Laughing Trout

A wonderful restaurant. The food is very delicious and fresh. The restaurant is very beautiful and clean. I would highly recommend and I will return. The prices are very fair.

We had a 6:30 reservation for mother’s day; we waited 20 minutes for a table. The hostess admitted she forgot about us and when the manager came to apologize he said that it is not unusual to wait 20 minutes for a table with reservation. To me, that is poor management. When we were seated, there were 5 empty tables in the room. We had really good service from Jason so I won’t down play that. We also ordered multiple cocktails for the table and were served fruit flies in two. The food was good, but overall, unimpressed. I can’t believe they didn’t even offer us dessert on the house.

From the outside, I thought this was going to be
A straight up «bar food» restaurant. But the smells emitting from the building were incredible and definitely not pizza.
We were a bridal party of 7, with no dining reservations, and seated in the high rise tables, in the bar area, immediately. At roughly 6:30pm on a Friday night.
Our Server Mary, was exceptional. I mean, top notch.
She was personable, knowledgeable and her suggestions were spot on. She is a true Gem for this establishment.
I ordered the Spinach and Artichoke appetizer, it was served with crostini’s.
This was clearly the best decision. It is mouth watering good. I actually felt depressed when I hd the last bite, and was upset at myself for sharing with my friends.
Mary also brought us out some raisin and currant scones, with this brown sugar butter to sample.
No one ordered them, they were just her treat, I assume, as they never appeared on any of the bills.
We polished those off, told her how delicious they were. AND SHE BROUGHT US MORE!
Heaven on a plate!
When our main dishes came out we were already near our stomachs capacity, but of course could not let our food go to waste.
And each of our meals (the Friday Fish, both boiled and fried, Laughing Macaroni with Chicken, and asiago pasta) were even better than we had hoped it would be.
Mine, the laughing Mac, was piping hot, and deliciously cheesy. Really very flavorful.
As were the pre-​dinner salads we had.
Fresh, green, crunchy. Veggie filled!
I am not from the area, I happened to be in Monroe for a wedding.
…If I ever find myself in Monroe again, it will probably only be because of The Laughing Trout, and our amazing server, Mary.

Came for lunch. Prime rib sandwich was very good. Great fries. Nice looking restaurant. Not overly priced. Friendly service.
I would absolutely come back if I were in town.

Think first before you use your credit card here. On August 28, 2015… driving home from Madison I decided to stop at Laughing Trout and treat my brother to a nice dinner. We had seen the signs advertising the restaurant several times. We arrived on a Friday evening at prime time dinner hour. We were encouraged to sit at the bar, when we declined we were put at a table in the dining room closest to the area were the wait staff worked. We were seated and our waitress was Kirsten. She was efficient. I would continue with a review here but see no point because no matter how good the food was I will NOT be going back. It was ok. I received the check and paid with my card. As I always do I drew a line through the tip line, wrote in the total and left a 20% tip on the table. A few days later I was reviewing my statement at home and saw a charge on my card for $ 88.99. Upon looking more closely I saw that the charge was for The Laughing Trout. I knew that the charge was incorrect. I went to my purse and checked my receipt. The total on my receipt was $ 48.95. I called the Laughing Trout and left a message. The next morning I received a call from Bill? (maybe Bob) he asked me if I had my receipt. Asked the name of the waitress (Kirsten) and the date. He asked me to hold. Came back a few minutes later and said he had the original and that it was obvious that someone had written in a $ 40.04 tip. He said he would return my money and ask how to do that. I told him I would be coming back through Monroe on my way back to Madison in a few days. On my stop he gave me $ 40.00 cash and a gift card for $ 20.00. Because of the $ 20.00 gift card a couple weeks later I returned with 2 of my brothers and my sister. Imagine my surprise when we were waited on by Kirsten. Left we wondering if the person who wrote in the $ 40.04 tip was someone in management. I of course paid in cash and will NOT return.

Wow!
The server was top notch! His name was Jason and he was extremely attentive and helpful.
Food was delicious and we’re so glad we stopped. We’ll definitely be returning!

Stopped in from out of town last night. Had the grilled whole rainbow trout. Fresh as can be and grilled simply and perfectly. Also had a house salad with homemade dressing, and Rosemary garlic mashed potatoes. Washed it down with a coupla Spotted Cows on tap. It does not get better than this. I’ll be back.

What a gem we found in Monroe, WI! (Bonus-​right next to the hotel) Second visit; even better than the first time. (group of 3, group of 5) Granted we had checked the menu prior to, but what a surprise-​fresh oysters, (from those who had, with two from the East Coast «their the bomb!») Ahi-​Tuna, Crab Cakes, Scallops in brandy butter, Pecan Crusted Salmon, Seafood Pasta, Mahi-​Mahi Tacos, various Steaks, and you long had us at the yummy Rosemary Smoked Gouda Mashed Potatoes! They say there a casual restaurant during the day and a little finer dining in the evening. Nothing «little» about this wonderful place!-fine dining all the way. Along with a awesome bartender! And a extra thanks for treating our friend with dessert for his birthday. This will be our go to place whenever were in town!

Very pricey for the quality of the food. Wait time is crazy! Lunch was 1 ½. For burgers? Monroe needs a steak house. This is NOT it. Will cook my own steaks from. Now on.

Arrived on a Saturday night without a reservation and we were kindly accommodated. Our one hour wait was spent trying out the martini menu in the bar. The Strawberry Fields martini is not to be missed, it was muddled, shaken and served ice cold. Food was amazing but was not to be rushed, expect a leisurely experience. Ahi tuna appetizer was perfectly seared on crispy crostini, Brandy seared scallops were pure heaven along with the rosemary smoked gouda mashed potatoes. The steak skewers were delicious alongside the ice cold pickled beets. Do not skip dessert, the coconut cream pie was homemade and the clear winner over the cherry topped cheesecake. The flaky crust, smooth filling and crispy toasted coconut made it the best ever. Two and half hours later, we left after having one of the best meals we’ve ever eaten, worth every dollar.

Located right next to the seemingly the only hotel in Monroe, the Laughing Trout deserves a visit. It may not look like much from the outside, but stepping in you’ll find yourself in a very elegant, upscale atmosphere. This is a perfect dinner setting for two or for a small group.
The staff are very very nice and are always making the rounds to check up on you. As far as the food it is also quite a treat. The cheese curds are simply phenomenal. You get 12 huge curds and taste like heaven. The rest of the menu is great as well. They have a good variety of drinks and cocktails are shaken right at your table.
Very nice restaurant to enjoy while you’re passing through town.

I really debated between giving two stars or three. The food here is good. In fact, the clam chowder was absolutely delicious. I just moved into town and I was invited here for lunch by my new employers. But I, and a few other of my co-​workers, only had an hour for lunch.
Apparently their fried pickles were to die for, but it turned out that the restaurant no longer makes them. It was a busy lunch hour, and we had to wait forever for food. The appetizers came out a half hour after we ordered, and an hour in, our waitress returned to inform us that they ran out of portobello mushrooms, so someone had to change their order. After an hour and 15 minutes, our food came out. My burger had the wrong cheese, but the waitress gave me extra bleu cheese on the side. So that was good. However, two more of our party didn’t receive their food until about 10 minutes later. Waiting for lunch took an hour and a half, so we had to eat pretty quickly.
Laughing Trout seems like a pretty awesome place, though. I want to return to try their martinis. I would order their clam chowder any time. Perhaps their lunch hour is not their strongest time.

This place is a real gem! Food is gourmet quality and service is outstanding. We will be sure to tell our friends and family to patronize this restaurant.

Laughing Trout had so much promise and was very good the first couple times we went, but after that the dining experience went way down hill from there. The next time we went, the food was mediocre at best, the rolls were cold, the soup was salty, and the rice pilaf looked like it came straight from a box. The last time we went, we had the «pleasure» being seated in the bar area, we both ordered medium rare steaks, and they came out raw on the inside. To top off the experience, practically all of the wait staff on duty were congregated at the bar socializing. It was very unprofessional. I don’t know what happened since they opened as far as management, but it is obvious service and attention to details went out the door. Pretty sad, because it would be nice to have a finer dining experience in Monroe.

One of the bedt restaurants in town! I hsf my dinners every day here and I was never disappointed. The owner and the manager here are very friendly.

Real nice place. Kind of a bar and grill.
Chef makes good quality dishes. For a small town, I was impressed. Soup was definitely homemade. Lots of delicious mushrooms in a creamy base. Very good on a cold winters night.
Wine by the glass includes Duckhorn Decoy, a great Cabernet for the price.
Main entrée was an 8 ounce grilled salmon steak, a side, and choice of soup or salad. DEEElicious!
Too stuffed to try a dessert.
Bottom line, great place and a highlight of what Monroe has to offer.
Within walking distance of hotels!

First this is a fully renovated bar and grill that looks great! Service was slow, really slow! Full bar is offered and is great looking. Lets get to the food apps were ok at best! Lacking flavor and freshness! Soup was good and full of flavor! Dinner was full of problems, cold, overcooked chicken! Cold potato! Fish was good and full of flavor. Bread was lacking flavor and hard when cooled down… microwaved to heat. Over all ok but needs help in the kitchen… 4^th time at this place all the same results.

Food is good, Service is inconsistent.
Finally an above mediocre restaurant in Monroe! I have to travel to Monroe about once a year for business. I was severely disappointed in the restaurant choices Monroe had to offer. Virtually every restaurant I tried was less than stellar in terms of food and service. Finally Laughing Trout arrived to ease my worried palate.
I was a little disappointed by the service. It seems inconsistent. I was one of the first people to arrive for the lunch service. When I walked in, there was no-​one to greet me. I wasn’t sure if they were even open at first. But it took only a couple of seconds for a friendly member of the waitstaff to pop around a dividing wall and seat me.
Once seated, my drink order was promptly taken. I was disappointed, though, after I had already ordered my entrée, to hear my same waiter describing all the specials to the table next to me. Had I known there was a steak sandwich on special, I would have gotten that instead of a burger.
I ordered the Southwestern Burger. It was made quickly, and it was done perfectly and tasted great. The fries however were over salted, but that’s not too horrible of a thing when it comes to fries; they’re supposed to be salty.
Even with the service inconsistencies, I will enjoy eating here, and will probably ONLY eat here since there really is nothing else worth trying in town.

Have gone to the Laughing Trout a few more times. After the dinner rush, all of the employees sit around the bar area and drink. Personally, that bothers me. I am a paying customer that’s looking for a nice experience, and I don’t enjoy sitting with the waitstaff for their after-​work drink.
I still stand by my original post, but this is a real turn-​off.

We went for drinks and appetizers. The place looked very nice. Definitely try the calamari appetizer very, very, good.