New Restaurant Planned For Brewery District Food Court
Mexi-Cali Grill would bring tacos, birria, chicken wings and more to permanent location.
Food court at Eleven25. Photo taken Feb. 14, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.
Mexi-Cali Grill, a Wauwatosa-based food truck, is poised to expand its reach with a permanent location in Milwaukee, according to a license application.
With tentative plans to open in May, the mobile restaurant would bring a fusion menu of American and Mexican dishes to 1125 N. 9th St., joining a lineup of vendors in the building’s ground-level food court, The Restaurants at Eleven25.
A proposed menu features popular dishes from the food truck, including walking tacos, land and sea tacos with shrimp and steak, veggie burrito bowls, loaded fries and spicy birria.
Mexi-Cali Grill would join several existing food businesses in the space, including Tangled Noodles and More, Coaches, Bento Xpert, Marco Pollo and Mr. Shawarma.
Owner Carilyn Ortega and her husband, Luis, opened their first food truck, La Guacamaya, in 2017. The business operated until 2021, when the couple refreshed both their vehicle and brand with the launch of a new concept, Mexi-Cali Grill.
A license application for the new location is pending before the Milwaukee Common Council. If approved, the restaurant would open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
In addition to dine-in and carryout service, the proposed restaurant would offer delivery through DoorDash, Uber Eats and other third-party platforms.
The Restaurants at Eleven25 opened in late 2016 with five counter-service vendor stalls and a cafeteria-style dining area, occupying an 8,000-square-foot space within the former Pabst Brewery Bottling House. A 2015 renovation converted the 1889 structure into Eleven25 at Pabst, a 151-unit apartment building geared toward students.
The surrounding neighborhood has also seen significant development, with the addition of Go Grocer MKE, a small-format grocery store; several hundred apartments; Pilot Project Brewing, which revitalized the former Milwaukee Brewing Company site; Amped, a karaoke bar and small businesses like Ultra Violet, a nail salon and boba cafe.
Ortega did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
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