Counter Day Bar Leaving Crossroads Collective
Zero-proof cocktail bar exiting as food hall prepares to welcome two new concepts.
Crossroads Collective. Photo by Dave Reid.
Crossroad Collective‘s zero-proof cocktail concept, The Counter Day Bar, will close its vendor stall at the end of the month.
The Counter has been serving its inventive drinks at the East Side food hall, 2238 N. Farwell Ave., since February, making its debut with a lineup of cocktails inspired by myths and fables.
The concept’s first wave of “narrative-drink making,” as owner Ryan Castelaz calls it, included the verdant Jack and the Beanstalk, flavored with sugar snap peas, sage and apple; the fruit-forward Daedalus and Icarus, topped with powdered mango and passion fruit and a white chocolate fondant feather; and Pandora’s Box, served with a flourish of Szechuan-infused smoke.
The bar’s time at Crossroads was short, but Zoe Lomenzo, general manager for The Counter, said that the past five months have proven to be “transformative.”
“We’ve learned so much about the art of making cocktails and building connections,” Lomenzo said. “We’re thankful to be a part of this project, the city and the non-alcoholic movement.”
Although it will no longer have a permanent place at Crossroads, The Counter will continue to offer its experimental cocktails through a series of pop-ups starting in August. The bar plans to pop up on Friday evenings at Ivanhoe Plaza and weekend mornings outside Uncle Wolfie’s Breakfast Tavern, 234 E. Vine St.
The Counter was the newest concept from Castelaz, who also owns Discourse Coffee with his business partner, Sean Liu. The brand operates cafes downtown and at the Milwaukee Art Museum.
As The Counter departs, two new concepts are slated to join the food hall. Kawa, a Japanese restaurant, will take the place of Egg & Flour, which left the food hall earlier this year. The sushi and ramen restaurant plans to open July 20, and will continue to operate at Crossroads for six months during repairs to its original restaurant space, 2321 N. Murray Ave., following a destructive kitchen fire in early June.
4 All My Dogs, a pop-up by The Gallery owner Kamal Shkoukani, will be open from July 19 through 31 at the food hall. The restaurant will serve vegan and non-vegan Korean corn dogs and other fried snacks.
“Crossroads Collective remains committed to providing exciting and diverse experiences inside, and outside, our food hall,” said Paige Hammond, general manager at Crossroads Collective, in a statement. “We’re excited for Milwaukeeans to experience what’s new here.”
In addition to its vendor shuffling, Crossroads Collective is gearing up for a series of neighborhood initiatives — including community gatherings, yoga, dance classes and weekly concerts — for the remainder of the summer.
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