Hotel Metro’s Tiki Bar May Stay

Pufferfish, the tiki bar concept and latest occupant of Hotel Metro‘s rooftop space, may be extending its stay indefinitely. As Urban Milwaukee reported last week, the bar got its start in 2020 as a temporary patio behind Lost Whale, then popped up again in March at MARN Art + Culture Hub in the Historic Third Ward. Its latest venture was to take up a summer residency atop Hotel Metro. But things have been going so well, co-owner Daniel Beres said, they’re considering making it permanent.

Beres and co-owners JC Cunningham and Tripper Duval had been looking for a brick and mortar space to settle the bar since 2021 due to its early success at Lost Whale, which Beres and Cunningham also own. The residency at the hotel was to be a trial run to see if the teams melded well, with the ultimate goal being a long-term partnership, Beres said.

“They’re fantastic here,” he said. “They’ve been nothing but wonderful to work with and accommodating.”

That’s just one of the changes on the food, dining and bar scene in Milwaukee in the last week. Here’s a rundown of the other stories:

Urban Garden Provides Fresh Produce in Riverwest

Joel and Jamie Lichosik, like many others, reconsidered their career paths during the pandemic. Both veterans of the restaurant industry, the brothers decided to step back from making food. Now, they grow it.

The Lichosiks decided to create Crops on Top, a for-profit urban vegetable garden, in February 2021. In the following weeks, they were tasked with transforming an industrial lot, overgrown with weeds and covered in a layer of cement, into a suitable space for planting. They pulled it off, but Joel Lichosik wasn’t eager to repeat the scramble for a second year.

“This year was so much easier,” he said. “I was able to see all the mistakes we made.”

With the garden space already prepped, the brothers had time to assemble shelves with grow lights, conduct research and plan strategies for a better harvest. Ultimately, they built it on the parking lot of the former C&D Technologies factory at 3700 N. Fratney St. It’s comprised of raised beds and repurposed containers arranged on a bed of wood chips.

Read the full article

Milwaukee-Made Calypso Now Available at 3,000 More Stores

Calypso, the flavored lemonade brand made in Milwaukee, recently added 3,000 new outlets including Walmart, H-E-B, Publix, Sheetz and Kroger to its distribution network.

King Juice, 851 W. Grange Ave., started making the bottled lemonade in 1999 on Milwaukee’s South Side.

The brand has since grown to include over a dozen flavors of lemonade, limeade and “teamonade” and is distributed domestically and internationally in approximately 20 countries.

“We are so excited to announce the continued expansion of Calypso’s distribution with several leading retailers in the U.S.,” said David Klavsons, CEO of Calypso. “This new distribution will create availability of our Calypso brand to more consumers at a perfect time of the year as we enter the summer months so everyone can enjoy a taste of the islands.”

Read the full article

Want To Join Gathering Place’s Exclusive Beer Society?

Gathering Place Brewing Company is accepting new members into its Exclusive Beer Society, which will offer exclusive access to one-of-a-kind beers.

Each month, brewers at Gathering Place, 811 E. Vienna Ave., dream up two experimental beers based on member input, then brew the new recipes in small batches on a pilot system from Spike, a brewing equipment manufacturer located just down the street.

“We get to ask the customers what they want to try and brew things that we don’t normally get to brew on a bigger system,” said Caitlyn White, marketing and events coordinator at Gathering Place. “People are interested in a wide variety of things, which is honestly pretty cool to see. Some people prefer the darker beers, some people prefer lighter. So we try to do a good mix of that throughout the year.”

The beers include experimental styles, unique ingredients, barrel aging, mixed fermentation methods and higher ABV offerings. The beers are only available to members and will not be sold in kegs or cans.

Read the full article

Gordo Burger Will Become Dessert Shop

Gordo Burger is closing, but the same owner will open a new restaurant in its place.

Owner Mohammed “Mo” Gordo is partnering with his cousins, Bilal Hussein, Omar Daher and Suhib Badwan to revamp the specialty burger spot into a late-night dessert shop, Gordo’s Bubble Waffles and More.

The shop, at 2301 S. Howell Ave. in Bay View, will serve bubble waffles, mini pancakes and extravagant milkshakes topped with waffle pieces, cereal and candy bars, according to Hussein.

“We like to eat exotically,” Hussein said about the inspiration for the menu. “So we just sat down one day and decided to put together the best menu possible.”

Read the full article

Riverwest Co-op Cafe Closing

The Riverwest Co-op Cafe will close until further notice.

The cafe, 733 E. Clarke St., is a restaurant connected to the co-op’s grocery store. The grocery store will remain open. The co-op’s board of directors issued a letter to email subscribers Sunday announcing the closure.

“We are putting all of our energy into pivoting our operations in the hope of securing the future of the Co-op’s grocery store,” the letter said. “Unfortunately, we have looked hard at the numbers and deemed it impossible to continue to have regular cafe service.”

Read the full article

Deer District Market Returns to Plaza

The Deer District Market is back for a second year.

The evening market, featuring local and minority-owned businesses, will be held on the plaza outside of the Fiserv Forum. Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin will serve as the presenting sponsor.

With eight total dates scheduled, the market is set to run from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on July 7, 14, 21 and 28, and August 4,11, 18 and 25.

The Milwaukee Bucks launched the market last year with the mission of supporting local and minority-owned businesses, said a release from the team.

Read the full article