Tempest Oyster Bar in Madison, Wisconsin

A Seafood Spot With a Side of Spirits

From Funeral Parlor to Fine Dining

The building at 120 East Wilson Street opened its doors in 1929 as the Frautschi Funeral Parlor. The Frautschi family were well-known in Madison, both for their funeral business and their deep ties to the local arts scene. Decades later, Jerry Frautschi would help fund the Overture Center for the Arts, but for much of the mid-20th century, the family business was preparing Madison’s dead for burial.

Inside these walls, countless bodies were embalmed, dressed, and readied for viewings. The embalming room, complete with a drainage grate for bodily fluids, was in the basement, right where some employees now store extra chairs, cleaning supplies, and cases of wine. While the business closed in the late 1970s, that heavy history never truly left.

It’s not hard to imagine why locals whisper that some of the spirits prepared here might still be wandering.

The Heaven’s Gate Connection: Fact or Folklore?

If the building’s funeral home past weren’t enough to give you chills, one of its most enduring legends ties it to one of America’s most infamous cults... Heaven’s Gate.

In March of 1997, 39 members of Heaven’s Gate committed mass suicide in Rancho Santa Fe, California, believing they would ascend to an alien spacecraft trailing the Hale-Bopp comet. But local lore says there was a “missing 40th member,” a man who failed to make it to the California rendezvous. Months later, he supposedly took his own life in the basement of this very building.

The story goes that the man was staying here during renovations. Workers noticed his strange behavior—rambling about cosmic salvation and muttering to himself. Then one day, he was found hanged in the basement.

There’s no official record to confirm the claim, and historians generally regard it as an urban legend. But whether it’s true or not, the story has cemented itself in Madison ghost lore, repeated on walking tours, in podcasts, and around bar tables late at night.

Paranormal Activity at Tempest Oyster Bar

Legends aside, the Tempest Oyster Bar has a steady stream of paranormal reports, many from people who had no idea about the building’s history until after their encounter.

Common claims include:

• Unexplained cold spots... even in summer, certain areas feel icy.
• Phantom whispers in empty rooms, often heard by closing staff.
• Dishes breaking or sliding across counters without anyone touching them.
• Fire extinguishers falling off the wall with no apparent cause.
• Doors slamming despite the absence of a breeze.
• A basement so oppressively cold and heavy that some employees refuse to go there alone.

One bartender swears she saw a shadowy figure move past the kitchen door, only to find the kitchen completely empty. Another former server recalled hearing footsteps on the upper floor long after the apartments above had been vacated.

A Personal Encounter: My Favorite Murder Visits Tempest

As the owner of American Ghost Walks, I’ve been in my fair share of haunted spaces, but Tempest is one I always return to. In fact, when Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, hosts of the hit true crime comedy podcast My Favorite Murder, visited Madison in October 2017, I made sure to bring them here.

We sat down for dinner, surrounded by the restaurant’s low lighting and vintage charm, and I shared Tempest’s most chilling stories... funeral home origins, Heaven’s Gate rumors, and all. By dessert, even these seasoned storytellers of murder and mayhem were visibly intrigued. They didn’t have any ghostly encounters that night (at least none they admitted to), but they agreed: Tempest has a presence.

Ghost Tourism in Madison

The Tempest is now a fixture on Madison ghost tours. Guests often come in skeptical but leave with a new respect for the unexplained. Some even claim to capture anomalies on their phones... shadows in mirrors, strange light streaks, or the feeling that something moved just out of frame.

It’s a prime example of how haunted history and modern hospitality can coexist. Locals come for happy hour oysters; tourists come for the ghost stories. Some come for both.

Why Tempest Earns Its Place on America’s Most Haunted Bars List

Check out this podcast featuring our very own Madison Ghost Host With The Most Lisa Van Buskirk as they tell stories at The Tempest and do a paranormal investigation!

When we think of haunted bars, many are in old hotels or historic saloons, but Tempest stands out. Its haunted reputation isn’t built on one event, but on layers of history:

• Half a century as a funeral parlor where countless people made their last stop before the grave.
• A persistent urban legend connecting it to one of the strangest mass suicides in U.S. history.
• Firsthand paranormal reports from staff, residents, and investigators over decades.

Add in a dim, vintage atmosphere and a basement that feels straight out of a horror movie, and you’ve got a recipe for one of the most compelling haunted dining experiences in the Midwest.

Visiting Tempest Oyster Bar

If you’re planning to experience Tempest for yourself, here’s what to know:

📍 Location: 120 E. Wilson Street, Madison, WI

🍽 Specialties: Fresh oysters, seafood, steaks, cocktails

🕰 Best time to visit for ghost vibes: Late evening, especially on a quiet night

💡 Ghost-hunting tip: Politely ask your server if they’ve had any experiences, they might just share something off-menu.

See it in person

Whether you believe in ghosts or not, the Tempest Oyster Bar offers something rare, a place where fine dining and spectral legends intertwine. You can come for the oysters and leave with a story you’ll tell for years. We go there on the King Street Spirits tour in Madison, Wisconsin every weekend from May to October and who knows what you'll see?

And if you do head downstairs, take a deep breath and watch your step. You never know who, or what, might be keeping you company.