Sobelman’s Offers Classic Burgers

Sobelman’s Pub & Grill. Photo by Cari Taylor-Carlson.

Ask a local where you can find Milwaukee’s best burger and you are likely to get an answer that includes Sobelman’s Pub & Grill. Not only can you count on finding a great burger there, you can also have the burger in an original Schlitz tied house, one of many pubs built by the brewery in the late 1800s. In 1999, Dave and Melanie Sobelman opened Sobelman’s in this historic tavern and began to dish up some of Milwaukee’s best burgers, including my companion’s fresco, a burger for people who like it hot.

The fresco started with a never-frozen Black Angus burger patty served on a freshly baked and grilled bun. This one-half-pound burger was topped with habanero cheese, raw onion and an avocado spread that oozed out of the bun with every bite. Then came the kicker: pico de gallo, an add-on that had a serious burn. Crisp lettuce and a tomato slice mitigated some of the spicy heat of this tasty flavor bomb.

You will see a dozen burgers on the menu priced from $9 for the basic to $13.25 for the Wisco, a monster combination of a beef patty, a brat patty, Colby cheese, bacon, fried onions and sauerkraut. You can have fries with your burger or a heart-healthy bowl of fresh fruit.

It was a photo of the breaded pork tenderloin that first took me to Sobelman’s and that I ordered on this occasion. This plate-sized piece of pork, coated with crisp breading and topped with superfluous lettuce, came partially enclosed in a grilled bun. The pork dwarfed the bun and covered most of the plate. It was also tender, delicious and more than enough meat for a second meal later.

There was a lot more than burgers on the menu, which a companion and I noted when I returned. Her fish sandwich, two pieces of cod served in a grilled bun with lettuce and tomato, came with a house-made tartar sauce good enough to eat with a spoon. If you want more than two pieces of cod, order the classic fish fry, served daily with four pieces of beer-battered cod, coleslaw, fries, macaroni salad, rye bread and tartar sauce.

The sausage sampler almost defied description. Each of the four regular-sized sausages, each cooked to juicy perfection, was conveniently cut into bite-sized pieces. This eliminated that complicated and messy maneuver when you attempt to slice a sausage buried underneath the fries. The sausages — a brat, a cheddar, an Italian and a jalapeno — were served with a cheddar beer dipping sauce and a plain cheddar dipping sauce. That was not all. The basket also contained regular fries and a surprise, pickle fries, strips of dill pickles that were breaded and deep-fried. A third dipping sauce, jalapeno ranch, further enhanced the flavor of the pickles.

Sobelman’s also has a reputation for extravagant Bloody Marys. You can order a classic or get crazy and order one of the others, including the masterpiece topped with a cheeseburger slider, the Bourbonado with bacon-wrapped chicken and bourbon sauce, the Beast with the works, or the Chicken Beast topped with a whole fried chicken for $65.

When we finished our lunch, our server brought a check and a chocolate chip cookie. Sobelman’s has earned its reputation as a go-to place for a burger, but as friends and I learned after a fish sandwich, a humongous pork sandwich, and that amazing sausage sampler, it is much more than just a burger joint.

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• Location: 1900 W. St Paul Ave.
• Phone: 414-931-1919
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mon-Thu, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fri, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sat, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sun
• Neighborhood: Menomonee River Valley
• Website: https://sobelmanspubandgrill.com
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/teamsobelman

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