Wonderland Brings a Fun Ride of Flavors to Riverwest

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The late Anthony Bourdain once said, “Your body is not a temple, it’s an amusement park. Enjoy the ride.” Entrepreneur Don Krause kept that in mind while crafting the concept for Wonderland, his new diner featuring a diverse menu of scratch-made comfort foods. The name is a nod to the former Wonderland Amusement Park that operated in Milwaukee during the early 1900s, where Hubbard Park is now located.

Many people know Krause from Art*Bar, his successful Riverwest establishment. He always wanted to bring food into the Art*Bar experience, and in 2007, he learned the owners of neighboring West Bank Café (where Wonderland is now located) had planned to retire. His vision to buy that building was put on hold by the ’08 recession, but by spring 2015, the deal had been completed. Then, the renovations began.

“It was a daunting experience,” Krause reflects. “The building is more than 100 years old, and there were major foundation issues.” Throw in a bad renovation job done during the ’70s, outdated plumbing and electricity and surprises in the upstairs apartments (such as a dumbwaiter hidden behind drywall) and Krause had his work cut out for him.

Today, the Wonderland building boasts a new kitchen, all new electrical work, plumbing, hardwood floors, LED lighting and two modern luxury apartments above the restaurant. “Every square inch was redesigned and redone,” Krause emphasizes. A new side room that joins the Art*Bar and Wonderland can be used for restaurant overflow or bar events.

After four years of construction—along with an arduous process of legally joining two buildings together for licensing, tax and insurance purposes—Krause opened Wonderland’s doors on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2020. “Now it’s done, and we can move on with the creative side, which is feeding people.”

Scratch-made Food in a Comforting Ambiance

Wonderland greets visitors with warm, vintage décor and fun, diner-esque touches, such as an art piece featuring Elsie the Cow (a cartoon cow developed as a mascot for the Borden Dairy Company in 1936). Krause says it was an old enamel sign that came off the side of a Borden truck, and a local artist added neon accents. The two-sided “DINER” sign above the door, which Krause says came from western Pennsylvania, is another Americana gem.

Krause brought in veteran chefs Matt Mudler and Nick Westphal, both of whom had worked at Comet Café and are Riverwest residents. “They were my right hand and left hand on this project,” Krause notes. They started with 12 diner menu staples and put their own craft spin on them. “We didn’t want to be restrained by the diner concept, but we wanted it to be our foundation for what comfort food is,” Krause says.

He assures that nothing, not even sauces or gravy, comes from a box or a can. Meats, such as chicken and ham, are roasted on site, and burgers are made fresh. Vegan options, like lentil patties, are homemade. Krause observes that people are making their way around the menu and trying different things each time they come in. Hits so far include eggs benedict with pulled ham; biscuits and gravy; and chicken and waffles topped with jalapeño strips that balance heat with the sweet, salty, savory and spicy flavor combinations in the dish.

Dinner favorites include meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy; there’s also a vegan lentil version served with mashed potatoes made with coconut milk. Their flavorful mushroom gravy is used on both vegan and non-vegan dishes.

Other popular items include the Dream Burger and the Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich. Wonderland even makes their own hot sauce from roasted peppers ground in a mortar and pestle. “It has the right amount of kick,” Krause remarks. “If you’re going to make something and call it spicy, you’d better make the person cry a little bit, otherwise you’re just teasing them.”