Madison Magazine

Our annual Road Trips issue is here! A vacation in Wisconsin often means heading for water. This year, we visited three of the state’s many cities with cultures, histories and industries shaped by life on the shore. 💧 Andrea Behling makes a historic boutique hotel on the Mississippi River her home base for a weekend in La Crosse. 💧 Emma Waldinger finds a hot spot for antiquing, creative community and waterfront dining on the Fox River in Princeton. 💧 Anna Kottakis dives into the maritime history of two port cities on either side of Lake Michigan in Manitowoc and Ludington. Also in this issue, Anna Kottakis and Lily Spanbauer explore the growth of Ultimate Frisbee in Madison — across college and club squads, a semi-professional team, a wildly popular recreational league and burgeoning youth participation — ahead of the summer season and the Ultimate Frisbee Association’s championship weekend, which will take place Aug. 28-29 at Breese Stevens Field in Madison for the fifth time in 12 years. 🥏 Plus, Doug Moe talks to Larry Meiller before he signs off after nearly 60 years on Wisconsin Public Radio, Jackson Baker highlights Madison-area youth bands that are carrying on our legendary connection to 90s alt-rock, and Logan Rude gives a taste of El Centro Cocina's LA-style street food. On newsstands April 29. Single issue orders are now live at madisonmagazine.com. 📸 Cover photo: Michael Tatman / Getty Contributors: Tim Burton, Abigail Bures, Jacqueline Kehoe, Erica Krug, Jeff Oloizia, Christine Dopp, Sean O'Brien, Rick Dahms, Sol Cotti, Nikki Hansen, Kayla Gendron, Nick Garcia, Patrick Stutz

We're honored to announce that Madison Magazine's writing, reporting and design from 2025 is being recognized by regional and national professional journalism competitions 🎉 Work by Head Editor Emma Waldinger and contributing writers Doug Moe and Jeff Oloizia are finalists in the Milwaukee Press Club Awards for Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism. Madison Magazine is also a finalist at the City and Regional Magazine Association Awards in a record number of categories in recent history, including a nod for General Excellence among magazines with circulations under 18,000. Former Editor-in-Chief Andrea Behling has a nod in the Food or Dining Feature Package category, Head Editor Emma Waldinger is up for Column Excellence, Tim Burton is a finalist for Cover Excellence, and contributing writer Jeff Oloizia is being recognized for Reporting. Read the Madison Magazine content recognized in this year's professional competitions at the link. https://lnkd.in/gJX9Q-8r

Apply for our full-time digital editor position by this week Friday, March 27 at the link below!

You asked for it. Last year, we posted a prank “Worst of Madison” cover to our Instagram on April Fools’ Day — and our audience responded with enthusiasm. We took it as a sign that Madisonians want to explore some of the bigger issues facing our city. This story also puts a spotlight on the public health crises, environmental hazards and transportation headaches shaping life on the isthmus and throughout the state. Some — like lake health and binge drinking — have long been discussed. Others, like the deficit in public school funding or the rising cost of rent, are relatively newer. Ultimately, cataloging the “worst of Madison” comes from a place of love — because you can’t make a city better without first being honest about where it falls short. Also in this issue, Anna Kottakis explores why homeownership, long a cornerstone of the American Dream, is slipping out of reach in Madison. With skyrocketing costs and a skilled labor shortage, new construction can’t keep pace with the city’s population boom, driving prices up and shutting prospective buyers out. Plus, Doug Moe highlights a few epic pranks in Madison newspaper history, Brady Mallory pens an essay about the evolving experience of grief, and Aaron R. Conklin visits Turn Key Supper Club for dinner and a drink. On newsstands April 1. Single issue orders are now live at madisonmagazine.com. 📸 Cover illustrations by Sean O'Brien Contributors: Tim Burton, Emma Waldinger, Sam Zwick, Jeff Oloizia, Christine Dopp, Nikki Hansen, Nick Garcia, Pete Olsen, Patrick Stutz

APPLICATION CLOSED Madison Magazine is hiring a full-time digital editor! Find all the details and apply here: https://lnkd.in/gPEx-eQk

Madison Magazine is pleased to announce this year’s Best of Business Leadership Award recipients. According to Managing Director Aaron Olver, University Research Park is an embodiment of the Wisconsin Idea. The nonprofit supports the University of Wisconsin-Madison by creating places where science and technology can flourish. It acts like a real estate company — developing land, roads and infrastructure — with a social and economic mission. “What gets me out of bed every day is trying to make Wisconsin as strong as it can be, and Madison as strong as it can be,” Olver says. “Economic prosperity is the foundation on which a great community gets built.” Find Aaron’s story, alongside our three other 2026 Best of Business Leadership honorees, in the February issue or online at madisonmagazine.com Photo by Patrick Stutz

L’Etoile is 50 🌟 When nearly 50% of restaurants close within the first five years, a 50-year milestone is a huge deal. For L’Etoile, the anniversary marks so much more than just many years of doing business. Its five decades of pioneering and passionate cooking, local sourcing and relationship-building demonstrate how important a restaurant can be to a community. Andrea Behling reports on how this iconic fine-dining restaurant built on the nascent momentum of the Dane County Farmers’ Market to pioneer farm-to-table sourcing for Madison-area restaurants starting in 1976. Also in this issue, Rodlyn-mae Banting presents a guide to Madison’s international grocery stores, representing the cuisines of Latin America, East Asia, India, Europe and the Middle East. These shops — often owned locally by immigrant families — are a vital part of the city’s culinary scene, presenting portals to new and familiar foods. Plus, Jacqueline Kehoe spends an evening at a popular home concert series, Alisyn A. gets the scoop on whether Wisconsin will ever ditch daylight saving, and Emma Waldinger takes a drive to New Glarus’ new casual fine-dining restaurant, Canter Inn. On newsstands March 4. Single issue orders are now live at madisonmagazine.com. 📸 Cover photo courtesy of L’Etoile Contributors: Tim Burton, Anna Kottakis, Doug Moe, Mary Ellen Gabriel, Lily Spanbauer, Jeff Oloizia, Christine Dopp, Sean O'Brien, Jessie Lin, Kayla Gendron,Patrick Stutz, Anthony Wahl, Timothy Hughes, Nikki Hansen, Nick Garcia

Madison Magazine is pleased to announce this year’s Best of Business Leadership Award recipients in our February issue. Destination Madison President and CEO Ellie Westman Chin has had some great leaders to look up to in her career. They taught her that leadership can come from anywhere in a room, and if it’s a good idea, you can make it happen. Challenges? You can get over them. Do you need more people to accomplish a goal? You can bring them to the table. For the last five years she’s helmed Destination Madison with the same energetic, growth-focused mindset. Westman Chin’s work has cemented Destination Madison’s place at planning and decision-making tables in Madison. “We have nothing but growth ahead of us,” she says. Join us at the annual Best of Business Luncheon to celebrate Ellie Westman Chin, plus three more honorees, and this year’s Best Places to Work in Madison on Feb. 27 at The Madison Concourse Hotel & Governor’s Club. Best of Business honorees will participate in a panel discussion about current business topics moderated by News 3 Now This Morning anchor Chris Stanford. Find details and purchase tickets at madisonmagazine.com/bob Photo by Patrick Stutz

Madison Magazine is pleased to announce this year’s Best of Business Leadership Award recipients in our February issue. Urban League of Greater Madison president and CEO Ruben Anthony, Jr. says he’s often working on something risky. One of his biggest success stories: bringing to life the Black Business Hub, a center that opened in 2024 that supports Black and BIPOC entrepreneurs and business owners. Located just steps from the Urban League on South Park Street, the Hub acts as an economic accelerator that provides space, grants, training and other opportunities to minority-owned businesses. “We focus on creating needs-driven opportunities,” Anthony says. “So when people ask, ‘How are our programs and activities so full?’ They’re so full because we listen — we listen and we learn.” Join us at the annual Best of Business Luncheon to celebrate Ruben L. Anthony Jr., plus three more honorees, and this year’s Best Places to Work in Madison on Feb. 27 at The Madison Concourse Hotel & Governor’s Club. Best of Business honorees will participate in a panel discussion about current business topics moderated by News 3 Now This Morning anchor Chris Stanford. Find details and purchase tickets at madisonmagazine.com/bob Photo by Patrick Stutz

Madison Magazine is pleased to announce this year’s Best of Business Leadership Award recipients in our February issue. United Way of Dane County president and CEO Renee Moe’s day-to-day work involves problem-solving to help individuals and families move from crisis and poverty into self-sufficiency and well-being — whether they need access to housing, food, health care or employment — but she always has a big-picture, future-focused outlook. “I get to be a part of the hard conversations that actually make lives better for people, and that is so inspiring and so motivating,” says Moe. Join us at the annual Best of Business Luncheon to celebrate Renee Moe, plus three more honorees, and this year’s Best Places to Work in Madison on Feb. 27 at The Madison Concourse Hotel & Governor’s Club. Best of Business honorees will participate in a panel discussion about current business topics moderated by News 3 Now This Morning anchor Chris Stanford. Find details and purchase tickets at madisonmagazine.com/bob Photo by Patrick Stutz