Zocalo Hosting Inaugural Miche Fest
Plus: business owners reckon with tariffs, coffee workers unionize, food hall closing.
Site of Zocalo Food Park, 636 S. 6th St. Photo by Sophie Bolich.
Combine tomato juice, vodka, hot sauce and a dash of Worcestershire, and you’ve got the makings of a simple Bloody Mary. Swap the vodka for light beer, add a squeeze of lime, and you’ve got something entirely different: a michelada.
The Mexican drink, like its spirit-based counterpart, has countless variations, with add-ins ranging from Clamato and chopped jalapenos to tajin and chamoy. Zocalo Food Park welcomes the full spectrum later this month for its inaugural Miche Fest, where local vendors will complete for the title of Milwaukee’s best michelada.
The event, presented by Pilot Project Brewing, is scheduled for April 26 from noon to 4 p.m. at Zocalo, 636 S. 6th St.
Participants include The Highbury Pub, Modern Maki, Electric Lime Taqueria, Fiesta Café, Chucho’s Red Tacos, SapSap, Camacho’s Bar, Pink Agave, Ruby’s Bagels, Sobelman’s Pub & Grill, Brown & Gibbs Sports Bar, Revival, Canni Infusion Bar & Cafe, Tauro Cocina and Illinois-based beverage distributor Big Mich.
The 21+ event will feature samples and voting, as competitors vie for up to $1,000 in prize money. Guests can also expect live music, food trucks, boxing matches and local vendors from MercaderoMKE.
Tickets are $24.99 each and available to purchase online.
Pizza Purveyor Cedar Teeth Plans Bay View Restaurant
Cedar Teeth pizzas are widely available throughout Milwaukee and beyond, with farmers markets, brewery pop-ups and grocery stores across the state all offering the brand’s signature sourdough pies.
Soon, diners will be able to grab a slice straight from the source — owner Hannah Roland plans to open a counter-service restaurant at 2375 S. Howell Ave.
The business would occupy 2,500 square feet inside the Bay View building, offering fresh pizzas and seating for up to 45 people, Roland noted in her plan of operation attached to a permit request. She’d also use the kitchen to fulfill wholesale business, and plans to rent kitchen space to local caterers.
Roland, who grew up in North Dakota, moved to Milwaukee in 2007 and began working at Three Brothers. After cutting her teeth at the Serbian restaurant, she launched Cedar Teeth, her own business selling mostly vegan and vegetarian pies.
New Restaurant For Bay View’s White House
“I think the mark of a good chef — and really any restaurant worker — is the ability to pivot,” said Vanessa Rose, a skill she’s now putting into practice with her plans to open an LGBTQ-centered third space, this time in a different neighborhood.
Rose, who earlier this year pursued the former Company Brewing space in Riverwest, has since shifted her focus to the White House in Bay View, where she plans to launch her culinary concept, Mother’s, as a brick-and-mortar restaurant.
The historic building at 2900 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., most recently home to SAGE, is expected to reopen as Mother’s in time for Pride Month, welcoming guests for food, drinks, entertainment and community gatherings to kick off the festival season.
The concept, first introduced in early 2024, has gained momentum as a pop-up at restaurants like Ardent and Amilinda. Its menu casts off traditional boundaries, drawing inspiration from diverse cuisines to create innovative dishes with complex layers of flavor.
New Business Proposed For King Drive
Mi Casa Su Cafe has operated for nearly eight years on King Drive, where it’s become a staple of the ever-evolving Bronzeville neighborhood. But the bar and restaurant may soon close as a new business prepares to move into the building.
Industry veteran Eric Mahoney recently filed a license application for One Seven Cafe & Lounge, with plans to occupy both the Mi Casa Su Cafe building at 1835 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. and a neighboring space at 1839 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.
A floor plan indicates the business would be divided into a “cafe side” and “lounge side,” with a separate entrance for each. An interior doorway would connect the two concepts.
In the application, Mahoney outlines plans to operate a “cafe-style restaurant,” offering a blend of Southern and Jamaican-inspired dishes with an emphasis on seafood.
Anodyne Coffee Workers Are Unionizing
Another Milwaukee coffee chain is unionizing.
Workers at Anodyne Coffee Roasting Co. are organizing a union with the Milwaukee Area Service and Hospitality Workers Organization (MASH). On Monday, MASH sent a letter requesting union recognition to Fairwave Holdings, LLC, the Missouri-based company that purchased Anodyne in 2023.
The majority of Anodyne workers in the proposed bargaining unit have signed union authorization cards, according to MASH. That includes full-time and part-time baristas and cafe employees, event staff, roastery employees, and assistant general managers. Anodyne operates cafes at the Milwaukee Public Market, in Wauwatosa (7471 Harwood Ave.), Bay View (2920 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.) and at its Walker’s Point roastery (224 W. Bruce St.).
Sabrina Prochaska, an employee at the Bay View cafe, told Urban Milwaukee she believes a union will help secure a workplace that provides livable wages and maintains good communication between workers and management. Anodyne employees have rights, she said, and they are prepared to exercise them. Ideally, Fairwave will recognize and bargain with the union
Interval Cafe Faces Eviction on East Side
If Interval plans to reopen its two Milwaukee cafes, it’ll first need to find new locations.
Less than three weeks after its abrupt and indefinite closure, the coffee shop has vacated its Bay View space and is now facing eviction from its Lower East Side location.
A five-day notice for the business’s flagship at 1600 N. Jackson St. appeared in online court records April 14, ordering owner Ryan Hoban to pay overdue rent or vacate the premises by the end of the day April 19. If the issue isn’t resolved, the case could move to court — the first step in a formal eviction process.
Meanwhile, Interval’s Bay View location, 2268 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., is for lease, according to signs posted April 3.
East Side Food Hall Is Closing
Crossroads Collective will close its doors next month after nearly seven years on Milwaukee’s East Side, the food hall announced Tuesday morning. Home to five unique vendors, the space will host its final service May 8, with plans to “pass the torch” to a new local operator later this year.
Located at 2238 N. Farwell Ave., Crossroads Collective opened in 2018 as “Milwaukee’s first food hall,” filling a prominent commercial space formerly home to Oriental Drugs.
The food hall has housed a wide variety of concepts over the years, including several barbecue restaurants, an ice cream counter, a pasta stand and a non-alcoholic bar. Its anchor tenant, The Pharmacy, has remained a constant presence.
Owned and operated by New Land Enterprises, the business also worked to engage the community through live music performances, makers markets, interactive entertainment and other special events.
Tammy Baldwin Talks Tariffs With Local Business Owners
Senator Tammy Baldwin met with small business owners in Milwaukee on Monday to discuss the impacts of the Trump Administration’s tariffs.
From aluminum cans and auto parts to roofing nails and Belgian malt, entrepreneurs said they’re feeling financial pressure across the board — even as some tariffs are temporarily suspended.
“Uncertainty is the biggest challenge to us right now,” said Andy Gehl, co-founder of Third Space Brewing Company, during a roundtable discussion at Lakefront Brewery. “We haven’t seen any price increases directly yet, but we are bracing ourselves. And with this seesaw back and forth … it’s incredibly challenging to run a small business.”
Additional participants included Russ Klisch of Lakefront Brewery, Gregory León of Amilinda, Ryan Bandy of Indeed Brewing Company, Sandy Syburg of White Oak Farm, Natasha Broxton of Select Auto Parts & Sales, Jim McGuigan of Energy Masters LLC and Ugo Nwagbaraocha of Diamond Discs International.
Good City Brewing Replacement Opens on East Side
From hyper-local to globally inspired, Explorium Hospitality Group has unveiled its new concept, Wayfinder, on the Lower East Side.
The bar and restaurant, which replaces Good City Brewing at 2108 N. Farwell Ave., serves upscale small plates and craft cocktails that draw on global cuisines to create unexpected flavor profiles.
Owners Joan and Mike Doble have traveled extensively, collecting recipes like postcards from far-off destinations including Central and South America, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany and Belgium.
While those flavors didn’t align with the menu at their existing concept, The Explorium Brewpub, the new space gave them a chance to bring fresh ideas to the table.
New Restaurant Planned For Brewery District Food Court
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.
Brady Street Sandwich Shop For Sale
Megawich, a Brady Street restaurant known for its extra-large sandwiches and late-night hours, is for sale.
Operators Adham Awadalla and Wael Elsayed are offering up the business and brand for $245,999, according to a listing from Paul Monigal of Corley Real Estate.
“This is a rare opportunity to develop your own brand and expand as a franchisor—without the burden of franchise fees!” the listing states.
Opened in July 2023, the 1,230-square-foot, counter-service restaurant was renovated prior to its launch. The space includes a service counter, beverage cooler and several tables for dine-in customers.
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