‘Tis the Season for Holiday Pop-ups

Boone & Crockett to host “Spoone & Crockpot.” Photo by Michael Horne.

What better way to kickoff the decade then with a new spot to get delicious Mexican fare? Paloma Tacos & Tequila is a new restaurant slated to hit the Washington Heights neighborhood in 2020. Restaurant owner Pattie Ford is planning to open Paloma at 5419 W. North Ave.

The Journal Sentinel’s Carol Deptolla reports:

The space will be built by Three Sixty Design, she said, which also has done interiors for the Lowlands Group, Uncle Wolfie’s, Hacienda Taproom and Dandan restaurants, among others. The dining room will have bright colors and a mural.

Paloma will have an open kitchen and large screen windows that slide open in warm weather. Ford expects to have summertime seating on the deep sidewalk and a rack for bicycles…

The menu, she said, will be “kind of all the stuff I like,” including shrimp soup and pork al pastor, cooked on a vertical rotisserie. For meatless tacos and other dishes, crisped tofu and brussels sprouts will be options.

At the bar, she’s planning to have mezcal and tequila, including infused tequilas and drinks like a mezcal Old Fashioned… and there’ll be Mexican and local beers on tap and in bottles, and some wines.

Paloma expects to open by early spring and plans to serve dinner daily for dinner and serve brunch on the weekends.

Crockpots, Cocktails, and Bears, Oh My!

A football rivalry showdown accompanied by a plethora of slow-cooked meals will take place at Boone & Crockett (818 S. Water St.) on Dec. 12. The event, dubbed “Spoone & Crockpot,” will take place during the Green Bay Packers’ home game against the Chicago Bears. This marks the second rendition of the event, and all proceeds will be donated to Milwaukee Riverkeeper. Attendees can enjoy food and drink from some of Milwaukee’s finest restaurants, such as:

• Tandem
• Maya Ophelias
• Dons Diner
• Snack Boys
• Bad English
• Saucy Swine
• Fox Fire
• Goodkind
• Vanguard
• Dan Dan
• Fantleroy
• Amelinda
• Hacienda
• Hatched Bakery
• Pete’s Pops
• Hawthorne Coffee
• Old Forest
• Korbel

The game will be displayed at Boone & Crockett’s event space The Cooperage on its brand new video wall. Music will be provided by DJ WHY B, and a 50/50 raffle will be held. A wine bar will be set up in the upstairs of The Cooperage, where attendees can drink coffee and eat desserts. Tickets to the event cost $35, which covers admissions to the event, all-you-can-eat, and one free beer or cocktail. The event will begin at 11 a.m., an hour before the game starts.

Buddy the Elf comes to Milwaukee

Arts-and-crafts-themed bar Splash Studios is paying homage to popular Christmas-comedy film Elf with a pop-up bar called Elves Studio. The bar has been redecorated for the holidays, and special elf-themed food and drinks will be served, as Erin Hochevar, marketing director, for Splash Studios explained to Fox6:

Festive cocktails and snacks include a Snow Globe G&T, Gingerbread Martini, Maple Cream Soda, a Nutcracker Nut Mix, Santa’s Beef & Cheese Platter, Christmas Morning Cake by The Cake Lady, and Shots with Santa every Friday and Saturday night at 10:30 p.m.

“We have inspiration from all sorts of things — movies, songs, children’s books,” said Hochevar. “You’re going to see things like our snowflakes. Our team has been cutting snowflakes for months. We love Christmas, and we really wanted to celebrate it, and let people come and be silly, have fun, make a project if they’d like, or just have one of our specialty cocktails.”

Elves Studio is open seven days a week until Dec. 29. Call ahead to be placed on the waitlist.

Gremlins Take Over Hotel Madrid

Everyone’s always debating whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie — but how about Gremlins? The folks over at Hotel Madrid (600 S. 6th St., #1524) certainly seem to think so, as they’ve transformed the Spanish Restaurant into a Gremlins themed pop-up serving special food and drinks.

OnMilwaukee’s Lori Fredrich reports:

…order up a Gremlins themed cocktail including the tear-jerkingly good “Bye Billy” featuring Milagro Reposado Tequila, plum-infused sweet vermouth and Amaretto ($12); the “Gizmo Saves the Day,” a warm drink with Hendrick’s gin, chamomile, Moscatel sherry, Drambouie and lemon ($12); or the “I Told You, We Should’ve Got a Zenith,” an indulgent boozy shake with chocolate ice cream, peanut infused Tullemore Dew, whiskey caramel and snickers ($15). There’s also the “RockinRickyRialto,” a take on Irish coffee featuring Tullamore Dew XO, Stone Creek Coffee, coconut cream and whipped cream ($12). It’s one of the gremlins’ favorite drinks. As for food, there will be plenty to feed your inner gremlin, from popcorn and pastry chef Vonda Brown’s delicious gingerbread cookies to special one-off menus like fried chicken night (on Dec. 19 only).

The Gremlins pop-up runs through Dec. 24 Tuesday through Thursday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 5 p.m. to midnight. Don’t worry about feeding the gremlins after midnight — the kitchen closes at 11 p.m.

Celebrate Christmas in Halloween Town

No, you haven’t stumbled through one of the seven Holiday Doors — Lost Whale (2151 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.) is just celebrating Christmas with a splash of Halloween! Starting on Dec. 13, the Bay View cocktail bar will become Halloween Town — the centerpiece of the Disney classic The Nightmare Before Christmas. Every day between Dec. 13 and Christmas, the bar will feature a different cocktail inspired by the film. Keeping with the spirit of Christmas, $1 from every specialty cocktail sold will be donated to the Hope House.

Miracle on 2nd St. (Tin Widow)

The world-wide traveling cocktail-bar-pop-up known as Miracle will make its way to Milwaukee, transforming the Walker’s Point bar the Tin Widow (703 S. 2nd. St.) into The Miracle on 2nd Street.

Deptolla has the scoop:

Cocktails, all for $12, include:

• Christmapolitan (vodka, elderflower, dyr vermouth, spiced cranbeery sauce, lime, rosemary, absinthe mist);
• Koala-La La La, La La La La (gin, pine tea cordial, grapefruit oleo, eucalyptus bitters)
• Snowball Old Fashioned (caramelized pecan bourbon, spiced molasses syrup, wormwood bitters);
• Run Run Rudolph (prosecco, gin, mulled wine puree, lemon, cane syrup);
• Bad Santa, served hot (rum, batavia arrack, black chai tea, date infused oat milk, vanilla syrup).

Themed glassware will also be available for sale.

Camping with Santa

Grab your tent and your comfiest camping chairs, but leave your refreshments at home — there will be plenty of those available at Santa Camp! From now until Dec. 31, cocktail bar Campsite 131 (131 N. Jackson St.) will be serving up some delicious holiday cocktails for you to sip as you marvel at the bar’s transformation.

Frederich reports: 

The formerly rustic-chic space has been utterly transformed into a colorful, sparkling winter wonderland, thanks to a collaboration with Christmas decorator extraordinaire, Bill Johnston.

You’ll find walls of glistening stars, festive snowmen and holiday trees decorated with ornaments and thousands upon thousands of LED lights.

There are glittersome gifts, wreaths galore and even a cadre of spunky life-sized Santa Clauses who will dance and sing at your command (just press the button at the base of their stands)…

There are also rustic Campsite touches like holiday plaid pillows, golden lit squirrels, elf-wearing animals and (of course) a family of welcoming holiday bears

Speaking of the bar, there you’ll find a special holiday-inspired cocktail menu featuring 16 festively-named cocktails including the Naughtier Spice, a warming tipple made from spiced apple cider spiked with your choice of Jack Daniels Apple, Tito’s vodka or Tullamore Dew; the Little Jerk featuring cinnamon candy infused Tullamore Dew shot; and The Grinch, a holiday take on the grasshopper with creme de menthe, creme de cacao and ice cream.

Santa Camp will run through Dec. 31. Campsite 131 is open Wednesday and Thursday from 3 to midnight, Friday 3 p.m. to bar close and Saturday and Sunday from noon to bar close. Santa Camp may affect the bar’s hours.

Rare coffees come to Interval

Got a coffee-fanatic on your list of people to buy presents for? Look no further than these three rare coffees that Interval (1600 N. Jackson St.) is offering for the holiday season.

Frederich reports:

Beginning this week, [Ryan] Hoban is rolling out three very special coffees — including two geshas — at Interval, 1600 N. Jackson St. Each coffee will be available by the cup in the cafe or in whole bean format for grinding and brewing at home.

The first is Aurelio Villatoro Cup of Excellence #5 (Guatemala), a washed caturra which won first place in an international coffee competition focused on Guatemalan coffees.

The second and third coffees are geshas sourced from Finca el Obraje (Colombia). One is natural process, and the other washed.

The Finca el Obraje Gesha is available for $14 a cup, with 8-ounce bags of whole beans available for $50.

All three coffees are available beginning this week and through the holiday season (or until they sell out).

From Lazy Susan’s family to yours

Casual Bay View restaurant Lazy Susan MKE (2378 S. Howell Ave.) is once again hosting a tourtiere sale for the holidays. Tourtieres are Canadian meat pies originated from Quebec, typically made with minced pork, veal or beef and potatoes. Lazy Susan’s 2019 rendition is made with an all-butter crust with pork, potatoes and onions seasoned with nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice. Pies can be purchased frozen and unbaked or par-baked. Order your pie by calling 414-988-7086 or by stopping into the restaurant. Pies will be available for pickup on Monday, Dec. 23, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.