International Restaurant, IVR Bar Opens on Northwest Side

IVR Bar owners and employees gathered with elected officials to celebrate the restaurant’s official opening. Photo taken Jan. 2, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.

Apexa Patel looked every bit the proud restaurateur Thursday morning as she stood alongside her husband, Vijay, nephew, Gary Singh, their family members and city officials to celebrate the official ribbon-cutting of IVR Bar.

But once the tours wrapped up and Mayor Cavalier Johnson departed for his next engagement, Patel swept her hair into a bun and swapped her business suit for an apron, ready to head up the fusion restaurant’s bustling kitchen for the remainder of the day.

This hands-on approach has been a defining feature of the couple’s success in their three-decade run in the restaurant industry; The Patels also own and operate Honeydip Donuts on Milwaukee’s South Side and Indian Village Restaurant locations in Greenfield and Waukesha.

IVR, short for International Variety Restaurant, is the newest addition to both the couple’s portfolio and Milwaukee’s Northwest Side, offering authentic Indian and Mexican cuisines, along with fusion dishes, pastas and desserts. It also features a robust bar program, with 30 taplines, plentiful wine selections and an assortment of high-end scotch and whiskey, according to Apexa.

“We’re bringing all different kinds of food and a gathering place for people, including those who want to watch sports,” Apexa said, referencing numerous TVs installed throughout the bar and restaurant. “There’s something for everybody.”

The establishment, 10950 W. Good Hope Rd., brought new life — and a refreshed look — to the large, vacant building that previously housed Point Burger Bar.

A $202,600 build-out, completed in the second half of 2024, transformed the space with a fresh color scheme, sleek decor, and a reimagined outdoor patio. The project received support from the Department of City Development (DCD), which utilized a tax incremental financing district to cover part of the necessary funding.

Mayor Johnson expressed his appreciation — and surprise — at the upgrades during Thursday’s ribbon cutting, quipping to area Alderwoman Larresa Taylor, “You’ve been holding out on me!”

He also praised the restaurant as an “incredible investment” for the area. “It’s going to do wonders, I think, for this neighborhood and for the Northwest Side and the City of Milwaukee as a whole,” he said.

Also in attendance were Vanessa Koster, deputy commissioner at DCD; state Representative-elect Russell Antonio Goodwin, Sr.; Terrence Moore, Sr., DCD neighborhood business development specialist; state Senator-elect Dora Drake; Neva Hill, community development director for the Granville Business Improvement District; Peggy Williams-Smith, president and CEO of Visit Milwaukee and Claire Koenig, vice president of communication and advocacy for Visit Milwaukee.

Those who stuck around were treated to a post-ribbon-cutting meal: chicken tikka masala with basmati rice and garlic naan. All received rave reviews.

The new restaurant is now operating with regular hours, opening daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. A full menu is available to view online.

Photos

New Bars and Restaurants That Opened in December

One of Milwaukee’s smallest dining destinations made a big impression with its mid-December debut. Just before the holidays, 1033 Omakase quietly opened reservations for its 10-seat Walker’s Point restaurant—and promptly sold out its initial days.

The upscale eatery owes its instant popularity, in part, to a series of successful pop-ups led by chef and co-owner Worawit Boonyapituksakul, an accomplished sushi chef who trained under luminaries like Masaharu Morimoto.

An immense respect for the art of sushi, paired with a passion for customer experience, led Boonyapituksakul—who often goes by Chef Ray—to pursue omakase-style dining, a Japanese tradition where guests entrust the chef to curate a series of custom-made, bite-sized courses crafted from the freshest seasonal ingredients.

The newly opened restaurant, located at 1033 S. 1st St., serves as a permanent manifestation of that philosophy.

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Explorium Buys Good City In Continued Craft Beer Shakeup

Company Brewing. MobCraft. Enlightened. City Lights. And now add Good City.

Closings and buyouts of craft brewers are causing a major shakeup in Milwaukee’s once-thriving industry.

The owners of The Explorium Brewpub are buying Good City Brewing and its four locations. The entire operation will be rebranded as The Explorium Hospitality Group.

“We are bringing Good City Brewing into The Explorium family,” said Joan Doble, who owns the business with her husband Mike, in a video announcing the change.

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City Lights Brewing Announces Closure

City Lights Brewing Co. will go dark after service on Jan. 4, bringing an end to nearly eight years of operation in the heart of the Menomonee River Valley. It will be the fourth Milwaukee brewery to close in less than a year.

The brewery announced the news in a Facebook post Tuesday afternoon, attributing the closure to “numerous challenges” that have made it “unsustainable to continue” operations.

“It is with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we announce the closing of City Lights Brewing Company,” reads the post, which also called the decision “gut-wrenchingly difficult.”

The message also expresses deep gratitude to patrons, staff, suppliers, vendor partners and the community at large, calling the brewery “a gathering spot, a hub of connection, and a home.”

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Gathering Place Acquires Grafton Brewery

Grafton, meet Gathering Place. The Milwaukee-based brewery, with locations in Riverwest and Wauwatosa, finalized its purchase of Sahale Ale Works at 1505 Wisconsin Ave. earlier this month.

Sahale’s three-barrel brewing system and 2,700-square-foot taproom, which opened in 2019 under Matthew Hofmann, are now managed by Gathering Place’s Joe Yeado, who completed the acquisition Dec. 16.

Amid the transition, customers can rest assured that the taproom experience will remain largely the same, Yeado said, noting that plans are in place to preserve the business’s name, branding, and recipes.

“We’re going to continue brewing things that are fan favorites, but we’ll also introduce new beers under the Sahale brand,” he said.

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The Year’s Most Popular Food & Drink Stories

Milwaukee foodies might remember 2024 as the year Dan Jacobs took the culinary world by storm, winning over the hearts and taste buds — and nearly the whole darn season — of “Top Chef.”

Others may ruminate on the closures of beloved establishments like Mazos Hamburgers, Merge and 1033, or breathe a sigh of relief that cherished favorites have returned from the brink.

But the past year, according to Urban Milwaukee’s most popular food and drink articles, tells a different story—one of new beginnings. The Glorioso family sold its renowned Italian grocery store after decades of ownership, the 60-year-old Victor’s hit the market and Popeye’s shared plans to return with its best location yet following a 2023 fire.

It was also one of tough goodbyes, as Kehr’s Candies vacated its centerpiece stall at the Milwaukee Public Market and 703 Club quietly closed its longstanding southside tavern.

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New Thai Restaurant, Lemongrass, Opens on Farwell Avenue

While most Milwaukee restaurants took a well-deserved break on Christmas Day, Lemongrass by EE-Sane was buzzing with activity, its cozy storefront glowing on Farwell Avenue as guests dashed in for takeout, sipped sake and slurped spicy noodles.

The Thai-Lao restaurant quietly opened at the beginning of December — an early holiday gift to Milwaukee diners — and is beginning to find its rhythm at 1505 N. Farwell Ave., the former home of Twisted Cafe.

Led by Moukdala Phommanilath, Lemongrass is both a newcomer and a continuation of a neighborhood legacy. Phommanilath’s grandparents founded EE-Sane, which has served the community for 27 years from its location just down the street at 1806 N. Farwell Ave.

While EE-Sane is being renovated, it has temporarily relocated its operations to Lemongrass, Phommanilath told Urban Milwaukee. Crowd favorites, including EE-Sane’s pad Thai, papaya salad and pork ribs, are readily available at the provisional location, all prepared under the watchful eyes of founders Khamphet and Prasith Nanthasane.

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Grocery Store Planned For Shuttered Westside Walmart

Monterrey Market is set to expand its Milwaukee presence with plans to open its third location in a former Walmart department store.

The new store will replace the Walmart Neighborhood Market at 7025 W. Main St., near Milwaukee’s border with West Allis, which closed in May.

Founded by Robert and Leonor Montemayor in 2010, the family-owned Monterrey Market currently operates locations at 3014 S. 13th St. and 3920 S. 27th St., offering both American and Latin American grocery staples including meat and seafood, produce, pantry items and household goods, as well as specialty spices, bakery and seasonal products like pan muerto and atole mix.

A $610,000 commercial buildout, led by Madisen Maher Architects, is planned ahead of the opening, according to documents submitted to the City of Milwaukee.

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Milwaukee Creates Economic Hardship Waiver For Keeping Chickens

Since 2011, Milwaukeeans have been allowed to keep backyard chickens.

The non-expiring permits to do so require a one-time application and a $35 permit fee.

Now, that application will allow people to self-declare economic hardship, waiving their permit fee.

Alderman Peter Burgelis, who represents the city’s Southwest Side, sponsored the waiver amendment to Milwaukee’s chicken-keeping code. He said the idea came from a constituent who was upset about the fee.

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Jazz Cafe To Be Replaced By ‘Food Palace’

Espernolia’s Jazz Cafe, located at 9002 W. Silver Spring Dr., closed in September after six months in business. The restaurant served comfort food like smothered pork chops, fried catfish and tacos, paired with a music-themed ambiance featuring icons such as John Coltrane, Kenny G and Gerald Albright.

Owners Espernolia and Yolanda Gates announced the news in a Facebook post, calling the venture “an incredible journey.”

“After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close the doors to Espernolia’s Jazz Cafe,” the couple wrote. “We are deeply grateful for all the support, loyalty, and love you’ve shown us. Thank you for all the memories, and we look forward to continuing to be a part of your special moments in this new chapter.”

In the wake of the closure, the partners are shifting their focus back to full-time catering through Gates Family Catering, a business they originally launched in 1997.

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New Bar and Grill Opening Soon on Far Southwest Side

The Slow Buffalo is inching towards opening in Milwaukee’s Morgan Heights neighborhood after more than a year of development.

Co-owners Joseph Vagnini and Jeremy Chounard shared last month that “the wait is almost over” for their new bar and restaurant, set to take over the previous home of 1st Choice dive bar at 3872 S. 92nd St.

The partners first proposed the business in 2023, and have been sprucing up the building ever since. The revamped space centers around a sleek rectangular bar with live-edge wood, surrounded by several two-top tables. TVs are set up in each corner of the casual, 2,600-square-foot tavern space.

In addition to a full bar program, The Slow Buffalo will serve food, thanks to the recent installation of a kitchen hood. For entertainment, the business will feature five amusement machines and two dartboards, according to a license application.

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