Maya Ophelia’s Reopens in Bay View

Maya Ophelia’s food truck. Photo taken July 21, 2023 by Sophie Bolich.

After a three year hiatus, Maya Ophelia’s is back to its old tricks. That is, “tricking adults into eating their vegetables,” as its slogan says. The plant-based food truck reopened July 20 as a permanent fixture at The Mothership, 2301 S. Logan Ave.

The concept, which fuses American, Mexican, Filipino and Puerto Rican cuisines, got its start in 2018 as a pay-what-you-can, donation-based pop-up in Milwaukee. Owners Jack and Chase Roldan later launched the food truck, which operated at Boone & Crockett.

The pandemic made it impossible for the couple to continue the business full-time, so they took a step back starting in July 2020. In the interim, the Roldans have worked industry jobs while hosting pop-ups for Maya Ophelia’s and a spin-off dessert concept, Moon Cherry Sweets, at Riverwest Co-op, Riverwest Gardeners Market and other spots throughout the city.

Now, Maya Ophelia’s has found a semi-permanent home at the Bay View cocktail bar. The food truck’s menu is subject to change based on ingredient availability, but often features ramen, cheese lumpia, empanadas and other savory dishes — all of which are vegan.

Maya Ophelia’s posts regular updates, including a weekly schedule and hours, to its Instagram page.

“Farm-To-Table” Mexican Restaurant Expanding to Milwaukee

Farm-to-table dining has always come naturally to Oscar Villarreal. The Madison chef grew up on a farm in the small town of Delavan, where he and his family tended to the land, incorporating the fruits — and vegetables — of their labor into traditional Mexican recipes.

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“I still remember all the aromas from the fields,” said Villareal, who recalls the scent of mint, potatoes and an incoming rainstorm on the property. “It was probably one of the best childhoods I could have ever tried to imagine.”

Villarreal’s life, in a way, is also farm-to-table. As a young man, he left the family farm to pursue a career in the hospitality industry — starting his studies at a school in Lake Geneva and then heading south to Florida to finish at Walt Disney World.

The 20-year industry veteran has led several restaurants throughout Wisconsin. He opened Migrants, a Madison taco restaurant, in 2020. After three years of developing the concept, Villarreal is preparing to open a second location, this time in Milwaukee.

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Potawatomi Announces Opening Date for Rock & Brews

The stage is set for Potawatomi Hotel & Casino‘s newest restaurant to officially make its debut. Rock & Brews, a restaurant created by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of KISS, will officially open on Aug. 1, marking the first of what is sure to be many “Crazy Crazy Nights” in the Menomonee Valley.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers will be present at the grand opening to assist Forest County Potawatomi Chairman James Crawford in an 11 a.m. ribbon cutting. The ceremony will also feature a performance from PRISS, a Los Angeles-based KISS tribute band.

The restaurant will open its doors to the public at 3 p.m.

On the menu, guests will find a lineup of approachable dishes including burgers, salads, sandwiches, wings and pizzas. Sides such as fries, onion rings and fried mozzarella will also be available.

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Chinese Seafood Buffet to Replace Former Applebee’s

Milwaukee’s southside location for Applebee’s Grill & Bar may have closed, but residents may soon be “eatin’ good in the neighborhood,” if at an entirely different restaurant.

The sole Milwaukee location for Applebee’s, the American chain restaurant, shuttered in 2020 amid the earliest days of the COVID-19 pandemic. But a new restaurant, Hong Kong Seafood Buffet, is proposed at the address, 270 W. Holt Ave., with plans to open this fall.

The upcoming restaurant will be the first Milwaukee location for Ting Cai Zhou, a chef and entrepreneur who cut his teeth in New York before relocating to Madison, where he opened five restaurants. Three of those — Delicacies of Asia, Ragin Cajun and Hot Pot 608 — remain open.

Zhou, who speaks Chinese, told Urban Milwaukee through interpreter Jan Lin Tetzner that he plans to serve a variety of traditional Chinese dishes at the buffet, with a particular emphasis on seafood including king crab legs, snow crab, shrimp and more.

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On The Bayou Owner Plans New Concept at Paper Table

On The Bayou has been on the move — almost nonstop — for the better part of a year. Within the past seven months, the New Orleans-inspired restaurant has operated at Nō Studios‘ Skyline Bar + Lounge and out of a commercial kitchen space on the far Northwest Side.

The restaurant, now known as NO BAYOU, recently relocated once again, and plans to open a ghost kitchen later this summer at Paper Table, 733-737 N. Milwaukee St.

“I was looking for something that was on a smaller scale than what I had before,” said Chef Gregory Johnson, who co-owns the business with his wife, Janice.

The couple first opened the restaurant, originally called The Big Eazy, at 2053 N. Martin L King Jr Dr., in Bronzeville, back in 2013. After a period of closure, it reopened as On the Bayou in 2018, where it continued until December 2023.

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Biersal Tavern to Replace Wonder Bar on Vliet Street

Late last week, the Wonder Bar announced its closure after more than two decades in business. During its tenure at 5520 W. Vliet Street, the no-frills tavern became a respite for residents of the Washington Heights neighborhood, offering drinks, games and a laid-back ambience.

As of Sunday, July 16, the bar served its final pour. Owners George and Lucy Voell — aged 63 and 61, respectively — are retiring and selling the business to Eric Gutbrod. The sale is expected to close later this week.

Gutbrod, a beer industry veteran, plans to preserve the nostalgic elements of the long-standing bar while adding his own upgrades — including a new name, Biersal.

The new title comes from Gutbrod’s beer-centric history. Prior to the pandemic, he taught beer classes which, in addition to covering hops and brewing methods, explored beer-related lore including Biersal, a cellar-dwelling German folk creature. If the Biersal is kept well-supplied with beer, he is said to clean glassware, polish kegs and keep the space in working order. If not, well, prepare for chaos.

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Counter Day Bar Leaving Crossroads Collective

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.”

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Explorium Brewpub Has Huge Menu

If you are in the mood for a visit to an upscale pub in an historic building where the beer selection has the potential to satisfy every taste, look no further than the Explorium Brewpub. It’s located on St. Paul Ave. across the river from the Milwaukee Public Market in the Pritzlaff Building that once housed the John Pritzlaff Hardware Company. It’s hard to picture a hardware store of that magnitude in todays’ world of Home Depot and Walmart, but in the late 1800s until it closed in 1958, it was the go-to store for almost everything the citizens of Milwaukee needed for their everyday lives. From the original 16 buildings, six survive, and house the Brewpub, apartments, offices, and retail businesses.

When you come to the Brewpub, look around to see remnants of the hardware store, including the thick wooden beams, ceiling rafters, and a beautifully preserved wooden floor. You feel the history in this space where the owners took care to keep the bones of the original building.

On both visits, my companions and I began with beer flights, the best way to sample from a long list of house-made brews. We let our server be our guide and ordered Key Lime Cheesecake, Livingston’s Porter, and Copper Lager. The Key Lime was a surprise. You could call it dessert. It tasted exactly like key lime pie in a liquid form, an unexpected delight. We couldn’t stop there so we ordered another flight, English Apple Ale, Toasted Coconut Porter, and Belgian Blonde. The ale reminded us of a tart Granny Smith apple and if you like coconut, order the porter. The subtle taste of coconut blended with the dark rich porter left me wanting more.

The beer list is organized by alcohol content and as you scan to the bottom of the page, you will see Sticky Rye, a stout with 12.3 alcohol by volume.

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Deer District Bar Wants To Be Year-Round MECCA

When The MECCA opened in spring of 2019, it joined a downtown entertainment scene that is vastly different than that of today.

Fiserv Forum was brand new, having opened nine months earlier, and Deer District was still a fawn. In the years since, the area has seen substantial growth, accelerated by the Milwaukee Bucks‘ 2021 NBA Championship, and is now home to dozens of dedicated sports bars, entertainment venues and — the latest addition — a hotel.

The MECCA, 1134 N. Vel R. Phillips Ave., has done some growth of its own. The sports bar and grill recently debuted a new menu that’s chock full of Wisconsin fare. The latest iteration, according to chef Keith Luce, is intended to present The MECCA as a year-round destination for all Milwaukeeans, not just basketball aficionados.

“As the city changes, and as Deer District changes, we’re hoping to invest in the neighborhood and make The MECCA more of a year-round destination,” said Luce, who serves as senior executive chef for Fiserv Forum and Levy Restaurant’s Deer District operations.

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