Milwaukee will be serving up plenty of live entertainment starting Wednesday, when Summerfest — billed as the world’s largest music festival — kicks off.
Those 850,000 fest-goers have to eat (and drink). Wisconsin’s biggest city has lots to offer in that arena, too, including a long lineup of tasty options that have all popped up since last year’s Summerfest.
Here’s a look at some of the newer offerings on MKE’s food and beverage stage.
Don’s Diner & Cocktails
1100 S. 1st St. | 414-808-0805
The three-martini lunch lives on at this cheeky, retro-style diner in Walker’s Point. Eat your midday meal here between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Wednesday-Friday and the martinis will set you back a mere 10 cents apiece. Limit: three.
“Do you get customers who actually have three martinis at lunch?” I naively asked the bartender during a recent visit.
“It’s more unusual for people not to get three,” he answered matter-of-factly.
The big draw at Don’s is the boozy shake ($9), a creamy concoction that comes in several varieties. Each can be made even more decadent with a slice of cake on top for $3.
The Wisco Old Fashioned Shake, described on the menu as “exactly what you think,” is unequivocally divine, served in a soda fountain glass and capped with a hat of fluffy whipped cream, sprinkles and a maraschino cherry. It’ll make you feel like a kid again. Better yet, a kid who can legally drink alcohol.
Purists who shun the notion of ice cream in their Old Fashioned can order the classic cocktail, of course. The super-sized version gets served in a crockpot ($30). Needless to say (I hope), it’s meant for sharing.
Uncle Wolfie’s Breakfast Tavern
234 E. Vine St. | 414-763-3021
In Brewers Hill, a Cream City brick building that once functioned as a Miller “tied house” (a pub linked to a specific brewery) dishes up delicious eats for breakfast and lunch.
The husband-and-wife team, Wolfgang and Whitney Schaefer, restored the 100-plus-year-old structure and transformed it late last year into a cozy place that’s ideal for brunch.
Arguably the most popular item on the menu, the PB&J Stuffed French Toast ($12) puts an adult spin on this childhood sandwich staple, combining challah bread, peanut butter cream cheese and blackberry gastrique.
Savory options are just as creative, like the cheese steak sandwich made of coffee-rubbed chuck, pickled jalapenos, onions and beer cheese sauce ($14).
Unless you’re an early riser (Uncle Wolfie’s opens at 7 a.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. weekends), be prepared to wait for a table. The restaurant doesn’t take reservations. You can pass the time browsing the couple’s adjoining retail space, Orange and Blue Co. It’s stocked with a mix of vintage and modern goods, many handmade by women artisans.
Glass + Griddle
1130 N. 9th St. | 414-988-1551
Fashioned in the likeness of a beer hall, this laid-back eatery shares space with Milwaukee Brewing Co.’s new brewery and taproom at the old Pabst Brewing Co. complex.
Snack on pretzel-crusted cheese curds ($11), beer-braised brat balls ($11) or a burger ($10-$14) while enjoying some of the suds made right next door in MKE Brewing Co.’s state-of-the-art facility. The brewery offers tours on weekends and the occasional beer and yoga class.
A massive rooftop patio with panoramic views of the city opened in June.
Fiserv Forum Entertainment Plaza
1111 Vel R. Phillips Ave.
The Milwaukee Bucks’ new digs in the Deer District have been a game changer for the city, which can thank this multipurpose arena for helping it land the 2020 Democratic National Convention.
On the arena’s Entertainment Plaza, there’s no shortage of venues to eat, drink and watch “the game,” whether it be basketball, baseball or something else for fans to rally around.
Good City Brewing debuted a spacious outpost here in February. The chain Punch Bowl Social lays claim to some of the real estate, as does the Milwaukee Bucks-owned Sports Bar To End All Sports Bars: The MECCA, a behemoth of a watering hole and restaurant. The name is a nod to the team’s one-time home, the Milwaukee Exposition, Convention Center and Arena.
This area also is where you’ll find the new address of Drink Wisconsinbly, an unabashedly kitschy place to get your fill of Spotted Cow beer and inventive cocktails, including the Laverne & Shirley, a Polka Pit Sour and the signature Old Fashioned made with Drink Wisconsinbly’s own brand of brandy and garnished with an orange slice, cherry and cheese curd.
Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel
139 E. Kilbourn Ave. | 414-276-8686
This ambitious new arts-themed hotel that launched downtown in June boasts the city’s only Champagne bar, Giggly, as well as several other spots to wine and dine.
Among them: Aria Cafe & Bar on the hotel’s second floor, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner with an emphasis on classic American cuisine and seasonal ingredients, like braised short rib with potato and leek mash and bacon-glazed haricots verts ($27).
Proof Pizza, with its own entrance on Water Street, takes 90 seconds to cook a pie in its oven imported from Italy.
For something more high-end and intimate, T.D.R. (The Dark Room) is a speakeasy-style restaurant with 26 seats. As of press time, a hotel spokesperson said it would open soon.
Fauntleroy
316 N. Milwaukee St. | 414-269-9908
The Historic Third Ward’s longtime French restaurant, Coquette Cafe, gave way to a new Franco-focused eatery last summer when super-fun Fauntleroy moved in.
The sexy bistro dripping with chandeliers and rock ‘n’ roll references comes from a pair of talented chefs named Dan: Wisconsinite Dan Van Rite and Chicago native Dan Jacobs, the duo behind Milwaukee’s Chinese food hotspot, DanDan.
The lunch and dinner menu are full of hits, from addictive appetizers such as Gruyere-filled gougeres ($6) and chicken liver eclairs ($6) to the bubbling bowl of French onion soup ($8), a beautifully composed crispy grain salad with roasted beets ($8) and the Dans’ play on a Big Mac called the Grand Royale, a sesame seed bun stuffed with two brisket patties, butterkase (butter cheese), a special sauce, pickles and lettuce, all sharing the plate with a mountain of crispy fries ($15).
“It wasn’t all that long ago that there was really nothing here in the Third Ward except Coquette Cafe,” said Van Rite, a three-time James Beard Award semifinalist in the Best Chef: Midwest category. Jacobs, his business partner, was in New York filming an episode of Food Network’s “Beat Bobby Flay.”
“It’s pretty incredible to look around and see how many places we have now,” Van Rite said, “and how many more are on the way.”
Twitter @lorirackl
