Sushi Restaurant Offers Grand Opening Deal
Plus: Why the health department closed three downtown restaurants.
ZX Sushi, 823 N. 2nd St. Photo courtesy of New Land Enterprises.
Milwaukee is in the midst of a miniature sushi boom, with two new restaurants recently opened in Downtown and a third set to launch later this year.
The latest addition, ZX Sushi, will celebrate its grand opening with a week-long discount, sweetening the deal for diners who want in on the trend.
The special, running from March 8 through 14, offers 30% off all-you-can-eat sushi — typically priced at $31.99 per person, according to a spokesperson.
Industry veteran Andy Zheng leads the new restaurant, which began its soft opening Feb. 14 at 823 N. 2nd St.
Along with dozens of sushi rolls available both a la carte and as part of the all-you-can-eat deal, ZX Sushi also offers several varieties of ramen, bento boxes, Japanese appetizers and rice bowls.
For more information, see Urban Milwaukee’s previous coverage.
Health Department Closes 3 Downtown Restaurants
A Milwaukee Health Department sweep temporarily closed three downtown restaurants over the course of one week. Two have since reopened, while a third remains dark.
The wave started Feb. 25 at The Wicked Hop, where health inspectors found several dead cockroaches in the storage and prep kitchen areas. A live cockroach was also spotted in the main kitchen.
The restaurant, 345 N. Broadway, was cleared to reopen March 2.
“We brought in licensed pest control professionals, completed a full treatment and deep cleaning of the facility, and implemented additional preventative measures,” management shared in an online post. “The health and safety of our guests and staff is, and always will be, our top priority.”
Also in the Historic Third Ward, Blue Bat Kitchen & Tequilaria briefly closed to address a similar issue.
The Mexican-inspired restaurant, 249 N. Water St., was ordered to cease operations on March 2 after inspectors reportedly found pests in the basement prep area and main kitchen.
“On Monday, a City of Milwaukee health inspection found several matters requiring temporary closure of our doors to address facility maintenance,” spokesperson Chris Adams said in a statement shared with Urban Milwaukee, adding that crews began work immediately to resolve those issues.
Blue Bat was permitted to reopen March 3.
Less than a half-mile north of Blue Bat, Jr’s Treats at 624 N. Water St. remains closed after health department officials discovered it was operating without a license.
The restaurant appeared before the Milwaukee Licenses Committee last July to request operational changes, including adding hot food and updating its menu. While the update was approved, it did not serve as a license renewal, and the underlying permit expired Jan. 7, according to a representative of the License Division.
To reopen, the business will need to reapply for a license, subject to approval by the Milwaukee Common Council.
Owner Nerilyn Cruz-Colon did not respond to a request for comment.
Cambodian-Inspired Vendor Joining 3rd Street Market Hall
Sign Pledges That Fixture Pizza Pub Will Reopen
Snack Shop Planned For Clarke Square
At Sabor Sin Fronteras, flavor knows no borders.
The snack shop and soda fountain, proposed to open as soon as this spring at 2134 W. National Ave., would showcase menu items from a handful of global cuisines — Peruvian, French, Italian, American and more.Rosa Montoya Sánchez recently filed a license application for the business, which would replace an existing dessert shop, La Gran Colombia, in the southside building.
The previous tenant closed in December, according to Sánchez.
Sabor Sin Fronteras, Spanish for flavor without borders, is set to fill 1,125 square feet in a building also home to D’Sign Pizza. The stall has been home to two separate ice cream parlors in recent years.
Local Restaurateur Eyes Harbor District Space
New Cafe Opens in Brewery District
Get Fresh! Cafe opened Tuesday in the Brewery District, bringing new life to a counter-service space previously home to the Boiler House Cafe and Bon Bon Shop.
The new business specializes in “artisanal fast food,” offering made-to-order wraps, salads and smoothies, with grab-and-go items including bottled drinks, fresh fruit, and assorted baked goods.
Just two days into service, nearby office workers had already taken an interest in the cafe at 1259 N. 10th St., streaming in during the lunch hour, said owner Sydney Newman, who paused to chat with customers Wednesday while preparing orders behind the counter.
Newman said she hopes the cafe also becomes a weekend destination for residents in the nearby Eleven25 building.
Juice Bar Planned For South Side
Small business owner Maria Acevedo is bringing her juice company, Just Pressed, to a brick-and-mortar space on Milwaukee’s South Side.
The new location, tentatively planned to open in mid-April at 2206 S. Muskego Ave., aims to expand neighborhood access to fresh fruit- and vegetable-based drinks while introducing Just Pressed to a broader audience.
Acevedo is a longtime juicer, though her path as an entrepreneur is more recent. “I experienced a heart condition at the age of 11, and ever since then I’ve been super knowledgeable about the foods I’m consuming,” she said. “I was just juicing for myself, trying to bring more nutrients into my body.”
As she pursued her own health journey, Acevedo felt a pull to help others through another longtime dream: entrepreneurship. “I’ve always wanted to become a business owner,” she said. “Especially having the desire to elevate our community.”
License For Controversial Corner Store Will Return to Committee
Mother-Daughter Chefs Showcase Burmese Heritage
Editor: This is the seventh installment of a series in which Urban Milwaukee explores five ingredients and how to use them with Milwaukee chefs, growers and caterers.
For NyoNyo Lin, ingredients are more than recipe components — they’re a direct connection to her heritage, tethering the Burmese immigrant to her homeland and its culinary traditions.
Growing up in her grandmother’s restaurant in Mawlamyine, Myanmar (formerly Burma), Lin absorbed the flavors and techniques essential to Burmese cooking, knowledge she now brings to her Milwaukee restaurant, Ni Burmese.
The restaurant’s scratch-made curries, soups and stir-fries rely on staples like dried prawns, masala blends and chili powders for their distinctive flavors. Once difficult to source locally, these ingredients are now readily available at Yardanarmon Superstore, the southside market Lin’s mother and business partner, Ni Ni, opened in the early 2000s.
New Bars and Restaurants That Opened in February
Mehfil Grill quietly opened on the South Side in mid-February, timing its arrival with the start of Ramadan. The new restaurant offers a fully halal menu, specializing in Pakistani, Indian and American dishes at 1017 W. Historic Mitchell St.
Dinner specials for iftar, the meal Muslims eat to break their daily fast, will be available for the remainder of the holy month, offering a variety of meat, vegetable and lentil entrees, plus specialty rice dishes and fried items. The deal is priced at $20 per adult on weekdays and $22 on weekends.
The restaurant’s everyday menu centers on curries, biryani and tandoori-roasted meats, with various flavors of naan and paratha for dipping. American offerings include hamburgers, fries, chicken wings and mozzarella sticks. A drink menu features soda, Pakistani-style tea with milk and spices, mango lassi and masala soda, a mix of carbonated water, sweetener and aromatic spices.
Illinois-based partners Niaz Hussain and Muhammad Anwar lead Mehfil Grill, which was first proposed under a different name, Al-Baik, in November 2024. The restaurant fills a former consignment shop in a building owned by Abdisalam Osman.
Legally Embattled Chain Quietly Closes Two Milwaukee Restaurants
Discourse Workers Have Unionized
Workers at Discourse have won voluntary union recognition after a third-party card count found majority support for this, cafe management announced Monday.
The move establishes the Discourse Coffee Workers Union, which is expected to begin contract negotiations in the coming months with representation from the Milwaukee Area Service and Hospitality Workers Organization (MASH).
“Workers want to have a voice, a seat at the table and a say in the future, as opposed to a critique of existing management or some problem with the company that needed to be fixed immediately,” MASH President Peter Rickman told Urban Milwaukee in an interview, adding that Discourse management “deserves credit for remaining neutral throughout the process.”
The new collective bargaining agreement covers all employees at Discourse’s Milwaukee cafes: 1020 N. Broadway and 220 E. Pittsburgh Ave. It does not include the Chicago-based location, but is likely to apply to any future Milwaukee stores, according to founder and CEO Ryan Castelaz.Rickman said 74% of workers voted to join the union, though he believes actual support is higher, noting that some employees have not yet had a chance to sign on.
Fast Food Restaurant Proposed For High-Turnover Building
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