Now this is what a hip, hole-in-the-wall place should be. When you come here, you really will be treated to a fantastic evening. Yours truly recently ventured to Nat spill with a group of friends who are in town to join in festivities of Halloween and experienced spectacular service, excellent food, and an amazing Espressotini. So to get this review started, I’ll run you through the real way to experience this restaurant. In my searching around I found some people who didn’t like the place and I think it was really due to what they were expecting. First, it’s not really a place to bring a first date or anything like that. The atmosphere is loud enough that you are simply distracted when trying to get to know someone. No, this is the type of place where you go to get a good base of good food before heading out on the town for the evening. The best thing to do is split one of their excellent entrée’s and an appetizer with someone and have a cocktail or two. I would really recommend the Three-cup Chicken dish, which is what appeared to be boneless chicken cooked in a sauce that had hints of teriyaki and very clean aftertaste I’d say owing to a dash of ginger or cayenne pepper. Served with rice and a cold mixed vegetable salad, you simply cannot be dissatisfied with your meal. In addition to this, we ordered the Fried Crispy Tofu appetizer. This is another dish that is very good yet my only complaint with it would be the lack of rice when served. It’s cooked in what seemed to be the same sauce as the Chicken, but the flavor was a much more intense and needs something to mellow out that the flavor. When I go back I think I’d say the best combination would be the Chicken with one of their brick baked pizza’s as a complement to the meal. My table ordered a few of these and while they are not all that big (think about a medium sized pizza) they looked fabulous. Next time I go I will defiantly be ordering one of those. But onto what was really makes the experience. The drink menu and the bar staff are possibly the best in Madison. Here it is in no way girly for a man to order a martini or a mojito. They are so well made and strong that both genders will be happy regardless of what they choose. They also have an extensive beer and wine list that surely has something for every taste, mood, or occasion. Like I mentioned earlier, I absolutely loved the espressotini. This isn’t the milky and sweet version that you find at so many other places; this is a genuine coffee based vodka. Served in an ice cold martini glass and garnished with roasted coffee beans it really is something that you owe it to yourself to order when you’re here. Or if you don’t enjoy coffee, I’d say order one of their mojitos. I was able to sample this as well, and this is not your ordinary mojito. Nat Spill manages to find the right balance of sweet, minty, and strength to make one to savor and feel the heat as it caresses your tongue.
I suppose I haven’t really mentioned how cool the atmosphere of the place really is, so let me start with how to find it. They do not have a phone and they do not have a sign anywhere that says ‘Nat Spill” (I’m actually guessing at the spelling, I always thought it was something like ‘Nochspeil’) The only thing you will see is a door, some interesting shutter like windows that are open during the summer, and a bouncer at the door. Put these together with candles on the posts that separate the booths/tables that are opposite from the bar, a red glow coming from the lights, and the amazing back room with tree stumps for chairs and you’ve got enough urban attitude and style to compete with any well known metropolis bar. So if you have definitely start.
Nat Spill
211 King St
Madison, Wi 53703
-Manifold Man
