Bars and Restaurants See Dramatically Mixed Results For RNC Traffic

The New Fashioned, 1122 N. Vel R. Phillips Ave. Photo taken July 16, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.

The linoleum tables at Shah Jee’s are typically packed with office workers over the weekday lunch hour, with a line stretching across the dining room as patrons await plates of chicken masala, daal masoor, basmati rice and more.

On Wednesday, it sat dark and empty.

The Pakistani restaurant, 770 N. Jefferson St., opted to close its doors July 15 through 18, citing an anticipated drop in patronage as most office employees made plans to work from home during the Republican National Convention.

“No workers, no business,” owner Azhar Shah told Urban Milwaukee.

Meanwhile, just outside the convention, Copper was filled with an ebullient mix of convention-goers, law enforcement and media members, reported co-owner Pete Marshall.

“Business has been good,” he said, noting that private event buyouts have also bolstered business for the gastropub, 1019 N. Martin Luther King Jr Dr.

Prior to the RNC’s arrival in Milwaukee, bar and restaurant owners were promised an influx of customers and booming business. After all, more than 50,000 delegates, media, law enforcement, staff and visitors were forecasted to attend the convention.

Now, heading into the fourth and final day, those promises have fallen flat for many downtown businesses — with few exceptions.

With each passing day of the convention, the “winners” have become more pronounced — particularly catering companies, venues rented out for private parties and establishments located inside the “hard zone” security perimeter.

The New Fashioned located across the plaza from Fiserv Forum, served as a clear example; the multi-level business was consistently overflowing with visitors seeking a convenient stop for food, drinks, entertainment and souvenirs.

Those who performed well, did exceedingly well. Those who didn’t lost a vital week of summer.

“This is so significant to people’s daily lives in the industry,” said Samantha Sandrin, owner of Midwest Sad. “That’s a week of sales lost, it’s no revenue coming in, it’s product that’s going to go bad because I can’t use it. There’s so many things.”

Sandrin, who operates a bakery window in the same building as Shah Jee’s, made a last-minute decision to shut down for the week. Located on the lower level of the building, Midwest Sad isn’t visible from the street, and relies on regulars to stay busy.

The business is instead hosting a pop-up several  at Hot Dish Pantry, where it’s selling cookies, brownies, banana pudding and more through July 19.

Sandrin, along with a number of fellow business owners and neighborhood associations, have been urging both locals and visitors to patronize Milwaukee businesses, especially those located near two major security zones — around the Pfister Hotel and at the convention itself.

But the social media posts, restaurant recommendations and even extended hours have so far proved minimally successful for most.

Emerald Mills, co-owner of Diverse Dining, told Urban Milwaukee that business has been slower than expected during the RNC. “Honestly I see less people out, minus the police and reporters.”

Located at 250 E. Wisconsin Ave., directly between the convention site and the Pfister Hotel, Diverse Dining is only in its second week, having welcomed its first guests July 8.

The convention was supposed to be a windfall. But that didn’t happen for Mills. “It’s like a ghost town,” she said.

Even those farther away from the security zones have seen sales decline, as many locals avoid driving into the city center. Some have even left the city entirely for the week.

Fatima Kumar, who owns Saffron in the Historic Third Ward with her husband, Hanish, said she’s received an influx of calls from customers inquiring whether the restaurant is open and accessible.

“Unfortunately, I don’t think it was well enough explained to the public,” she said of the convention’s security zones. “The mass public collective is that it’s impossible to get into Milwaukee and you might as well stay away.

That’s not the case at Saffron, she said. Situated at 223 N. Water St., the restaurant is more than a half-mile away from the nearest entry point to the security perimeter. It’s accessible by car and is near a parking structure.

Saffron, which serves modern Indian cuisine, is operating as usual this week. Its hours and menu are available to view online.

In contrast to dinner-focused establishments, whose peak hours align with nightly RNC programming, breakfast and coffee spots seem to be faring well.

Visits to Canary Coffee Bar, 720 N. Martin Luther King Jr Dr., and Fiddleheads Coffee Roasters, 790 N. Water St., turned up a number of patrons — mostly reporters — replenishing their caffeine stores for the day ahead. A staff member at Fiddleheads said the cafe has been performing well — if not quite at the level previously expected.

Other businesses have worked to capitalize on positive social media attention. Calderone Club, located just outside the security perimeter at 842 N. Martin Luther King Jr Dr., has so far shared photos of Tony Ravosa and Savannah Chrisley. The latter posed with chef-owner Gino Fazzari, who was wearing a “Make America Italian Again” cap.

The adjacent San Giorgio Pizzeria Napoletana, also owned by Fazzari, received a shoutout, while a snap of Dorsia‘s signature pasta flight, posted by journalist Brandon Pope, took the internet by storm.

At the convention itself, a couple dozen bars and restaurants are participating in Convention Fest. With a built-in customer base, Xankia, Buffalo Boss, Ultimate Confections and others were able to make up sales that may have been lacking at their brick-and-mortar locations.

The RNC is set to wrap up Thursday night, concluding with a speech from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. The coming days and weeks should be busy ones in Milwaukee, with Brady Street Festival on July 20 and the Air and Water Show taking place July 27 and 28.

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