Paisan's exterior, overlooking Lake Monona, may look romantic. But do not be fooled, dear readers. The interior lacks charm, and has sort of a generic, hotel-ish quality, besides maybe the cool, pine wood shelving that enables those at the bar to tell exactly what the offerings of alcohol are. This is a nice, clear lay-out as opposed to the standard clustering of bottles. \n\nHowever, I was a-okay with the food. It's good, stick to your ribs type of stuff. I had the beef noodle soup and it was perfect to warm me up on a winter day. I also enjoyed the spinach fettucini with chicken tettrazini in a light, yet not doused white cheese sauce. The college-aged guy that served us was pleasant and attentive enough.\n\nOne thing that could be improved though definitely are the plates. They reminded me of, like, old-school airplane ones with the silver lining. A little bit of the pasta was also burnt and crunchy...like cooked too much in an oven or something? \n\nI would return because in comparison to the other Madison offerings, it's a little better than average. It's more like three and a half stars.
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