New Walker’s Point Tavern Planned by Draft & Vessel Owner
The name to be announced, it's slated to open in time for the Pride Parade in June.
723 S. 2nd St. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.
Draft & Vessel owner Nathaniel Davauer is planning to open a new tavern in Walker’s Point. The upcoming concept — as of yet unnamed — would occupy a former gallery space at 723 S. 2nd St., less than two blocks away from Davauer’s in-progress beer garden, Giving Tree Garage.
The project was a happy accident, said Davauer, who stumbled across the building while working on his nearby beer garden. “This just kind of fell in my lap,” he said.
Giving Tree Garage was originally slated to open in May 2023, but has experienced delays due to its unique format. With the new tavern in the picture, Davauer said he hopes to align the timelines for both concepts. His goal is to launch them simultaneously, ideally in time for the 2024 Pride Parade, scheduled for June 9.
“That’s just such a massive event on Second Street, certainly the biggest day of the year for both of these locations would be the Pride Parade,” he said.
Davauer said there’s a good chance the tavern will become a new location for Draft & Vessel, which currently operates beer bars in Shorewood and Wauwatosa; however, he hasn’t “fully closed the door on another name.”
Either way, guests can expect a variety of craft beers, as well as wine, cocktails and other beverages. The building has no kitchen, but Davauer said he’ll turn to the neighborhood’s thriving restaurant scene to keep patrons well-fed.
“Walker’s Point has a lot of food in general,” he said, noting that the tavern is just “steps away from Cielito Lindo,” a family-owned Mexican restaurant.
Both the tavern and Giving Tree Garage will welcome food carry-ins. The beer garden may also host food trucks in the future.
In the coming months, Davauer said he’ll focus mainly on the tavern’s interior design. Aside from that, there’s not much to be done inside the building. The space received a series of helpful upgrades under a previous owner who installed a bar, new lighting and ADA-compliant restrooms.
With an exciting season ahead, Davauer is anticipating the arrival of spring, when work on both concepts can proceed in earnest.
“That’s when our operations really expand,” he said, adding that, for hardy Milwaukeeans, patio season begins the moment temperatures rise above 60 degrees.
In addition to his suburban brick-and-mortar bars, Davauer owns an eight-tap, 1941 Ford pickup truck, which operates seasonally at the Milwaukee Public Market, as well as the Rk’d (arcade) Bar, a mobile beer bar containing 12 tap lines and a Nintendo console.
The Walker’s Point building, originally constructed in 1890, is under the ownership of Bourlinguette Properties, LLC.
A liquor license for the upcoming tavern is pending before the Milwaukee Common Council.
See the Draft & Vessel website for future updates.
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