My husband and I are on a road trip from California and stopped in here to try a diner. There was one server working and maybe just one cook in the back, but they had things well handled. We ordered a pancake, and scrambled eggs with sausage & English muffin. It was a solid meal to fill you up and get you on your way. It seems to be a local favorite Judging by the people that came in and knew the server. This is a cash only Restaurant which we were fine with. read more

The Curve is one of those old-school diners that feels like it hasn't changed in decades... and honestly, that's part of the charm. If you're looking for a trendy brunch spot, this isn't it. But if you want a classic greasy spoon serving up hearty breakfasts at reasonable prices, The Curve delivers. I ordered the pancakes, and they were absolutely massive. Seriously, they're the kind of pancakes that hang over the edge of the plate. Fluffy, filling, and definitely worth ordering. The atmosphere is exactly what you'd expect from a neighborhood diner. Nothing fancy, just good food and a place where the regulars seem to know everyone. Service was friendly, although not particularly fast, but that's part of the experience. The legit perfect hangover spot! The biggest thing to know before you go: bring cash. They're cash only, and it would be a shame to get all the way there and have to turn around. Overall, I'd come back. The oversized pancakes alone are worth the trip, and sometimes a no-frills breakfast just hits the spot. read more

Zero complaints here for a great diner. Sit around the counter or grab a table and soak it all in. The dining room hasn't been remodeled in ages (a good thing). Classic black and white tiles, mirrored walls, weathered signs and postings, the Curve delivers. Just like the interior, the food is simple and good. I opted for the eggs and hash. Complete with some buttered white bread, the hash (straight from the can) had an outstanding crust to it and the eggs were a perfect over easy. My coffee was quickly topped off whenever needed-the staff is great. Sometimes less is more and this is definitely the case here. A very solid breakfast indeed. read more

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Know before you go-this place is cash only. Their prices include tax, which is nice, so we didn't have to worry about carrying around loose change. It is a very old diner, so everything is very dated but in a classic way. The food is a great value for the price. We both got cheeseburgers. Solid burger, a bit dry. The onion rings were my favorite. They were so crispy and delicious. I do wish they had the classic restaurant buttermilk ranch instead of the bottled stuff. The fries are on the crunchier side, but not bad. My only issue was the service. We sat at one of the tables in the back and it took almost 15 minutes before someone came over to us. We tried to wave one of the servers down, but they were busy with the other customers. We considered leaving because we thought they forgot about us. Eventually, we got the attention of the server at the bar. Unfortunately, other than taking our order, she never checked on us and didn't refill our drinks. We were also confused at the end when it came to paying. She went to another table to take their money and bill, but we waited a long time and she never came to us. We ended up walking up to the bar and paying there because at that point we were there for over an hour already. Lesson learned. We should've waited for a seat at the bar so she could have noticed us. If we were in a hurry to get to a game, this slow service would've been a bigger issue. You get what you pay for I guess. Come for the inexpensive food, not the service. read more

The Curve - Burger and onion rings - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Great food with big portions. True diner feel. Cash only with ATM inside. Great breakfast spot read more

The Curve - Pancake - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Very basic, building shows a lot of wear. Simple menu, adequately carried out. Food is clean and cooked nicely. Pancakes are huge. I'd call it a backup choice at best. read more

Breakfast here today. Excellent as ever. Dont miss their homemade corned beef hash if they have it. You don't find places like this anymore. It hasn't changed since the 1980's at least. read more

The Curve is still a Top Tier old-time spot in Madison. Outstanding meals for the money; fast & friendly service; in a place where time has stood still. Head on in, you won't regret it read more

The Curve - Chili smothered omelette - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Never disappointed when I stop at The Curve. Simply fantastically simple & so yummy!

Great food and vibes! Love the pancakes and the eggs done to perfection. Owner and chief chef is a super nice guy. read more

Everything a diner should be - nothing that it shouldn't. Six stars. Probably the best breakfast in Madison and definitely the best value. read more

The Curve - Smoked sausage special. - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

I am guessing nothing about the interior of this place has changed in the decades since it has opened. Lots of character but not really any charm of a dive diner. I have heard about and driven by this place for years but never stopped until last week. We grabbed a couple stools at the counter for a very late breakfast. The food is solid diner food, though the menu selection is not big. I got the breakfast sandwich with egg, sausage and cheese. The prices are low. Bring cash, no credit cards here and certainly no Apple Pay! read more

The curve is the best. Best deal for the amount of food you get for what you pay. If you want fine dining, this place is not for you. However, if you are in the mood for some greasy and delicious breakfast food, grab $10 in cash and prepare to enjoy. Coffee is not bad either. read more

I took my Atlanta GA sister here last week before her flight home. Service was top notch, fast, and very friendly. The breakfasts were nothing short of terrific. Reasonable prices. read more

We had horrible service, food was bland, and the place was dirty and in bad condition. Definitely not coming back, but I so wanted to love the place! Unfortunately, it's our second time trying the place with the same results. read more

feels like this diner opened in the 60/70s - kinda giving dilapidated energy from the outside but reminds me of mickey's dairy bar on the inside. personally i didn't love the ambiance inside there. you seat yourself and then the servers will come over to take your order. seems like they were understaffed so the service was a bit slow but they were trying their best! we got a blueberry pancake & omelette special to share and it was a crazy amount of food that even the 2 of us couldn't finish. i liked that the hash browns were crispy but the omelette felt a bit too oily for me liking. the blueberry pancake was MASSIVE. but for 5 people the total was only $40 which is crazy. cash only btw!!!! read more

The Curve - blueberry pancake, omelette special - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

I hate to call this a "greasy spoon" (though y'all know what I'm talking about if I say it). Let's call it an old-timey diner-type establishment. It's a throwback, to be sure. I took my mom here for breakfast after an appointment downtown. Nothing impressive from the outside. In side, you can sit at the counter, or one of a few tables in front or in back. It's not the biggest place in the world. We went around 10:30am - in time for breakfast, but before the lunch rush. It was perfect. The food is excellent. This isn't your Perkins-style plastic-model-looking food. It's real. And it's delicious! I had the sausage/cheese omelette and was very tasty. The sausage didn't seem to be sage-heavy (which I like), but it was, as I said, tasty. The potato side (they call them "American fries", I say they're hash browns) was plentiful and flavorful. Mom enjoyed her veggie omelette and 'taters as well. Service was quite pleasant. I don't know if she's the owner or has worked there forever, but her table-side manor was awesome. She was on top of coffee/soda refills, and timing with the bill and carry-out containers was spot on. She was exactly what I want for service - nice, attentive, but not over the top. Perfect. We'll be back! read more

We had a great breakfast on Wednesday. The server was simply amazing and the food delicious. We all had versions of the omelets which were served with hash browns and wheat toast. I will definitely return and bring more friends to experience this bastion of American diner culture. Great work! read more

Amazing food! Was on our way to another breakfast place and spotted this little diner! At at the counter and had great food and plenty of it! Cash only but worth it! Priced super reasonable and will return before my trip Is over! read more

The Curve - Sausage and Eggs! Yummy - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Essential, affordable, friendly, greasy spoon. Good crispy home-fries. Cash only! Whats the difference between home-fries and hash-browns? I like what they do here as opposed to the cubes potato stuff. read more

The Curve - Insides - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Great breakfast spot . old style blue plate special. Cash only though had an omelet and hash browns very good.

sit down and EAT classic american breakfast place so so affordable and sweet staff cash only tho read more

The Curve - two eggs sunny side up with american fries and white toast - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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We stopped here while on our road trip and it was a pleasant surprise. We both had an omelette and it was as good as any omelette I've ever had. They're very generous with the cheese that was fantastic, and they gave a nice amount of veggies and they were sautéed very well. The hash browns were also fantastic. They were perfectly browned had that great flavor that reminded me of when there's love (and crisco) into the food. The waitress couldn't have been nicer and she checked in a few times to make sure the food was good and we didn't need anything. I'd gladly go back here at any time and if I wind up coming back to the area, I'm definitely going to try and come back. read more

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Walking into the place is like Walking into time. It's 1955 all over again. I almost can see the jukebox. Or Archie and Betty in the corner. it's wonderful the food is amazing. The service is spot on. And the price is good. read more

Great staff Sausage patties swimming in grease Dirty dishes Bathroom was well equipped but dim lighting. read more

Great service and delicious food! The Curve is a diner straight out of another time. It's not my go-to, but I'm definitely still thinking about this French toast! read more

The Curve - French Toast - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Unprofessional staff, very rude make sure you don't take your kids to the restaurant because they will throw a fit if the child cries.

The Curve has freaking huge pancakes! The pancake hung over the sides of the large oval plate. A huge glob of butter was melting in the center of the pancake when it was served. Also, I had a side of sausage which were two large sausage patties. OMG! The largest pancake that I have ever had was on the Hawaiian island of Maui. There is a small Maui restaurant that serves huge pancakes and the pancakes at the Curve are very similar. Oh by the way, the Curve's pancake was very good too! The service was first class. I didn't catch the name of the waitress but she was great. She handled the entire diner restaurant that seats about 40 people. She took the orders, served drinks, delivered the food and ran the cash register. I even saw her washing dishes. By the way, they only take cash, so leave the credit cards at home. The diner is located on a corner of a busy street, in a curve, near the University of Wisconsin campus. If you like breakfast you need to get down to the Curve. I highly recommend it. My ticket, before tip, was $10 (cash). read more

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Absolutely amazing food! Well worth the cost! I was craving breakfast food and this place definitely hit the spot! The service was great and the ambiance was nice as well! I would recommend visiting this cafe any time you have a chance. read more

This place is terrible. I don't know how it's gotten any good reviews. Waitress clearly had zero desire to be there or to serve us. Screaming children littered the restaurant (using that term loosely), no sausage links (only patties), omelette came out grossly under cooked, our 3 entrees all arrived at vastly different times... Need I go on? Down shift and accelerate right past this place. read more

The Curve - That's one sweet looking "omelette" - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

The food was amazing. The pancakes were so good, probably 2nd best (Pancakes Pantry in Gatlinburg,TN is the best). The service was great also. You get a lot of great food for the money. read more

A great old fashioned diner. The decor isn't trendy and the menu isn't long because it doesn't need to be. The food speaks for itself. The pancakes and french toast are fantastic. Every time I've gone, it's been extremely busy but the server was kind and welcoming. The only downside is it's cash only, but it's well worth the trouble. read more

I'm so glad I got here at Noon. I didn't realize they closed at 1pm. I just moved to Madison today. Smaller place than I expected. Someone should post pictures. I don't want to be that person to take a wide angle pic. Menu is simple. Will def post pics of that. I got the 2 eggs, sausage, and American fries with toast. I really wanted a biscuit with gravy instead of toast but the server said it would cost me an extra $6.50. I decided to not get it even though it's my favorite thing for breakfast. Quick meal and very filling. I'm definitely going to be a regular. read more

The Curve - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Basic diner food. Good price, good food, good service. You won't be disappointed. A great place for breakfast.

Not the best looking place but the food and service were amazing!! The morning we went they had one waitress but she was so fast and friendly! The food was so good and the portions were very big! Nice prices, too!! What a great hole in the wall! We're from out of town but will make sure to come back next time we're in town. read more

Service and food were amazing! Eggs done perfectly, their American fries are the best breakfast potatoes I've had in a long time! The humor of the server was the perfect compliment to the food! Definitely coming back! read more

While it's a classic corner shop breakfast stop the food was average as well as the prices and the service. I can see the charm it has on most but if you want a place to go for breakfast this wouldn't be my first choice. However, if you grew up in the area, want a classic, low key breakfast with an old school feel, this place is probably for you. Cash only though! So don't forget that. Happy eating read more

I'll be honest this places has the stuff to be great. It's a throwback to an 80s diner from the breakfast bar, the tiles on the floor to the workers. The food is good and well priced. Biggest knock is they are really understaffed. Multiple tables around me including my table of 2 waited close to an hour to get our food. For a small diner cooking eggs and bacon that's embarrassing. They really need to step up staffing and wait time. People are nice, just slow moving restaurant. read more

The Curve - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Great diner! It has become our very early morning go to. The waitress is super friendly and upbeat in the morning. Just what we need when we're there. Always good food as well. read more

The Curve - Breakfast - Diners Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Great food at a great price. Service was excellent. If you're looking for good service and quality food this is the place to go.