The cocktails here deserve more than 5 stars -- they are amazing! To the food, however, I'd give only 3 stars = so I'm giving the Merchant, as a whole, 4 stars. Still, that shouldn't discourage anyone from coming to this beautiful restaurant. I spent a summer in Madison and came back to the Merchant multiple times for their wonderful drinks. Every single person I brought with me was always impressed. The cocktails are creative and wonderfully balanced. There is no question in my mind that the Merchant's cocktails are superior (and a couple dollars cheaper!) to those of bars in NYC and DC that are known for craft cocktails. I especially loved a new one on their summer menu that is basically a yerba-mate caipirinha. Amazing! The bartenders are also really friendly, and are always willing to suggest the perfect cocktail or wine for you if you are feeling overwhelmed. However, the food I've ordered at the Merchant has been a mixed bag. The appetizers and cheese platter have been tasty. But when my husband and I came for dinner, we felt the food wasn't really anything to write home about, and was a bit pricey for what you got. For example, I ordered the small plate of mussels, which included about 12 mussels or so. Fine. Except at least 4 of them weren't even opened. Which meant I couldn't eat 1/3 of my order. Someone in the kitchen should have noticed this before plating it, and, frankly, why were so many of them unopened in the first place? The waitress agreed to bring me out a new dish, which was nice, but it was still a bit odd. The sauce the mussels were in was really bland, too. I can't remember what my husband ate for dinner, but he wasn't terribly impressed either. For desserts, I've had the tres leches cake twice. The first time it was pretty awful, but the second time it was tastier. I should also note, however, that the St. Louis Butter Cake with Jam was wonderful.
Is this review positive or negative?
Options:
(A). negative.
(B). positive.
Answer:
(B).