The Daily Bird Has Closed Indefinitely
Riverwest cafe was known for its yellow interior and community events like Narcan trainings.
The Daily Bird, 818 E. Center St. Photo taken Aug. 6, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.
Yellow, goodbye.
One of Milwaukee’s most cheerful coffee shops, The Daily Bird, has announced an indefinite hiatus. Owner Dan Zwart broke the news on social media Sunday, informing customers of the closure beginning Nov. 4.
“While we hope to reopen as soon as possible, we’re unsure of when that will be,” he wrote. “Your support has always meant the world to us, and we can’t thank you enough for being such an integral part of our journey.”
Zwart, reached on Monday, had no additional comment. However, he pledged to keep customers up-to-date via the cafe’s Instagram page.
“In the meantime, take care, and we can’t wait to serve you again soon.”
Launched as a pop-up in 2020, The Daily Bird initially operated at Centro Cafe, later expanding with a second location inside the Dubbel Dutch hotel. In 2021, the cafe opened its brick-and-mortar space at 818 E. Center St., where it remained in business until Monday. The other locations have since closed.
The Daily Bird, with its canary-colored interior and sunny disposition, frequently reminded customers to maintain a PMA, or positive mental attitude. Prompts like “stay hydrated,” “be nice” and “ride bikes” were sprinkled throughout the cafe’s physical space and branding, as well as on its social media.
Throughout its tenure in Riverwest, the business hosted and participated in community events including book clubs, live music performances, bike rides, art workshops and Narcan training.
The Daily Bird offered a full range of coffee and espresso drinks — drip, cold brew, lattes — along with a selection of Rishi and other non-coffee beverages. The cafe’s well-stocked bakery case featured sweet and savory options, with a rotating list of soup and sandwich specials available from the kitchen. The business also served ice cream.
Both Zwart and The Daily Bird appear on the Wisconsin Department of Revenue‘s list of delinquent taxpayers. The department has filed several delinquent tax warrants against the business in the past year.
Future updates on The Daily Bird will be shared to the cafe’s Instagram and Facebook pages.
Existing members must be signed in to see the interactive map. Sign in.
If you think stories like this are important, become a member of Urban Milwaukee and help support real, independent journalism. Plus you get some cool added benefits.
