text: The Great Dane on the square is my goto place to take people when we are up near the Capitol here are the reasons whynn When we have visitors there are almost always kids LOTS of kids Today we had four adults and six kids The downtown Dane has a nice basement area with large tables that is perfect for big parties with children because not only is there room it is usually less busy so our rowdy kids will not bother nearly as many peoplenn They have a humongous selection of food If you cannot find something you like at The Great Dane you should probably just stay home They have everything including good options for kids and vegetarian meals that are marked with a little carrot to easily identify themnn Beer is good for you Especially beer that is not made by a big beverage company My favorite is the Crop Circle Wheat but I am a wheat beer girl so anything with wheat makes me happynn The food is good It is not the best food you are going to find in Madison but it is good The Mac and Cheese which I have probably eaten times can be really hit or miss Sometimes it is amazing Sometimes it needs more sauce Today I had the grilled cheese which is really more of a vegetable sandwich with cheese This is the second time I have had this and it was substantially better than the firstnnI really do not have anything bad to say about The Great Dane Our server today seemed a little annoyed at having to serve a giant party of kids and under but one slightly peeved server does not a bad restaurant makeI think I said that right nnWe will keep coming back to the Daneit is a bit like a Madison institution at this point