Hat Trick – Third time’s a charm for Al and Susie Brkich
By Catherine McGarry Miller + Photos by Kevin C. Groen
Cranky Al’s Bakery, Coffee & Pizza
6901 W. North Avenue
414-258-5282
Hey, Mikey, I got your pizza ready,” Cranky Al Brkich hails a customer. “I only dropped it twice!” Mikey shrugs his shoulders and smirks, “That’s better ‘n last time.” There’s a round of giggles from patrons steaming up the windows at Cranky Al’s this winter night with animated conversations over pizzas and garlic bread.
I’m not one to go around outing people, but the truth is Cranky Al is a phony. He’s about as cranky as Rachel Ray accepting applause for yet another miracle recipe. A small warning sign on the door hints at Al’s true nature. It reads, “All unattended children will be given two shots of espresso and a free puppy.” Al is loath to admit it, but “cranky” actually references the hand-cranked donuts he turns out every morning for lines of neighborhood enthusiasts.
For owners Susie and Al Brkich, this bakery and pizzeria is a hat trick. They’ve had two other successful eateries. The first was Crabby Al’s, a seafood shack that lit up the dark skies of the Menomonee Valley and then tumbled into a dissolved partnership. Second was Mrs. Java and Company, just four doors down from the new Cranky Al’s, which died last year when the building was sold to another restaurateur who wanted the space for a bistro. The news was sudden and devastating to the couple, who had hoped to buy the building themselves.
“We didn’t know if our customers would come back,” Susie says with her chin crumbling and eyes moist with deep appreciation for the support of the community.
It took the Brkichs the better part of a year – and every penny of their resources – to relocate, gut the property and install a kitchen in two storefronts that had formerly housed a used auto parts and a vacuum cleaner store. It was a stressful time for the Brkichs, not knowing if their new enterprise would fly. But just a few months into it, this place has all the signs of being yet another success for the hard-working restaurateurs. High windows fill the spacious room with light, the dark woodwork, molded ceilings and pews from Pius X Church – which serve as bench seating – all lend an air of comfortable charm, as do the smells of fresh-brewed coffee and handmade donuts and pastries.
Al, who grew up near State Fair Park and attended Solomon Juneau High School, met Chicago native Susie on her own turf while exploring the Rush Street nightlife. “I saw her and I knew that she was the one. It was Susie’s misfortune, but 20 years later we’re still together,” Al says. They lived in Chicago for ten years and then moved to Milwaukee in the early 90s to open Crabby Al’s.
Traveling exposed Al to a multitude of foods, but he maintains that he and his family were not sophisticated foodies. “We have very fond memories of food and people: bread, cheese, meat, and if you’re lucky it’s not moldy. My family came from war-torn Serbia and so we are very grateful for everything we have.”
In all my years of writing about restaurants, I’ve never seen a place like Cranky Al’s. Customers actually volunteer to work for them because they love Susie and Al and their convivial atmosphere. The menu is simple, inexpensive and delicious. Mornings, it’s fair trade coffee and freshly-made donuts that are truly crispy and creamy (unlike the chain that makes the claim in their name but does not deliver the promise). Selections range from crullers done just right to classic donuts, turnovers and muffins. I’ve actually dreamed of troughing on their crunchy fritters loaded with apples and ribboned with cinnamon. Evenings, Al’s turns into a pizza parlor. The crust is thin but substantial enough to hold the toppings, of which there are over 25 choices. The Susie Special is a wonderful mélange of three cheeses and baby organic spinach. Everything’s available for carryout, but if you’re looking for a good time, dine in – it’s a hoot! VS
