Shorewood’s Cloud Red is Abuzz

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Again, I’m seemingly the last one to another great dining experience in Milwaukee—this time, it’s Cloud Red at 4488 N. Oakland Avenue in Shorewood. For years, I’ve been hearing about this place, knowing a lot of my Bay View friends venture north for dinner whenever they can. Mainly, I’ve heard about their famous Brussels sprouts dish and great cocktails.  

A dear friend of mine lives just down the street from Cloud Red and she finally got me to take the dive. It was a lovely Thursday night with perfect Milwaukee summer weather, so the restaurant was packed with all the doors and windows open to enjoy every second of it. The concept is to order at the bar, take a number, and your food is brought to you. It’s sort of like a fast-casual setup with finer dining menu options—perfect for the bustling Whitefish Bay/Shorewood crowd of young families and professionals. The age range was anyone from babies to grandparents, all seeming like they’d been there before. Their tagline “Your neighborhood social house” definitely reigns true. 

Since it was my first time and my friend had been a thousand times before, we agreed to let the bartender order for us so whatever came to the table was a surprise. Unfortunately, the Brussels sprouts did not grace our table, but honestly, I was fine with that. I like them, but they’re not my go-to choice when on a menu. Instead, we had their chips and homemade salsa, buffalo cauliflower, Thai Chopped Salad 2.0 with chicken, steak sandwich, and giant spring roll with chicken. For two people, this was an insane amount of food, but we welcomed it.  

Packed with Flavor

The buffalo cauliflower was definitely a favorite when you looked around at other tables. I absolutely adored the Thai Chopped Salad 2.0 with chicken. As we know, I have serious qualms with the Milwaukee salad scene, and this was one I would go to the burbs to get again. The steak sandwich was packed with flavor and was not heavy at all. The spring roll was the last thing to come out and we didn’t have enough room in our stomachs to attack the beast so that was split between us to eat the next day.  

The bartender was right, everything you order at Cloud Red is good the next day. Oh, and as far as the bar goes, it’s an extensive list of premium cocktails, beers and wine selections. If you’re just there for a drink, you’ll be more than satisfied, but you should definitely get something to eat while you’re there. We each tried one of their Thai cocktails and both were fabulous.  

Once we were done with our meal, it was a quick exit after paying our tab at the bar. On the same Shorewood block, there are about three or four different spots for an aperitif, and we ended up down the street at Scout for a final glass of wine. It’s a great wine store and bar if you want to take something home with you after Cloud Red. Now I know why this place is so addicting and people seem to go multiple times a month. I certainly will be back for much, much more.