Image via Mader's Facebook
Milwaukee's annual Downtown Dining Week begins Thursday, June 2nd. Over forty restaurants are participating this year, so your food choices range from steak to sushi. Each restaurant created a prix fixe menu—that's where you choose courses from a small selection—for lunch, dinner or both. Each meal, including lunch, will be three courses, though some restaurants take a little liberty with what can be considered a “course.” Lunch menus are all $12.50 per person, while dinner menus are either $25 or $35.
Most restaurants choose to offer an appetizer, main and dessert, though there's quite a few that offer beer, wine or liquor as a “course.” Restaurants that offer alcohol during this deal are usually at the top of my list to visit, just because I feel like I'm getting a great value for my money, especially for lunch. So if you're anything like me, I'll help you narrow down your choices. Here are all the restaurants offering alcohol on their menus:
Ale Asylum Riverhouse: White Russian for dessert, dinner only
Club Charlie's: Bloody Mary, martini flight, naughty girl scout mini martini for lunch; glass of wine and naughty girl scout mini martini for dinner
Indulge: Glass of sparkling wine or moscato, dinner only
Onesto: Choice of 4 wines, dinner only
Rock Bottom Brewery: 20-ounce house beer, lunch and dinner
Smoke Shack: Beer, Texas mule or Jack & Jill cocktail, dinner only
Swig: Choice of 4 wines, dinner only
The Brass Alley: Hurricane and frozen Irish coffee, lunch and dinner
Loaded Slate: Choice of 8 draft beers or craft cocktails, dinner only
Pub Club: Choice of 17 tap beers or house wine, lunch and dinner
Upper 90 Sports Pub: Mini pitcher of tap beer, dinner only
Vagabond: Classic margarita, dinner only
Water Buffalo: Tap beer or choice of 3 wines, dinner only
As you can see, Club Charlie's is again this year's alcohol offerings winner, with a full “liquid lunch” menu. I've done that menu once, and I suggest taking the rest of the afternoon off work if you're planning on trying it. (Or, go with your boss, if you work at that kind of office!)
Even if you're not tempted by the alcohol offerings, there's plenty of great deals to be had. This is the perfect time to try restaurants you've always been meaning to, but just haven't gotten the chance yet. My suggestions:
Coquette Cafe: Dinner offers French classics coq au vin, a red wine chicken stew, and ouefs a la neige, big fluffy meringue clouds floating in crème anglaise.
Kiku: The lunch menu offers a great bargain for sushi lovers. Choose an app (goyza, edamame, spring roll or seaweed salad) plus either a packed bento box, sushi or sashimi platter. Coconut or mango cake for dessert.
Louise's: Tenderloin carpaccio crostini, jumbo shrimp pasta and chocolate lasagna seem like a great value for $25 dinner.
Mader's: This is your chance to try their signature sauerbraten, jagr schnitzel and strudel for lunch.
Pier 106: Get a whole 1-pound lobster, plus a seafood app for $35 dinner.
Rodizio Grill: Because this is an all-you-can-eat restaurant, you basically get their normal offerings, just at a discounted price. If you're a meat lover, get your reservation in early, if they haven't filled up already.
Downtown Dining Week's website includes a PDF file of every menu in one place so you can browse and decide where to go.
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