Farmers Market Coming to Deer District

Deer District Plaza. Photo taken April 14, 2023 by Sophie Bolich.

A new farmers market is set to debut at Deer District this spring, bringing local food, art and live entertainment to the downtown sports hub.

The market will be held Sundays from June 7 through Oct. 25 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with more than 100 vendors expected weekly on the  75,000-square-foot plaza just east of Fiserv Forum.

In addition to organic meats, eggs, fruits, cheeses, vegetables and bakery items, the market will feature live music, on-site seating and a kids’ activity area. A sampling station, the Taste It Tent, will introduce new foods available to purchase at the market.

Deer District tenants such as The New Fashioned and Tom’s Watch Bar will also be open alongside the farmers market for brunch or lunch.

Event management firm Lauryn Wynter Company will plan and oversee the market with support from Deer District BID 53. Payment via SNAP/EBT, WIC and Senior Nutritional Vouchers will be accepted.

The market’s inaugural season will conclude Oct. 25 with a family-friendly Harvest Festival offering face painting, pumpkin decorating, candy and hot apple cider. Due to previously scheduled events, the market will be closed July 19, Aug. 16 and Aug. 23.

Deer District previously hosted a season of the Milwaukee Winter Farmers Market, which relocated to the plaza from The Domes in November 2021. That lasted for just one year, as the market moved to Capitol Dr. in 2022 and remains there today.

The upcoming market is now accepting online applications for prospective vendors and entertainers ahead of the 2026 season.

Fixture Pizza is Closed Indefinitely

Fixture Pizza Pub, a restaurant and tavern at 623 S. 2nd St. in Walker’s Point, is closed until further notice.

The business’s voicemail confirms its closure but does not offer a reason or share a possible reopening date.

Property owner JD Commercial Properties LLC has more than $100,000 in outstanding taxes dating back to 2022, according to the City of Milwaukee treasurer’s office. John “Jake” Taylor, the LLC’s registered agent, is incarcerated in a supervised living facility as a result of driving under the influence, the Wisconsin Department of Corrections website reveals.

Taylor, through similarly named JD Commercial LLC, co-owns the business itself.

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National Bakery and Central Standard Partner for Pączki Day

Milwaukee’s Polish roots are rarely more apparent than on Fat Tuesday, when thousands venture out to local bakeries in search of pączki — sugared and butter-rich doughnuts with sweet fillings meant as a final splurge before the Lenten season.

The filled pastries are a favorite at the 100-year-old National Bakery & Deli, which ranks “Pączki Day” as its single busiest of the year, according to co-owners Bryant Krauss and Jeff Callen.

“People start lining up early in the morning, and it turns into this big event for the whole day,” Callen said. “People absolutely love it and crave it. So we love playing into that, and we try to make as many as we can, of course, to feed the masses,” Krauss added.

In 2026, National Bakery is prepared with 40,000 regular pączki, custom T-shirts and accordion players at all three of its Milwaukee-area locations. The bakery will also debut a new old fashioned-inspired flavor created in partnership with Central Standard Craft Distillery.

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New Bars and Restaurants That Opened in January

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Conveyor Belt Sushi Arrives Downtown

Rotary sushi restaurant Sooshibay opened over the weekend at 1154 N. Water St. The new location is the second for the Kenosha-based business and the first of its kind in Milwaukee.

Sooshibay’s menu is filled with familiar favorites — miso soup, gyoza, assorted maki — but instead of being delivered by servers, small plates bearing bite-sized pieces of sushi and nigiri ride a conveyor belt around the dining room, passing tableside for guests to grab at their leisure.

Plates are color-coded by price, ranging from $2.99 for orange to $6.99 for pink. Vegetarian, gluten-free, raw and spicy dishes are also specially marked. At the end of each meal, Sooshibay employees count the plates and provide a final bill.

While rotary service is Sooshibay’s main attraction, the restaurant also includes tables away from the conveyor belt, catering to guests who prefer a traditional experience.

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Babe’s Ice Cream in Bay View Reopening

Before Babe’s Ice Cream was a Bay View favorite, it was a defunct dry cleaning business. Michael Ludwig led its redevelopment 20 years ago and now is returning as an owner to steer the ice cream parlor into its next chapter.

“I wanted something completely different,” said Ludwig, a businessman and U.S. Navy veteran who retired from the reserves last year. “I had no idea what I wanted to do — just different.”

When Ludwig’s longtime friends, Christine and Darwing Cruz, offered to sell him the business at 2264 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., his choice was clear.

“I know everything about the space, right?” Ludwig said. “It’s such a great, family-run business with huge community support — and the Cruzes are amazing people. So I was like, ‘I could just carry on the legacy for them.'”

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The Deep Groove Hums of History

There are a number of perils that might face the owners, staff and customers who participate in the modern ritual of a tavern’s “soft” opening.

Any drink order more complex than a can of Pabst and a shot of brandy immobilizes the bartender; the waitstaff are not sure of which tables they are to serve; the sound system needs a tune-up; the music is lousy; the furniture is cheap and the customers are impatient. Yet somehow the bathroom looks like it has been unattended for months.

However, we are expected to endure these hardships for the pleasure of saying to others, “Oh! You haven’t been there? Why, I was at the soft opening.”

None of these problems arose at The Deep Groove when it held its tryout weekend, kicking off on Thursday, January 15th after 20 months of preparation. The bartender could whip up a Caipirnha ($14) just as easily as if it came out of a tap, and no fussing around trying to find the bottle of Cachaça, either. The staff negotiated the intimate space with the precision of a drill team; the sound system is an audiophile’s delight; the music was a mellow Miles Davis album spinning on a turntable; the furniture is vintage, with not a stick of particle board or plywood; the customers were plentiful and sated. The bathrooms were immaculate with sparkling Kohler fixtures and quality tile floors and wainscoting.

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