It's a good thing my wife and I are early risers. We stayed close to Willy St the last time in Madison and Willaby's was only a 15 min walk away. Good thing for that walk because you will be stuffed upon leaving. Hearty portions of greasy spoon diner breakfast legends are served with a smile at this CASH Only joint. I had the Fair Oaks Skillet which was fantastic, my wife got a super stuffed omelette and we had one HUGE blueberry pancake to split. Both left full and happy with a great walk down Willy st to help with digestion. We will be back. read more

I found out from my daughter she and her friends used to go here in middle school cause it's so close to Marquette/Okeef middle schools. The food is just what I was looking for in the morning. Reminded me of going to that on neighborhood handout place for people who like breakfast for lunch. The service was just the way you'd expect the local breakfast spot to be. Guy in back with the white apron calling out orders and the server walking over in record speed cause they know you're hungry. The place sits right in Willy street the great street. You can sit by the big front window and watch the neighborhood come to life. They have a nice breakfast counter too with the spools you can spin on, it's an old time atmosphere. There are a few booths but they move you in and out pretty fact so I've never had to wait. read more

Willalby's Cafe - Pancake bigger than the plate - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

A classic breakfast diner. Here's what we ordered: 2 sunny side up eggs with buttered toast, bacon, and hash browns ($9.50) Egg, sausage and cheese breakfast sandwich with a side of hash browns ($5.50 for sandwich + $5 hash browns) Coffee, of course. No complaints there. I wish they crisped up the hash browns a little more, but other than that, you can't go wrong with this breakfast spot. Service was spot on. Quick, friendly, but didn't feel rushed to get out of there at all. If I lived in Madison full time, I'd frequent this place quite a bit. read more

Our breakfasts tasted delicious and the whole place had a serious vibe going on that we loved - relaxed and accepting. The music was wonderful, and the staff was helpful and kind, especially our server Tommy. We liked it so much that we went back a second day. It was walking distance from our hotel. Accepts cash only but an ATM is in back if you need it. Heartily recomment. read more

Two folks running the show efficiently and we loved our experience - the service was very friendly and fast. The vibes of an old school diner with a great cup of coffee, quality food, generous portioned breakfast, decent prices (cash only - atm on site). We ordered the Fair Oaks Skillet with bacon and two slices of French Toast and it was the perfect amount of savory & sweet for two! One of the better french toast we've ever had! We were really impressed with the quality and overall experience of this neighborhood diner. read more

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As a breakfast joint, this place is tops! Great prices, great coffee, great food and great service. Has a great local diner feel. The Captain loves his breakfast and this place doesn't disappoint. Stop in and tell'em the Captain sent ya! read more

Bomb, bomb, bomb!!! The more that I come here, the more I'm impressed. Today was a bacon omelet with wheat toast and hash browns. Everything was excellent! If you're in the Madison area on the east side, come here!! (The drizzle on the omelette was by me and not the restaurant) read more

Willalby's Cafe - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

The breakfast was so good, and they even had biscuits and gravy my vegetarian friend could eat. Price was great and the people working there were super fun :) Zero notes. read more

I'm a fan of this place! It's a good old fashioned breakfast spot, cash only, simple menu, great service, unlimited coffee refills. The decor feels like a homey diner, from the wooden booths to the countertop. The food was home cooked, classic, and delicious. I was very happy to have gotten a seat at around 9am on a Saturday. One time I tried to go around 11am and they had already sold out! So, plan accordingly and like I said, bring cash as they have an ATM in the back, but don't make any exceptions. Cash is king here. Happy eating! read more

A very tiny spot where every single seat was taken when I went in on a Friday around noon. Simple menu with cheap offerings. I got a banana waffle and we got hash browns to share. Waffle itself was kinda meh to me but great potatoes! All the savory options people were getting around me looked delicious so regretted not getting one of those. The salty melty butter was a yummy contrasting addition to the waffle but my friends who got french toast mentioned it was almost too salty. Great quick service! read more

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No nonsense greasy spoon serving up solid breakfast fare. What I love is that it doesn't try to be anything that it's not-a throwback diner with reasonable prices. The waitstaff is quick to refill your coffee cup. Open early for those early risers. Pro-tip: Don't check out the basement where the bathrooms are located. read more

Super chill, super welcoming. Just a short walk for me currently and always meet people from the neighborhood. Nothing better than getting a cup of coffee and an egg sandwich early in the morning at Willaby's. read more

If you're looking for a tasty meal at a very reasonable cost, look no further! We were able to be seated immediately at 930 on a Saturday but by the time we left, most tables were filled up. The service was routine and gave us coffee and water refills continuously, which was awesome. The place itself has some age but it has a very old school diner vibe, which we really appreciated. The omelette I got was absolutely loaded with veggies and the hash browns and butter toast were nice and crispy. Great experience overall, highly recommended! read more

Willalby's Cafe - Omelette! - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Somewhat hidden jem for breakfast off campus. Classic dinner. Not a lot of seating so get there early! Staff is always so kind and friendly. read more

Willalby's Cafe - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Love this little hole in the wall place. The Food is amazing and the wait staff is entertaining and friendly. If your ever on Willy St check it out, You won't be disappointed! read more

This was a fun place to visit on our travels. Located on a street with lots of foot traffic, a fantastic Ace Hardware store, lots of little antiques stores, and interesting restaurants, Willalby's fit right in. There were lots of eclectic things on the walls. No two coffee cups were the same. People were happily jammed into close quarters. Tommy, with his flowing hair and brightly colored onesie, brought us great coffee and took our order. He also apologized when he realized he didn't turn our order in right away. We had plenty of time to fellowship with our coffee and to visit with the people at the next table and to watch people parade in and out of Ace Hardware. The omelettes we ordered were wonderful and huge! Mine was the Hart' Content, and it was packed with perfectly chopped/grilled veggies and lots of bacon. My companions ate most of their Willalby's and Ham/Cheese Omelettes too. Each omelette came with perfectly prepared wheat toast and has browns. The hash browns were yummy soft on the inside and deliciously crispy on the outside. Our local host told us we had to have one of the pancakes. It was bigger than the plate. We put that in the center and dug into it from all sides. Suffice it to say that we took away enough leftovers to fully satisfy three more people. What a great breakfast in Madison! read more

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This place is so cool! Great vibes, friendly staff, and old timey atmosphere. The food was great and came out quickly.

I wanted to try a new place for breakfast, and I came across Willalby's cafe. Great atmosphere, the breakfast was amazing. I am very picky when it comes to my bacon, and it was crispy which I love. It is a cash only restaurant but there is a ATM in the back of the restaurant. Aaron was great, he was funny and just had a great personality. The only small very small issue was the music was a like loud. It did not bother me but I could see where some people might have a problem with it read more

Willalby's Cafe - bacon, eggs, hash browns and toast - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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Sometimes places like Willalby's can be intimidating. If you've never been you might feel out of place because of all the regulars. Or you might read the reviews and think it isn't worth the "hassle" of paying cash, or waiting for a table. Let me stop you right now. GO INTO WILLALBY'S! This gem is incredible and soared above and beyond the reviews here on Yelp. Now, we read the reviews and planned accordingly. We stopped and grabbed cash on our way. We also chose to go early in the morning on a weekday based on reviews noting a wait for a table, or slower food service when busy. We rolled into Willalby's at 730am. Behind the counter a server greeted us and said we could sit anywhere. We picked a booth in the middle and reviewed the menus that were already at the table. Being up to date on the Yelp reviews, we knew they had good, giant pancakes so that was definitely being ordered. The server came over with coffee and got my wife her drink. We ordered and then took to admiring the art. Our food was out quickly - so I'm not sure why others have had issues. There were at least two cooks in the kitchen when we arrived and two more joined before we had left. Plus the two servers behind the counter. Everyone was incredibly nice and the food was great. The pancake is in fact huge so plan on sharing, bringing a big appetite, or taking some to go. Don't sleep on the sausage patties either. Delicious! And our eggs were cooked to perfection. We're already making plans to go back. read more

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Love the environment definitely great breakfast food and mostly the friendly lovely staff read more

Willalby's Cafe - Grits eggs toast - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Wish I could say I had a great experience but I didn't! I came to Wisconsin to visit a family member and we decided on Willably's because we liked their menu options. Our food was good but our server wasn't the best. When our food was brought out I noticed my sandwich was missing the egg ( I ordered an egg, cheese and bacon sandwich; as it's listed on their menu). I did not think it was that big of a deal, I just wanted my egg... I politely waited for our server to come back and immediately our server was rude and defensive about how I only ordered a bacon and cheese sandwich..... As I didn't want to argue over an egg, I let our server know our conversation was pointless and ate my bacon and cheese sandwich. In the end the server tried to make up for their rudeness by eventually offering to remake it. I declined as I believed it could have been suggested in our initial interaction. Good thing the server let me know they took the egg price off my sandwich ( as I questioned why it would've been there in the first place if I only ordered "a bacon and cheese sandwich"). When we paid I will not lie, we did not leave her the best tip. She followed us out and yelled at us to never return.... Good thing I wasn't going to! read more

Best greasy spoon on the isthmus. MSN staple. Love the vibe on the inside. Super memorable service. read more

Willalby's Cafe - My friends. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

One of my favorite breakfast restaurants in Madison. I think it's very underrated! Huge portions for such an affordable price. I always get one of their pancakes and I've never been disappointed. My favorite is getting it with banana and walnuts. I love their vegan/vegetarian options as well. My whole family loves this cozy spot on the east side. The place is small, so you may have a wait on the weekends. read more

Willalby's Cafe - pancake - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

This is a great breakfast spot in Madison, with friendly service and very good food. The old diner feel adds a lot, as well. A western omelette was served hot and stuffed with a great, thick peppers, onions and ham dice with melted cheese throughout. The hash browns are a nice accompaniment rather than the more prevalent home fries. My hot beverage was refilled without waiting. The food did take some time to be served but a quality breakfast like that is worth the wait. read more

Come very hungry. Had the Harts omelet!!! Wow Also spouse had sausage and cheese omelet! Great hash browns ! Service good. Very neighborly atmosphere! read more

My husband and I have been trying out new restaurants for breakfast. This week we went to Willalby's Café. The establishment was very busy, with no tables available, so we sat down at the counter. As we were looking through the menu, my husband noticed that you can only pay with cash. Off we went to an ATM several blocks down the street. There is one inside the restaurant, but we didn't want to pay the fee. We were lucky when we arrived again, that a table was open. We sat down and someone arrived at our table shortly afterwards to take our beverage order, and we received our drinks promptly. Unfortunately, we did not order the food at that time and we had to wait at least twenty minutes before our waiter arrived back to take our order. During this time, the waiter came back and asked if our order was taken yet. We replied no, then he said he would be back, and then proceeded to start cleaning tables off, then serving others and then finally arrived back to take our order. I'm not sure why he couldn't have taken the order before he started taking care of other duties. This was at the time that many people had finished their meals and left, and only a few people were sitting at the counter. It took about fifteen minutes to have our food arrive, and the food was hot, which was a bonus, meaning it wasn't sitting in the kitchen for a while. I ordered the Hart's Content Omelet, filled with bacon, spinach, onion, mushrooms, tomato, garlic and cheddar cheese. I must state that the omelet was quite large! I was expecting everything to be mixed into the egg, as most breakfast restaurants do, and was happy when it came out with the inside filled. It was one of the best omelets I have eaten in a restaurant to date, although it was rather salty, most likely from the bacon. The hash browns were wonderfully crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. My husband ordered the Fair Oaks Skillet with hash browns, meat sausage, green pepper, onion, mushrooms and Swiss cheese and a side of corned beef hash. He said the skillet was decent, but he didn't care for the chunks of sausage in the skillet instead of it being broken apart and distributed throughout the skillet. He thought the corned beef hash was canned and not freshly made. I did taste the corned beef. I felt that it was very crispy on the outside and very little corned beef on the inside, and my husband agreed that for the price, it wasn't worth it. I do think that we received two orders of the corned beef hash, as I had asked my husband if we could share it and I believe the waiter put in two orders, instead of one, which we did not order. Thus the $5.00 charge on our ticket. If you are planning to go to Willalby's Cafe, be prepared that it can get busy and you will have to wait outside until a table is available. It is a smaller establishment, so it can get noisy, especially when they decide to turn on music, which was quite loud. Tone it down. The inside is outdated and could use a fresher appearance, but the food is decent. Will we be back? Probably not, as it was too loud due to the music and the small space, which made it hard to hear anyone speak. We were happy to leave for some peace and quiet. read more

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I can't believe I waited so long to try Willalby's! I love an old-school, no-frills diner and this hit the spot for a fun breakfast with my coworker. Tasty diner coffee in fun mugs - I imagine all are different! I got the Denver skillet and my coworker got the Mediterranean omelette. Both were huge! The skillet was superb with melty, quality cheddar and no shortage of ham and peppers. The toast was great and sopped up my runny yolk. There was one guy working the counter and serving us everything. Seems a little more chill on weekdays than weekends. Great service and low price. Hope to come back! read more

A classic diner experience that you can't miss. They have all the classics mixed in with some of their special skillets and dish of the day. I had their two eggs scrambled with hash browns and toast. I loved their hasbrowns, the classic shredded potatoes. Plus their toast was probably the best toast I've ever had (ignoring the fact that it's soaked in butter haha). As someone who normally doesn't eat the toast at breakfast I finish every slice here so that should tell you something. It's sure to be crowded on the weekends so come early if that's your plan. It's cash only as well but there's an atm in the back so don't worry. Quick and friendly service. A great breakfast/brunch spot that'll satisfy everyone. read more

Fantastic throw back breakfast spot with the friendliest service in town. Has some very good vegan options, try the vegan biscuits and gravy. Usually busy so be prepared to wait a short time and enjoy this place! Cash only. read more

Would you wait 30 mins for a waffle ? If so this is the spot for you. Maybe if the cook was making more than one dish at a time... slowest breakfast in town. Heading elsewhere to actually eat breakfast. read more

The food and the vibe are wonderful here and I come for breakfast every time I'm in Madison, but it seems they only want to cater to youngsters. I came last week an hour early to have breakfast with my brother and to have a coffee and read while trying to relax from a grueling trip. As I walked in, punk music blared and at 7am I was not in the mood. I tried to hang but gave up and went elsewhere. We tried again the next morning and the music was loud but the 3 of us decided to stay. By the time left the place was half full and we were yelling to hear each other, as was everyone else in the place. Ridiculous and disappointing and not how I want spend early morning breakfast. I was thrilled when this little old-school diner survived Covid, but I won't be back. read more

Stopped in for a quick bite this morning and had a very disappointing meal. I ordered scrambled eggs, wheat toast and sausage. Super basic. The food did come out quick which was nice, but it was not real good. The eggs were OK, fluffy enough, but also kind of burnt tasting. The sausage was very thin patties and way overcooked, also incredibly greasy. The whole plate was grease covered and the toast had a strange flavor. It also had entirely too much butter on it. Really only the eggs were worthy of being eaten just to get something in my stomach. read more

Cheerful staff, fun ambiance and GREAT food that gives you everything you want in a yummy homemade diner's breakfast. Conveniently close to the bike trail and downtown! Will return! read more

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I love willabys but today was just different... The waffles literally disintegrated, burnt to a crustotherwise good read more

Willalby's Cafe - Waffle‍ - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

I can't believe this is my first time at this old-school Madison breakfast spot. It has a hippie vibe, I think it's cash only, and the interior is aged and cozy. But it's not crowded, the service is great, and we really liked the food. Classic breakfast, well done. read more

Great place for breakfast! The omelets were awesome and the hash browns looked like They were cooked to perfection. Great mix of eclectic music, from Boy George one minute to 90s Hip Hop the next. Will be back! Not much seating so be prepared to wait on a busy day. read more

Neighborhood dinner with the best chocolate chip pancakes. The coffee is super good too! If we lived in this neighborhood .....we would be at this diner everyday. read more

Willalby's Cafe - Chocolate chip pancake perfection ! - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Number one thing you need to know: the food is gas. So damn good. We went on a Saturday morning and both got omelettes. Wait was long cause the place was packed, but it was a Saturday morning ‍ YOU HAVE TO PAY IN CASH, however there's an ATM at the back with the cheapest fee I've ever paid (1.75). Coffee is solid, I had to serve myself from the pot cause they were so busy but with all that included, this place is damn good. I had the Mediterranean omelette and it was 11/10. The bathrooms are pretty creepy but oh well. Don't come here if you're in a rush or want a classy establishment. This is a straight-up kitschy diner. Also the soundtrack was totally unpredictable and I loved it. read more

A small little dinky dinner! Above average food and really big pancakes! If you like pancakes, then go here! A little busy and dirty when we got there but the staff was pretty small so I didn't really care. Overall, it's a good hole in the wall for breakfast if you are in the area! read more

Come on down. Open for in house or to go dining. Clean, casual, not costly. Nice folks too! read more