Famous Pub Burger, McGinty Burger and Belfast Burger (l-r)
There’s beauty in the flexibility of a hamburger. While traditionalists stick to their all-beef patties, cheese, tomato and lettuce, innovators push the boundaries with deliciously peculiar ingredients and toppings. Most of the restaurants that chose to participate in this year’s Milwaukee Burger Week fall into the latter category. These burgers run the gamut with traditional beef, lamb and even a plant-based “impossible” patty. Toppings include kimchi, Tzatziki sauce and brisket. And with 12 participating restaurants, you could try a new one (or two…or three…) every day.
Burger Week kicks off with a party on Monday, May 14, at presenting sponsor Mulligans Irish Pub & Grill (8933 S. 27th St., Franklin), and most importantly, participating restaurants will donate $1 to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin for every specialty burger sold during the week.
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1
Café Benelux
Burger Week Special: Lamburger | All-lamb patty served with red onion, tomatoes, organic arugula and, for a touch of Greece, Tzatziki sauce.
Sometimes on summer weekends, Café Benelux is so crowded that seats can’t be found—not in the expansive dining room wrapped around the bar, the two sidewalk dining areas or even the rooftop restaurant. True to its name, Benelux’s kitchen has a Low Countries (Belgium-Netherlands-Luxembourg) accent, infusing American comfort food with a touch of Western Europe. Most of the burgers on the regular menu are large mouthfuls of juicy delight with grilled, grass-fed Angus patties smothered in brie or gouda and served on an appropriately named kloud bun. Don’t overlook the 48-page bier menu. (David Luhrssen)
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2
Centraal Grand Café & Tappery
Burger Week Special: Kimpossible Burger | Vegan burger patty with house-made Korean barbecue sauce and kimchi on a vegan pretzel bun.
An inspired beer selection (make that bier selection) is only one reason Café Centraal has become a favorite spot on a Bay View corner crowded with excellent options for lunch or dinner. Aside from sidewalk dining and a courtyard out back in warm weather, the Euro-looking restaurant has an excellent menu than spans the globe from Cajun country to sushi land with many vegetarian options. Veggie burgers can easily be found nowadays around Milwaukee, but Centraal’s vegan burger is a rare delight. (Morton Shlabotnik)
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Café Hollander
Burger Week Special: Pyong Yum | Beef burger prepared with sweet and sour kimchi and Korean barbecue sauce.
As the original Lowlands grand café, Café Hollander on Milwaukee’s East Side paved the way for what has become an ever-expanding regional empire of European-inspired bars and restaurants. It may be surprising, then, that the inspiration for their Milwaukee Burger Week specialty burger, the Pyong Yum, comes from Korea. Topped with sweet and sour kimchi and a Korean barbecue sauce, this burger has a tasty, unique flavor that is worthy of Winter Olympic gold. (Rob Hullum)
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4
Dr. Dawg
Burger Week Special: Bleu Cowboy | Prime Angus burger cooked to order with bleu cheese, caramelized onion, Nueske’s applewood smoked bacon and chipotle aioli.
It’s more than a hot dog joint and it has a motto: “Comfort food with a natural twist.” Dr. Dawg, located in Glendale Market, is a quality fast-food sandwich restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating. The doctor goes out of its way to be inventive. In addition to authentic Chicago-style dogs, they carry char-grilled burgers, Italian sausage, veggie sausage, Vienna beef franks, hand-cut skin-on fries and more. The burgers are available in one-third and two-third pound options; the major twist at Dr. Dawg is that their prime-grade meats are fresh, with no hormones, antibiotics, preservatives or trans fats included. (Danielle Stevens)
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Maison
5921 W Vliet St, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53208Burger Week Special: Bistro Burger | House-ground ribeye and Usinger’s bacon with caramelized onion relish, smoked white cheddar, arugula, cornichons and aioli on a house-made bun.
Bienvenu à la maison means “Welcome Home” in French. Opened last year in Washington Heights, Maison is housed in the former Meritage Restaurant. Although the layout is the same, the modern bistro décor has been updated with light-colored walls and a newly refaced bar. Chef and owner Michael Quinn brings his talent for French cuisine, creating thoughtful, modern takes on classic French bistro food while paying homage to the former Meritage and its patrons. For Burger Week, he has created a special hamburger like no other this side of Marseille. (Alisa Malavenda)
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6
Mason Street Grill
Burger Week Special: Mason Street Grill Burger | Ten ounce Black Angus chuck and sirloin covered in honey glazed onions, Muenster cheese and house burger relish.
Ensconced in the elegant Pfister Hotel, the Mason Street Grill is a welcoming, wood-bedecked space for full-course dining or a burger and fries. Their lunch menu boasts a variety of different sandwiches and burgers—from the Maryland Crab Cake Sandwich to the Black Bean Burger and from Southern Fried Chicken to the "Milly" Shaved Steak Sandwich. The Mason Street Grill Burger (available for both lunch and dinner), is a juicy and generous 10-ounce Black Angus chuck and sirloin patty, grilled to order, topped with honey-glazed onions, Muenster cheese and house burger relish. (John Jahn)
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7
Miller Time Pub
Burger Week Special: Chile Burger | Two smashed patties with pickled jalapenos, habanero giardiniera, pepper jack cheese, chipotle mayonnaise and iceberg lettuce. Spice alert!
Located in the middle of Downtown, Miller Time Pub embraces one of Milwaukee’s most ubiquitous namesakes: Miller beer. And few things better pair with the blue collar beverage of choice than a juicy, cheesy burger. Miller Time Pub excels at both the basics and the creative. Their Classic is no more than two patties, cheese, onions, lettuce and tomato; the creative option is the seared Ginger Time Turkey Burger, which features a spicy cabbage slaw, cilantro and ginger soy mayo. (Rob Hullum)
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8
Mulligan's Irish Pub & Grill
Burger Week Specials: Famous Pub Burger | Jumbo Black Angus burger served with American cheese, lettuce, dill pickle slices and tomato on a brioche roll. McGinty Burger | Their famous pub burger topped with tasty house-made corned beef, Swiss cheese and Thousand Island dressing. Belfast Burger | An eight-ounce Black Angus burger topped with Irish Rasher bacon, Irish cheddar, sautéed mushrooms and black and tan onion rings.
For the hamburger lover in all of us, Mulligans Irish Pub offers nine burgers and sandwiches that will more than sate your appetite. Burger Week attendees will be lucky enough to be able to bite into three different Mulligans stand-bys, all of them savory and unique. At the restaurant, all burgers come with your choice of fries, house-made potato chips, cup of soup or house slaw. (John Jahn)
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9
Points East Pub
Burger Week Special: Breakfast Burger | Hamburger topped with hash browns, fried egg, bacon and fried onions.
The first thing everyone thinks about when they hear Points East is wings. How could you not? The delicious, no-frills grilled wings have won numerous Best of Milwaukee awards over the years. But an underrated menu item at the East Side pub is the hamburger. This specialty Breakfast Burger comes with hash browns, fried egg, bacon and fried onions. And if you actually eat it for breakfast, you can always come back later and get the wings! (Rob Hullum)
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Riverwest Filling Station
Burger Week Special: The Meatwad | A half-pound of hand-pattied, charbroiled hamburger, with a quarter pound of shaved, house-smoked brisket, mushrooms, onions and fontina cheese, topped with tiger sauce.
Industrial, avant-garde and full of beer, Riverwest Filling Station fits its neighborhood like a glove. Lunch, dinner and brunch menus are an eclectic mix of Middle Eastern flavors, vegetarian dishes and sandwiches. Five specialty burgers are offered, including the namesake Filling Station Burger. But their Burger Week special is something enticingly dubbed The Meatwad. It consists of piles of shaved, smoked brisket on top of a burger patty, along with mushrooms, onions, fontina and tiger sauce. (Lacey Muszynski)
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SafeHouse
Burger Week Special: The Double Agent | Two all-beef patties, American cheese and sautéed red onions on marble rye. Naturally, the burger sauce is top secret.
The spy-themed bar and restaurant was bought by the Marcus Corporation three years ago, and it almost immediately received a facelift from the hospitality giant. Six different burgers are now on the menu, with the MOAB (Mother Of All Burgers) being the biggest and baddest of them all. American cheese, bacon, an over-easy egg and secret sauce combine with the SafeHouse’s locally sourced beef patties for a dining experience that lives up to its name. But any SafeHouse burger that makes an appearance at Burger Week is sure to be a palate pleaser! (Rob Hullum)
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The Wicked Hop
Burger Week Special: Blackened Fajita Burger | Fajita veggies and pepperjack cheese with roasted jalapenos, fresh guacamole, jalapeno Cajun mayo and applewood smoked bacon.
Located at the corner of Sunday Brunch and Bloody Mary, The Wicked Hop is a destination point in the Third Ward. The Hop has often been honored by Shepherd Express readers for its elaborate Bloody Mary, which could almost serve as a meal in itself. But if you’re still hungry, the Hop serves some of the area’s best bar food, including—of course—the build-your-own burgers constructed with an array of tasty choices stacked on a half-pound of fire-grilled ground beef. (Morton Shlabotnik)
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