About

After a long day of seeing various Yellowstone locations, I found Madison Crossing Lounge. It is quite a nice little location on Madison Avenue in West Yellowstone.

The restaurant is only open in the evenings and is seasonal, from what I understand. It is also a really nice place to visit for those who want a more refined menu of classic wine and drinks. Of course, I had fun here, too.

Madison Crossing Lounge offers appetizers, entrees, and desserts, along with a full bar. And I can guarantee you will not leave here hungry! After spotting the location, I decided to give it a try.

And while I was there, I learned the building itself was the first Wester Yellowstone School, built in 1918. The building today is home to various locations, including the Yellowstone Brewing Company, Montana Territorial Land Co., and a fitness center.

Madison Crossing Lounge does a fantastic job of offering refined drinks.

I chose a cocktail with my meal but then finished off my evening with some fine whiskey. They have several options, including Scotch, Irish, and Japanese. However, I decided to go with the 24-year aged Orphan Barrel “Muckety Muck”. It was nice.

So if you find yourself in the area, like me, I highly recommend popping in for a delicious meal!

Vibe

The building is all about history, but when you step inside, it’s quite a beautiful destination.

It’s not too big, but big enough to hold a good number of people without feeling crowded. There’s a full bar you can sit at with TVs in front of you. There are numerous tables throughout the space, with room for six people or more. The beautiful wood-paneled ceiling sets the tone for the location. There’s also a fireplace that’s built of stone and quite charming. It feels like you’re in a friend’s mancave enjoying a meal.

I’d say overall, the vibe of this charming restaurant is family-friendly, casual but upscale, and super welcoming!

Madison Crossing Lounge: Menu & Drinks

When I visited, I was greeted with a big menu of options to choose from, and that was the hardest part of the day.

I decided to start with the Trout Cakes. Two of them come out on a piece of slate with a red pepper aioli on top. They are actually really beautifully designed but even better to eat.

For the main dish, I decided to go with the Elk Strip Steak. It was nice and tender, which I was thankful for since that’s not always common. It had a spicy gastrique with it, along with a puree made of cream and carrots. It had potatoes and baby carrots with it as well. It was fantastic and very much an upscale, modern Montana meal that was quite filling.

You don’t have to enjoy something that rich, though. They also have salads, soup, and burgers.

After about an hour of sitting there enjoying an after-dinner drink and after being asked three times if I wanted it, I finally gave in to dessert. That menu is pretty big, too. I had the Blueberry Bread Pudding. It was just as wonderful as it sounds. I had a big scoop of ice cream on top as well.

As for drinks, the menu is equally as big. You can also have a number of cocktails (including zero-proof cocktails), so I decided on the Empress Records. It has Empress 1908 gin with a dry curacao, Cocchi americano, some lemon, and an absinthe rinse. It was luscious.

Local Tips

I learned that the lounge is actually built into what used to be the 1st-grade classroom of the original school! That’s neat!
You cannot make reservations, so I suggest getting here as close to opening time (5 pm) as you can to make sure you get in.
The location is kid-friendly, but I didn’t see an actual kid’s menu.
They are accommodating to menu changes that you may need to make.

Staging environment