St. Francis' new Attebury's Pub, which opens this week in the former Carleton Grange Pub at 3807 S. Packard Ave., promises to be a beer-lover's bar, with 24 tappers including five or six rotating seasonal barrels. Many of those beers will be put to use in beer cocktails, says co-owner Andrew Maricle, who also co-owns the Palms Bistro and Bar in the Third Ward, and some of them will also work their way into the kitchen menu. Among the items Palms chef Dean Brazaitis has created for Attebury's are a beer mac and cheese, with thick-cut bacon and a sauce made from dark and light beer, and English nachosthick-cut potatoes and pulled lamb with a Guinness and onion sauce.
"I wasn't well versed in English food because, honestly, it's not very exciting," Brazaitis says. "So we wanted to put a fresh, higher-end twist on pub fare, while still including staples like shepherd's pie and curry fries."
The menu will also feature steamed mussels, portabella fries and a variety of burgers and wood-fired pizzas, as well as adventurous entrées including seafood penne pasta in a sauce made with cream and Bloody Mary mix.
Elsewhere on the county's South Side, Milwaukee's Irish pub boom continues with Lucky's Irish Pub and Grill, 789 W. Layton Ave., in a one-time Sizzler location that has since housed the Stone Sword, Bigalke's and Brisco County. Lucky's will make better use of the building's large kitchen than those establishments, co-owner Bill Norman says.
"Past operators have used it for limited menus of bar food, but we have a surprisingly extensive menu," Norman says. "All our appetizers are homemade, including the mozzarella sticks and the french fries, which we cut in-house. Being an Irish pub, we carry corned beef and cabbage every day, as well as shepherd's pie and fish and chips, and we are gaining a reputation for our Reuben. We also produce a lot of salads and pizzas. Our signature pizza includes chicken right off the rotisserie."
Lucky's hosts entertainment most nights of the week, including live music and trivia, and serves breakfast on Sundays. Breakfast will also be offered on St. Patrick's Day, when the restaurant opens at 9 a.m. n
