Milwaukee’s Downtown Hilton ChopHouse Is Abuzz

Milwaukee ChopHouse is the only Downtown steakhouse that has its own beehives on its rooftop, making honey for special menu items.

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Let’s Eat!

Did you know that Milwaukee’s Downtown Hilton is the largest hotel in the state of Wisconsin? Inside, it features a cafe, two restaurants and two concierge Mini Goldendoodles. Milwaukee ChopHouse at 633 N. Fifth St. is anything but a hotel restaurant. It is another notable Downtown steakhouse within walking distance from the conference center. And it is the only one that has its own beehives on its rooftop, making honey for special menu items.

I had the unique opportunity to meet the bees and the man who keeps them across the county, Robert McKinney of MJD Apiary. I’m not someone who is particularly afraid of bees, but I wouldn’t say I seek them out. However, I have always wanted to get up close and personal with them to better understand the species that’s so essential to our everyday lives. And Robert was filled with knowledge and ready to answer any of my questions. But that’s for another article, another time. Today was about the many honey products he sells and the menu items at ChopHouse that feature them.

Walking into the Hilton, I can honestly say I have somehow never been in this hotel before, and I’ve been in a lot of them around town. After further discussion, I realized I had been at the once-upon-a-time waterpark that is still there but defunct. The lobby is very art deco, and you can feel how massive the building is above you when in the restaurant Downstairs. Currently, the hotel is under renovation and will present a more modern feel once all is said and done. ChopHouse feels like a quintessential steakhouse, ready for fine dining, business meetings and nights out for good food and drinks.

Buzzworthy Dishes

I sat in the bar area for my mid-afternoon sampling of their buzzworthy dishes like their elevated Curated Chef Cheese Plate, Breaded Cauliflower and Brussels Sprouts, alongside a honey-infused Four Roses Bourbon Arnold Palmer. To be honest, these are dishes I normally glance over because you see them everywhere. However, after chef de cuisine Brandon Julien explained how honey was incorporated into each dish, it really brought my day full circle.

The cheese plate came with an actual honeycomb served in the middle of the crackers, fruit, nuts and cheese. It’s not hard to find a good one of these around town, but this one is the best I’ve had in a long time. The Brussels sprouts would certainly be an excellent (and healthy) side option to any steak on the menu. But it was the Breaded Cauliflower (served as a starter) with local lemon-infused honey, chili crunch, remoulade and shaved asiago cheese that will have me going back into the ChopHouse sometime very soon. Each piece was perfectly breaded, and the cauliflower was not overly cooked inside. The plate was drizzled in a spicy honey and aioli with microgreens and cheese on top for the perfect flavors in every bite.

ChopHouse also features weekly specials if you’re looking for something other than their white tablecloth steakhouse menu.

  • Wine Wednesdays: 50% off bottles under $100 and 25% off bottles $100 and up.
  • Dinner for Two every Thursday: For $150, enjoy your choice of an appetizer, two soup or salad dishes, two entrees, a trio of sides and a dessert. Add a bottle of house wine for $40.
  • Martini Fridays: Enjoy 50% off featured martinis every Friday. Some of the featured martinis include classic or dirty martini with Leap Vodka or New Amsterdam Gin, espresso martini, Cosmo, Empress sorbet martini and others.
  • Tuesday through Friday from 5-7 p.m. come in for great happy hour specials: $3 beers, $4 cocktails and $5 wines
  • This summer (June through August) enjoy a four-course prix fixe menu that highlights the bold, seasonal flavors for $45. Start with the breaded cauliflower, then a choice of soup du jour or a salad, before a delicious entrée and choice of dessert.

If you haven’t been to ChopHouse, take this as a sign to stop in and see what the buzz is about. Pop into the hotel lobby to see the two Concierge Mini Golden Doodles named Sadie and Millie and have a look at a piece of Wisconsin’s architectural history.