Photo Credit: Jean-Gabriel Fernandez
The rainbow crosswalk at Cathedral Square.
With the single digit and negative temperatures over Valentine’s Day weekend in the midst of the pandemic, a lot of social media posters reveled in their romantic dinners at home. Some even listed wine or cocktail pairings. Meanwhile, despite the climatic and health constraints, brave souls on the Milwaukee Foodie social media page asked for V-Day restaurant.
They all reminded me of the heyday of LGBTQ eateries. Those were the days when going to most straight places as an out and amorous same-sex couple could result in an uncomfortable experience and making reservations on V-Day was not even an option. Mercifully, there were “gay-friendly” places, some of which were gay owned, but it was usually easiest to simply dine at one of several LGBTQ owned and operated restaurants that catered specifically to the community clientele. They ranged from fine-ish down-home dining to grittier, after-hours haunts where, rather than the food, the customers created both the attraction and the ambiance. Most opened during the post-Stonewall era and many remained in business for a decade or longer. Nearly all were located in the precincts of the Walker’s Point gayborhood. Today, only one remains.
Perhaps the most famous, the Glass Menagerie, began as a soup and sandwich place known as the Sideboard in 1977. It officially opened under its familiar name in 1983. For over two decades it remained the go-to dining destination. Located in the M&M Club at the corner of Water and Erie Streets, its atrium setting looked out onto an enclosed patio and provided a perfect venue for a congenial and quiet lunch or a raucous traditional Friday fish fry. I used to go solo on off nights to finish up work over dinner. One felt a certain comfort in its familiar environment where everyone knew your name (and, no doubt, reputation). That, along with its menu, continued to attract crowds until its closing in 2006.
Last Call
For a dozen years beginning in 1986, Walker’s Point Café beckoned those weren’t ready to call it a night after last call. The 3 a.m. crowd of drag queens, hustlers and sundry characters, now under relatively bright light, became legend. My own recollection, blurred by time and the blur at the time, is vague at best.
The lesbian owned Out ‘N About at Greenfield Avenue and First Street became a popular destination as both a bar and a restaurant after its launch in 2003. Its menu tended to expand and contract over the venue’s near decade long history. Sadly, its identity as an all-inclusive yet lesbian, bar yet restaurant proved an untenable business model. It closed in 2012.
The Tazzbah Bar & Grille on West Pierce Avenue and 16th Street was also a late comer to the scene, opening, late in 2004. I recall going there on numerous occasions and loving the atmosphere and food. But its far afield location (in practical bar hopping terms) from the throbbing heart of the gayborhood was its undoing. It lasted less than three years.
Downtown, located in the Hotel Wisconsin lobby, Café Melange lasted a decade. The in-house band, the John Schneider Orchestra, gave the venue a unique cabaret character. Sadly, the hotel was sold in 1997 and forced its untimely demise.
Best Biscuits
In 2010 the Hybrid Lounge was among the last gay bars to appear on the Milwaukee scene. Located on the corner of Brady Street and Van Buren Avenue, it also had a kitchen that served a basic menu of high quality bar food. I swear it made the best biscuits and gravy in town. Despite its popularity and prime Eastside location on the edge of bustling Brady Street, Hybrid closed in 2017.
Today, only La Cage’s souterrain restaurant LVL Bistro remains. It began as Grubb’s Pub in 1992 and still boasts an excellent fish fry.
There were others, of course. Their stories can be found on Milwaukee’s LGBTQ history website. Certainly many of us have fond memories of those good ol’ days of dining amongst our own. It’s a testament to our activism that we can now go pretty much anywhere as a couple or party of 10 and feel welcomed (sort of). At the same time, though, that freedom has undone the LGBTQ restaurant scene. To be honest, call me maudlin, but it’s just not the same.
