Rock & Roll Dinners at Rumpus Room

Rumpus Room. Photo from facebok.

Daddy’s Soul Food and Grill

Bennie Smith opened Daddy’s Soul Food and Grille on North 27th Street in November 2014, and has had so much success he’s now going to open a second location. The new place will be at North Holton Street and East Concordia Avenue in the Harambee neighborhood, with a soft opening scheduled for January 2017. It will be called Daddy’s on Holton. Clara Hatcher of Neighborhood News Service has the full story:

The name of the restaurant came from Smith’s daughter, who wanted to call it Daddy’s in memory of Smith’s father, who he was named for, and in honor of Smith…

The food will be upfront. It will be more takeout style because we will have so much more kitchen space,” Smith said.

Smith has been training two managers, Donovan Ferguson and Artez Powell, to help with opening Daddy’s on Holton and assist with cooking and general management of both restaurants.

“I have been working with Bennie [Smith] since the opening in 2014,” Powell said. “It’s great. I get to do what I love to do.”

Powell has been cooking professionally since 1995…“I’ve cooked soul food before,” Powell said. “I’ve never had a restaurant where everything you eat tastes great.”

Five Guys and Potbelly

Two popular fast casual restaurants, Five Guys Burgers and Fries and Potbelly Sandwich Works, will be opening locations in Oak Creek. Both will be located at W. Town Square Way at the new Drexel Town Square development. The development will offer restaurants, retail shopping and housing when work is completed. Melanie Lawder of the Milwaukee Business Journal adds:

According to a release from Mid-America Real Estate Wisconsin, Virginia-based Five Guys has leased a 2,300-square-foot space and Illinois-based Potbelly has leased a 2,200-square-foot space at the Oak Creek development, which is located at the intersection of Howell and Drexel avenues. Both restaurant chains already have multiple eateries in Wisconsin and the Milwaukee metro area.

The Milwaukee Business Journal reported in April that an additional five national chain restaurants would open at Drexel Town Square, but the identities of those restaurants had yet to be announced.

Le Reve Patisserie & Café

The Wauwatosa restaurant is planning “A European Dinner in the Midwest,” with help from Trattoria Stefano, an authentic Italian restaurant in downtown Sheboygan. Le Reve, a French-inspired restaurant, can be found at 7610 Harwood Ave.. The dinner is slated for Nov. 1 at 6:30 p.m. and will serve six different courses at $85 per person. Ann Christenson of Milwaukee Magazine adds more:

The six-course meal, served with Italian and French wine pairings, includes parsnip and roasted pear soup with smoked duck carpaccio and fresh figs; Neapolitan ragu of braised local meats and San Marzano tomato sauce in house-made rigatoni; seared dayboat scallops with white shrimp, steamed mussels, prosciutto-wrapped kale and crispy sunchokes; and grilled Pinn-Oak Ridge Farms lamb chop with smoky tomato conserva and sheep’s milk gratin. Dessert is warm candied orange brioche with mascarpone-spice ice cream and biscotti crumble, served with Stefano’s house-made limoncello.

Milwaukee Beer Bistro

Milwaukee Beer Bistro is about to make its national TV debut on “Food Paradise,” the foodie show on the Travel Channel. A production team came to the restaurant some time ago to photograph some of its beer-infused dishes. To celebrate the show’s airing on Sunday, October 30th at 7 p.m., the restaurant will offer a special dinner that’s also a fundraiser for the Riverwest food pantry that evening.

The party starts at 6:30pm and will last to 8:30pm, and attendees are asked to bring two healthy items for the Food Pantry. As the bistro’s invitation notes:

We will be featuring food items from the show as well as some items from our new menu displayed on 3 different food stations:

Appetizer Station
Entrée Station
Dessert Station

$15 – per adult
$7.50 – 12 and under

Cash Bar including new Beers & Wines
Reservations only
414-562-5540

Rumpus Room

Starting in November, Rumpus Room (1030 N. Water St.) will be hosting a series of Rock & Roll dinners to celebrate great moments in music and food. The first dinner is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 6:30 p.m. and will feature the Rolling Stones. Lori Fredrich of OnMilwaukee has more:

The dinner series, the product of a collaboration between Wisconsin Foodie host Kyle Cherek and WKLH’s Steve Palec, will feature poignant stories and great music from legendary rock icons like the Rolling Stones, New Orleans musicians including Louis Armstrong and Alex Chilton, and a variety of other rock ‘n’ roll influencers.

Enjoy four courses inspired by the French Riviera, along with true stories straight from Nellcôte, the luxurious chateau where the Rolling Stones recorded “Exile on Main Street.” Pricing is $55 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Tickets can be purchased online at bartolottas.com.

Future dinners will include Rhythm & Flavor of New Orleans on Feb. 22 and the Evolution of Rock & Roll on April 12.

Now Closing: Lucille’s Piano Bar

A Facebook post from Lucille’s Piano Bar revealed the business is closing after one more weekend of entertainment. The bar is located at 1110 N. Old World Third St. in Milwaukee and first opened in 2004. Molly Snyder of OnMilwaukee has the story and the farewell Facebook post, which reads:

You heard it right everyone. We will be open for one last weekend. We want all of you to know past and present, that this Friday and Saturday is for you. Drink specials, give always, and shout outs will be on hand all evenings. Tables will of course go incredibly fast so if you would like to reserve one last spot, please call 414-225-0304 or email us at rockinpianos@tds.net. More information will be updated through out the week! Get ready for the biggest closing party Milwaukee has ever seen!