Zoo Adding Brick Oven Pizza Restaurant
The Crust and Copper to open in 2026 just north of harbor seal aquarium.
Rendering of Crust and Copper by Fortuna Enterprises.
The Milwaukee County Zoo is planning to revamp its culinary offerings in 2026 with a new pizza-focused concept.
Nourish 414, a restaurant near Lake Evinrude in the center of the zoo, will close for the last time on Dec. 31. It will reopen later in 2026 as Crust and Copper, selling brick-oven pizza.
Along with pizza, Crust and Copper will offer sandwiches, hand-breaded chicken tenders, seasonal salads and burgers, as well as craft beer, wine and cocktails.
Crust and Copper will be built out at no cost to the zoo or Milwaukee County. In 2017, the zoo contracted with SSA Group to provide concessions, merchandising and catering services. SSA will cover redevelopment costs, which were built into the lease with the zoo.
Nourish 414 was created in 2018, shortly after the zoo partnered with SSA Group, replacing another restaurant called Lakeview Place. The restaurant facility is centrally located on the zoo grounds, just north of the harbor seal aquarium in the North America exhibit.
The new restaurant is a small part of a significant wave of change sweeping over the zoo. In the last decade, the zoo has developed several major exhibits. It recently finished development of a new rhinoceros center, closing out its multiyear Adventure Africa project, allowing for the return of eastern black rhinos. There have not been black rhinos at the zoo since 2021.
The small animals habitat is closing at the end of this year, because it does not provide an adequate habitat for the species held there.
Up next for construction, the zoo is planning a major redesign of the vehicle entrance along W. Bluemound Rd. to improve traffic flow and safety.
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