The Year’s Most Popular Stories

Urban Milwaukee followers are always interested in new restaurant and bar openings, but as our readership figures for 2023 show, they seem particularly interested in bad news about the hospitality scene. A story about a Bay View restaurant getting 15-day suspension by Milwaukee Common Council, combining two subjects we cover regularly, dining and City Hall, was our third most popular story of the year. And given that we published nearly 4,000 stories in 2023, that is saying a lot about its popularity.

Sixth-most popular was a story on a Mexican restaurant, El Tucanazo Taqueria Y Mariscos, getting a 10-day suspension. 10th-most popular was a story about a north-side nightclub that was suspended. And ranking number 9 was the story on a far-south-side Taco Bell that was temporarily closed because of manager’s drug, alcohol use. Yes, the Common Council does devote a good deal of time to such issues.

But the most dramatic report on the dining scene was an investigative story first reported by Urban Milwaukee on the food hall in East Town, “Paper Table Leaves Tenants Owing Thousands, With Shuttered Restaurants, Broken Dreams.” It was our eighth most popular story of the year. All five of these stories were written by our ever-busy reporter Sophie Bolich, who has become a must-read for anyone in Milwaukee looking to keep up with changes in the city’s hospitality scene.

Real estate remains a very popular subject for readers, not to mention a key issue for any city that seeks to grow and prosper. Which made the decision of Northwestern Mutual to spend $500 million on a new glassy tower on its downtown campus very important to Milwaukee, and the fifth-most popular story of the year. Another good news story was pure fluff: a preview of “Evanescent,” an installation of lighted, large plastic bubbles, that was on display in downtown Milwaukee. The exhibit lasted only one week, but that was long enough, along with the pre-show anticipation, to make this the number two story of the year.

Politics is also a constant subject for Urban Milwaukee and who in the last 25 years has been more political than Scott Walker? A story on the former governor’s warning that any attempt to overturn Act 10, his watershed law decimating public worker union rights, would be a “horrible precedent,” ranked seventh in readership all year.

Two other stories told us how history is changing or being rediscovered in Wisconsin: Ranking third was a story about a Oshkosh road project unearthing an ancient Native American Village. And in a city where the auto industry was once huge and union jobs were plentiful, our top story of the year was about the auto distribution plant that was closing after a UAW strike.

All are compelling stories about the city we call home and that we were proud to report. Happy New Year!

10. Northside Nightclub Gets 20-Day Suspension

9. Milwaukee Temporarily Closes Taco Bell, Citing Manager’s Drug, Alcohol Use

8. Paper Table Leaves Tenants Owing Thousands With Shuttered Restaurants, Broken Dreams

7. Former Gov. Scott Walker Says Overturning Act 10 Would Set ‘Horrible Precedent’

6. Southside Restaurant Gets 10-Day Suspension

5. Northwestern Mutual To Create Second Glassy Tower With $500 Million Investment

4. Native American Village Unearthed in Oshkosh Road Project

3. Bay View Bar and Restaurant Gets 15-Day Suspension

2. The Bubbles Have Landed in Milwaukee

1. Milwaukee Auto Plant To Close Following End of UAW Strike