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City Cast Madison

Rob Thomas

What’s the deal with the ticket prices at Jerry Seinfeld’s upcoming show at Overture Hall. (

Jamie McCarthy / Getty Images For Good+ Foundation

Do you know who was behind the fake poll in the Democratic primary? (

Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, 

agreed to a $17 billion settlement of a lawsuit

 from a consortium of states that alleged the company’s social media apps were harmful to young people. 

Wisconsin is expecting to get a share of over $200 million from the settlement

, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul talks to host Bianca Martin about the historic settlement and what it will mean for the state. He also talks about how his office is tackling PFAS lawsuits and the DOJ’s role in investigating the fatal police shooting of Corey Ruiz. [NPR, WPR, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

WI Attorney General on Meta Payout, PFAS Settlement, and Ruiz Investigation

Here’s the details on how the settlement came about, and how Wisconsin might spend its share of the money.

When a consortium of states attorneys general filed suit against Meta, it was compared to a landmark lawsuit filed against tobacco companies in the 1990s. In both cases, the suits alleged the companies knew about the harmful effects of their products and tried to cover the data up.

the charge was that the company had designed its apps to “encourage compulsive use”

 with features like infinite scroll, photo filters, and “like” buttons that helped them become addictive to its users, and particularly young people.

The AGs also said Meta violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act by gathering personal data about users under 13 years of age and not seeking parental consent. Meta denied the accusations, saying they were aware of potential risks to minors and made efforts to address them. [NPR]

Initial estimates were that Meta could have incurred $1.4 trillion in penalties – roughly its entire worth on NASDAQ. While the $17 billion (released over 10 years) might seem like a lot of money, 

Meta reported over $200 billion in earnings in 2025

Meta has agreed to several new restrictions for younger users

, including a default two-hour limit, muted notifications during school hours, and disabling so-called “beauty filters” for photos. [Meta, NPR]

💸 How Will Wisconsin Spend Its Zuckerbucks?

Wisconsin will get at least $219 million over the next 10 years

, and could get as much as $313 million, according to Kaul. Allocating Wisconsin’s share is under the sole discretion of Kaul’s office, although at least half the money must go to promote youth mental health and addressing the risks of social media use.

Some of the things the money could be spent on include afterschool programs, youth mental health programs, creating phone-free zones at schools, public health advertising, and crisis intervention hotlines and other services. [WPR]

Wisconsin already started to address the risks of smartphones among students by passing a statewide law earlier this year 

requiring all Wisconsin schools to come up with a policy limiting cell phones in school

The Madison Metropolitan School District 

approved a new policy that started this school year

 that bans all cell phone use among K-8 students, and bans cell phone use for high school students except for lunchtime.

Some Madison parents want the district to go even further

 and severely limit all kinds of screens, including iPads, during classroom time. [DPI, News 3, WPR]

Get the details on Wisconsin’s $200M share of the historic $17B Meta settlement as Attorney General Josh Kaul joins City Cast Madison to discuss protecting young people online, tackling PFAS lawsuits, and investigating the Corey Ruiz police shooting.

Wisconsin To Receive $219M in Landmark Meta Settlement

How the Historic Meta Settlement Will Impact Wisconsin

On the City Cast Madison podcast, we break down some of the biggest Madison news of the week. Find new episodes every Friday.

City Cast Madison: Madison's News Podcast

Madison News

Fall means the return of Oktoberfest and, against the odds, Madison’s Essen Haus will be celebrating the German beer festival again in 2026.

The beer hall and restaurant at 514 E. Wilson St., 

will host its Oktoberfest celebration on Saturday, Sept. 12

, with live music both inside and outside the bar and German beer and food specials all day.

But a few years ago, that didn’t seem to be in the cards. Several attempts have been made by developers to tear down the Essen Haus and the Come Back In next door for a mixed-use development. Another 

proposal from Lotus Development is awaiting city approval

. But, for now, the Essen Haus remains and the beer taps keep flowing.

Raise a glass (or a boot) to the Essen Haus’ long history and the many times it has escaped the wrecking ball.

In the 1800s, East Wilson Street was located just a few blocks from the city’s first train station and became a haven for German workers and travelers who came to Madison. But the neighborhood soon fell into disrepair, with a reputation for transient hotels and houses of ill repute.

Bob Worm bought several properties in the 500 block

, taking over the Come Back In and the Up North Saloon and opening the Essen Haus in 1982 and Hotel Ruby Marie. [Essen Haus]

🏗️ The Many Plans to Tear Down the Essen Haus

Plans to raze the Essen Haus have dated back over 20 years, and somehow it’s stayed standing. Here’s a timeline:

Developers offered to buy the property from Worm

 and build a 16-story mixed-used development, but that plan was withdrawn after opposition from neighbors and city officials.

: The developers came back with a scaled-back plan for an eight-story development with condos, retail and parking, but that fell through.

: Worm announced he was working with Kothe Real Estate Partners 

on a plan that would demolish the Essen Haus and Come Back In

 buildings, but relocate those establishments in a new development on the block that would also include a hotel and housing. But the concept never took off.

: Developer Lance McGrath announced plans to raze the Essen Haus and several buildings around it to 

build a five-story development called “The East End”

 that would include 153 apartments, commercial space, and parking. That deal also fell through in what McGrath at the time called a “long, messy story.”

JCap Real Estate of Eau Claire proposes redeveloping the block

 for a six-story, 100-room hotel and an eight-story apartment building while preserving some of the facades of the historic buildings. That plan received an initially positive reaction from the neighborhood, and got far enough along that the Essen Haus announced that it was closing in August 2024.

But as the project was delayed, the Essen Haus kept its doors open, and the JCap plan eventually was cancelled. [🔒WSJ]

Now there’s another development proposal on the table. 

Lotus Company is proposing a $40 million project

, similar to the JCap idea, that would feature 198 lower-cost apartments across two buildings and a hotel and restaurant. Facades from buildings such as the Come Back In would be preserved.

If Lotus gets approval from the city, construction would start next July, with completion in July 2029. [WKOW]

Celebrate Oktoberfest 2026 at Madison's iconic Essen Haus on Saturday, Sept. 12! Enjoy a full day of live indoor/outdoor music, German beer, and food specials at this beloved beer hall that continues to defy development odds.

Raise a Stein to Madison’s Endangered Essen Haus

How the Essen Haus Has Avoided the Wrecking Ball...So Far

The latest on the best and newest restaurants and bars in Madison. We'll help you find where to eat, drink, and socialize.

Madison Food & Drink

Food & Drink

Canada implemented $20 billion in retaliatory tariffs on the United States Tuesday

, responding to President Donald Trump levying $20 billion in tariffs on Canadian goods after trade talks between the two countries fell apart in August. (A tariff is a tax that a government places on goods coming into the country, and while importers pay the tariff, the extra cost is often passed on to consumers.)

Experts say that Wisconsin farmers – and, as a result, Wisconsin consumers – will be hurt by the tariffs from both sides. Here’s a breakdown on how the tariffs will affect Wisconsin farmers, and how you might feel the impact. [WPR]

Wisconsin dairy farmers are especially worried about tariffs on milk and cheese that Canada placed this week. Canada is the second-largest customer for United States agriculture next to Mexico, 

having purchased $28 billion in agricultural goods last year

 on a variety of milk and cream products, and 25% on cheese and curds. Wisconsin dairy farmers say the tit-for-tat tariffs 

could hurt exports of milk products produced in the Midwest

, of which there’s already an oversupply. The cost of milk is currently at record highs in U.S. grocery stores despite the oversupply, 

due to increased production and distribution costs

. [USDA, Yahoo! Finance, eDairyNews, Chicago Tribune]

The trade war also puts crop farmers in Wisconsin at risk by threatening their access to 

. Canada is the largest producer and exporter of the potassium-based fertilizer, and 85% of potash used in the U.S. comes from Canada.

So far, Canada has left potash off the table for tariffs, but Ontario Premier Doug Ford has suggested that withholding potash 

would kill the U.S. agricultural industry “overnight.”

 Other premiers have pushed back against such an escalation, fearing it would lead to a long-term backlash. [WPR, Yahoo! Finance Canada]

Most farm equipment is built from components made in both the United States and Canada. But Canada has levied a tariff on agricultural parts made in the United States, matching “dollar-for-dollar” a similar tariff imposed by the United States.

This will make the equipment more expensive at a time

 when farmers were already dealing with falling income due to other tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, and the war with Iran cutting off the supply of oil and fertilizer. As in the past, the combination of rising costs and shrinking foreign markets will result in higher prices for U.S. consumers, experts say. [Farm Progress]

Canada has retaliated with $20 billion in tariffs against the U.S. following a breakdown in trade talks. Here is how these new trade barriers will impact Wisconsin farmers and consumers, driving up costs from both sides.

How Canada Tariffs Could Impact Wisconsin Farms

How the U.S.-Canada Trade War Could Hurt Wisconsin Farmers

 says she’s more excited about her new book “

” than she has been about one of her novels in a while.

Part of that is the anticipation of catching her readers off-guard. At first, “Tell Two Friends,” which hits stores Sept. 8, fits in snugly with Garvin’s other books like “Bummer Camp” and “

,” funny, poignant novels about messy, lovable women. “Friends” focuses on Jane Baye, who becomes the pariah of her very Stoughton-like small town when it’s revealed that her husband is a polygamist.

That alone seems like it would be enough for a novel. But then Garvin starts interjecting chapters told from the perspective of Truman, an ex-con who has moved in across the street from Jane, and is watching her for reasons that are unclear but certainly troubling.

Garvin will talk about “Tell Two Friends” on Sept. 22 at Mystery To Me bookstore with 

“Writing Forward” podcast host Jeff Oloizia

. She talked to City Cast Madison about her glee in throwing her readers a curveball.

CCM: It’s like this guy Truman has infiltrated an Ann Garvin book.

AG: That’s exactly how I wanted it to feel. My very first book had like a real tension line through it, but then I kind of left that behind because people were like, "We don't know how to market a book that is a little bit scary and a little bit funny.” This is the first time where you read chapters and you think, “Oh, that's new.”

It was fun. I was nervous to write it because I wasn't sure if I was going to get the voice right and the tone right. But then I met a post-incarcerated man who was on the docket for a teaching thing that I did in New Hampshire, and I got to know him well. And so he promised that he would read it, and I actually paid him to read to be my sensitivity reader.

Does this mark a turn in the kinds of books you want to write?

I have ideas in the future for some books that are tension-filled, but nothing like this really. I'm not really the kind of person that thinks about murderers often. When I pick a book to write, I just have to really feel excited about it, passionate about it. I actually have to know that there’s a true story in there, not just a premise.

What was the biggest challenge of writing the book?

The hardest thing I think with this book was to make her everyday life tension-filled enough that anybody gave a shit about her chapters while you waited to find out what this other guy was doing. I want people to be turning the pages in her life, and all she’s doing is being a regular mom in a town that’s mad at her.

Speaking of that town, you have a disclaimer at the front of the book that this is not Stoughton. But how do you think Stoughton readers will react?

I think I’ll get a mix of responses. I think I’ll get some people mad. You know, “She made fun of us!” I don’t think I was disdainful. I think I rib them carefully because I don’t feel disdainful.

This is a very common question for a writer, but how much do you draw from your real life?

I know that everybody sort of puts themselves in there, and people very often think I’m the protagonist. Which in some cases, I guess I give the protagonist my voice. But she definitely is not me.

When I was a nursing student, I saw a little want-ad, “Be a Pen Pal With An Incarcerated Male.” I thought, “Poor guy, prison must be so boring.” I came from a small town. I was 19 or 20, and I never had heard that people write to incarcerated people, like the women who are interested in Ted Bundy. So we wrote back and forth for a while.

And then he asked me for a photograph, and I was not so dumb that I didn’t know what was up. I wrote back and said, “I don’t think we need a photograph to be friends.” And then he wrote back and said, “Don’t write to incarcerated men anymore. You’re too nice.”

Madison author Ann Garvin shares her glee in throwing readers a curveball with her poignant, messy new novel, hitting stores September 8.

 Madison Author Smuggles a Thriller Inside Her Latest Novel

Ann Garvin Has a Surprise in Store For Her Readers

Find the best of everything that Madison has to offer.

Madison’s Best

Madison's Best

Madison has two Restaurant Weeks and a Black Restaurant Week – 

now it’s time for a Halal Restaurant Week

. Running Sept. 4-13, the inaugural event showcases Madison restaurants that will offer alternatives to their usual menu items prepared in the Muslim halal tradition.

Here are the details on Halal Restaurant Week.

Halal is Arabic for “allowed” or “permissible,” and covers a variety of practices for followers of the Islamic faith. 

But in the context of dining it refers to specific food and dietary restrictions

. For example, pork and alcohol must be excluded, and animals who are used in halal food must be slaughtered in a specific ritual tradition. It’s similar to the Jewish practice of keeping kosher, although the rules can differ between individuals. [WebMD]

While Muslims can find halal food throughout the year at certain restaurants, Bushra Zaibak 

said she started “Eat Halal Milwaukee” to expand the amount of available options

 for halal food to burger restaurants, Mexican restaurants, and more. She got the idea after her son asked to go out for burgers instead of the usual shawarma. [Madison365]

These eight Madison restaurants are taking part in Halal Restaurant Week. Note that, unlike Madison Restaurant Week, these restaurants won’t have special menu items for the week, but instead will be offering halal-certified alternatives to its regular menu items.

Once Halal Restaurant Week is over, make sure to check out 

this list of Madison restaurants that serve halal-certified food

 year round. [UW-Madison Muslim Students Association]

Madison’s first-ever Halal Restaurant Week runs Sept. 4-13. Discover local restaurants offering special menu options prepared in accordance with the Muslim halal tradition.

How to Celebrate Halal Restaurant Week in Madison 

Where To Eat Halal in Madison

September means that local theater companies are kicking off their 2025-26 seasons, including a couple of world premieres. In the Overture Center Playhouse, Forward Theater Company has the world premiere of the lost-at-sea musical “

Forward Theater, who’s sponsoring our monthly guide this September, is giving City Cast Madison readers the chance to win free tickets to see “Steady She Goes”! 

Just head over to our Instagram page and enter

” (Sept. 17-20), a musical inspired by the collection the Hand Drawn Map Association, to Overture’s Promenade Hall. The Bartell Theatre’s production of “

,” (Sept. 18-26) about a woman who buys a robot version of her late husband, couldn’t be more timely in the age of AI angst. Edgewood University revives Moliere’s French comedy of manners “

It’s been a hard summer in Madison, and on the east side especially. But the neighborhood’s iconic and eccentric 

 (Sept. 19-20) is a chance for the community to get together and get weird. In addition to several stages of live music and lots of food and drink, everybody is invited to dress up and march in the Sunday morning parade.

Good things come in small packages (or small plates) at 

 on the Capitol Square (Sept. 5-6) with over 90 food vendors. 

 (Sept. 26) at Warner Park will feature 17 restaurants and eight bands, including Nashville’s Langhorne Slim headlining.

 (Sept. 12) features live music, food, and drink. But what sets it apart is the opportunity to decorate and personalize a lantern, either to remember a loved one or set an intention for the future, and release it on the water in a healing ceremony. Editor’s note: Water Lantern Festival is also a sponsor of City Cast.

Push yourself to the limit (and support someone who is) at 

 (Sept. 13). Athletes love coming to Madison not just because of the beautiful and challenging course that includes a downtown run, a hilly bike ride, and a swim in the lake, but because of the crowds cheering them on.

 has been in Madison before, but never like this. On Sept. 22 at the Orpheum Theater, Smith will tell stories and play songs inspired by her new memoir “Bread of Angels.” Ticketholders will get a free paperback copy of the book courtesy of A Room of One’s Own.

Discover the best things to do in Madison, Wisconsin, in September 2026! From vibrant fall festivals to concerts and athletic events, plan your perfect autumn with our ultimate local guide.

Your Guide to Madison in September 2026

What To Do in Madison in September 2026

Each month, we run down the best new restaurants in the Madison area that have either opened or announced plans to open in the near future. If you know of any that we missed, drop us a line at 

The name may be giving copy editors headaches, but the new restaurant on Monroe Street is drawing a lot of attention. Opening Aug. 28 in the former Kettle Black Kitchen space, Sara Anderson and her co-owner and son-in-law, Chef Christopher Lund, are bringing back some old faves while introducing new contemporary Latin dishes.

This Italian restaurant chain has set a Sept. 2 opening date for its first Wisconsin location at Hilldale in the space that was formerly Amara, offering wood-fired pizzas, fresh pastas, and “garlic knot sliders.”

This new Chinese restaurant opened in the Enson Market on University Avenue, offering build-your-own-bowls with a variety of broths, meats, and add-ons.

Having its soft opening this week at 203 W. Gorham St., this new restaurant promises authentic pho and banh mi, as well as Vietnamese coffee and lemon tea.

This new pizza spot opened Wednesday in the Discovery Building, featuring pinsa pizzas, a Roman-style flatbread. The restaurant will offer four rotating kinds of pizza – September’s limited offering will be prosciutto, fig, and arugula.

This pizza spot just opened in the former location of Ben’s on Water Street, offering 12-inch Neapolitan pizzas baked in a brick stone oven, from margherita and pesto pizzas to the bacon-and-jalapeno “Nfaf Special.”

There aren’t many details about the restaurant going into the first floor of this boutique hotel opening early 2027 in the century-old Churchill Building on the Capitol Square. But folks can get excited knowing there’s at least one big name at the helm — 

Milwaukee chef and “Top Chef” contestant Dan Jacobs

Based on the long lines outside on opening day, Verona is starving for mac ‘n’ cheese pizza and the other unusual slices 

at this Madison favorite’s latest outpost

This Minneapolis favorite just opened its first Madison location on Frances Street, and should do well with the campus crowd with its mix of pizza, cheesesteaks, and “Frankie Tender Combos.”

One of Madison’s favorite breakfast spots, Marigold Kitchen, 

has added sit-down service to its catering kitchen space

 at 1511 Williamson St. Grab a stool at the counter and enjoy a breakfast sandwich or berry French toast sticks.

New York bagels will meet brewed Indian chai in this restaurant planned for the corner of Gorham and Henry streets. 

The owner told the Wisconsin State Journal

 that Dasta should open sometime this fall.

I’m not sure if there’s any connection to the terrific Haveli restaurant that closed recently in Fitchburg, but this new restaurant also offers classic Indian cuisine such as chicken biryani and salmon tikka.

The former Good Company restaurant at the Pioneer Pointe Golf Club is now Thirteen, offering smash burgers, pizzas, sheet pan nachos and more. And you don’t need to know your 9-iron from your 3-wood to eat there!

The former Jing Jing Cha tea and coffee shop on West Gilman Street is now this small sushi restaurant, which opens at 5 p.m. and stays open until the wee hours.

The owners of this Oshkosh Vietnamese restaurant say they’ve 

This month’s list of the area’s best new restaurants includes a new outpost for a wildly popular local pizza chain, a new sushi spot near campus, and a new Indian restaurant in Verona.

Madison’s Best New Spots to Eat and Drink

The Best New Restaurants in Madison

This week's news quiz dives into everything from a new downtown restaurant to a big shake-up at UW-Madison. Can you get every question right? 

Madison, Explained

Test Your Madison News Knowledge!

Rob Thomas

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