ingredients in their crepes. While Nichole swooned and drooled, JM had a problem. None of the three crepes on offer - the trout, rhubarb and raspberry, and raspberry and Nutella - nor the two types of bakery - maple oat scone or fruit muffin - appealed to him. He likes sweet crepes but not rhubarb and raspberries, much. He's willing to chalk this up to his bad luck and his overly discriminating (read: picky) taste and not knock Bradbury's for anything but a tiny menu, because the rest of the patrons seemed to be having a good time. The orange juice, while from a bottle, was OK.

The biggest problem Nichole had was not ordering one of each of the three crepes. Somehow Bradbury's manages to make what seems like a whole-wheat crepe taste good, light and tender. The smoked trout, brebis (soft ewe's milk cheese) and arugula were ingeniously balanced flavors. The crepe's only fault was its slight dryness - a dash of something Hollandaise-ish could have been an improvement, no doubt especially with the light touch of the crepe wranglers.

Bradbury's flat white is essentially a stronger version of a latte, or a cappuccino with less foam, worth trying but is just what you'd expect a strong latte to be. It's worth mentioning that the maple oat scones are delicious as well - lightly sweet, made with at least some whole grain, and sometimes glazed, sometimes not.

It won't take many visits to sample all Bradbury's offers but if you are an espresso aficionado, you'll probably find plenty to bring you back.

*update 6/20/08: Photos recovered; new photo card purchased. The end?

Comments

[Emily]

Bradbury's is a place that does a few things, but all really well (in my opinion). I love their crepes, and the bakery I've had there (which tends to be scones, cinnamon rolls and croissants) has always been tasty.

I'm not a coffee drinker, but I can say that the stuff they make looks and smells amazing.

[nichole]

More reasons to love them: they use Omanhene for their hot cocoa and Kickapoo for their coffee, both Wisconsin companies.

[Jenny]

I love Bradbury's! While their menu may be small, it is every changing and evolving with each season! Rarely do I go in and find the same options!

And, as a lactose-intolerant Soy Milk drinker, those baristas are ACTUALLY capable of steaming my milk, a rarity among most shops.

[Calvin]

After living in Madison for 17 months, I can say that Bradbury's is my favorite breakfast place, and tied with a couple others for most favorite food place overall. their coffee is as good as Intelligentsia in Chicago (which in turn is generally counted among the top few of the best cafe's in the nation). Their menu is small, but it changes at least as often as each season (if I remember correctly). Every Crepe I've had has been phenomenal.