Exploring Milwaukee

Last week I told you that we took the megabus up to Milwaukee for a weekend. Now I am going to fill you in on all of the details! I was completely charmed by the small city on the lake. If you live in Chicago and have not been yet – you should definitely head there for a weekend. Milwaukee is only two hours away, making it the perfect place to explore on a weekend when you don’t have any other plans. Take advantage of the opportunity, scoop up at $10 megabus ticket, and go!

On our second day in Milwaukee we woke up hungry and headed straight to brunch at Cafe Benelux, a European restaurant across from the public market. We arrived just before 10 am and were happy that they had a table available. Charles ordered the Market Omelet and promptly ate every bite.

I indulged and ordered the Tenderloin Wafflebrowns, an especially hearty breakfast of hashbrown potatoes cooked in a waffle iron and beef tenderloin topped with a poached egg.

We walked off brunch by strolling through the Third Ward checking out the shops. The area has some excellent furniture stores, and we attempted to find on some new furniture for our home … but we failed to agree on anything.

After our failed attempt at shopping, it was time for beer. We headed over to the old Pabst factory. These days all PBR is contract brewed at other breweries, and only two of the old factory buildings are open to the public for tours. Even though you won’t see beer being brewed, you get to sit down and learn the history of Pabst Blue Ribbon while you sip a pint (or maybe two). If you like history, I highly recommend the tour, our guide Scott, provided detailed knowledge of the history of Pabst and how Milwaukee grew around the brewery.

Pabst used to be the best place to work in Milwaukee. The owners of the company were known for treating their employees very well, with benefits including beer breaks every 3 hours and generous bonuses at Christmas. The prohibition ended many American breweries but Pabst got creative and started to make soda and they also sold materials that could be used to make home brews. In more recent times the brewery was sold to new owners who fired all of the employees at the factory. The factory sat empty from 1996 until 2001 when Jim Haertel bought two of the buildings in order to preserve the historic site.

Then it was time for more cheese curds. A quick search led us to the Milwaukee Brat House, a local joint that is known for having some top notch cheese curds. These curds had a thicker batter and a milder cheese compared to the curds we had at Lakefront Brewery.

Charles couldn’t resist the opportunity to have a brat, so he ordered a fully loaded brat to tide him over until dinner.

Our last stop in Milwaukee was dinner at Odd Duck. This was the restaurant that everyone recommended and we loved it. I should point out that this Odd Duck has nothing to do with the Odd Duck I went to in Austin. I actually think Milwaukee’s Odd Duck is superior. The pierogies and the chicken fried oyster mushrooms were both standout items.

Have you been to Milwaukee? I loved it! I really want to go back in the summer – tell me all about your favorite things to do in Milwaukee down in the comments.