Photo by Jenny Maurer
Tulip Tavern in Racine
The Tulip Tavern in Racine, Wisconsin (2026)
2026 has been a big year for Racine so far: as chronicled in the debut installment of this feature back in March there has been a big boom of hobby stores, consignment shops and various restaurants across the city. There has been such a boost in new stores and restaurants that another installment was destined to be written. We will touch on four restaurants on Sixth Street and two around Third Street offer a variety of intellectually intimate experiences from learning about Armenian culture to relaxing with an iced coffee and a good book.
Sixth Street
We can begin with Vero’s Tea Room, located at 209 Sixth Street. Opening in May of this year, Vero’s Tea Room is a business revival for Veronica Carver, the owner of the former Vero’s International Cuisine which was lost in a 2024 fire. She told TMJ4 her goal with this new café was to “Create that third space for people.” Walking into the café, the atmosphere certainly meets that aim: it is spacious and quiet, invoking a French café in the 1920s.
Customers are welcome to choose from a counter display of assorted sweets or a menu that includes crepes both sweet and savory, the ever-present avocado toast and traditional cucumber sandwiches. The coffee and tea options are equally eclectic with current flavors including root beer and Moroccan mint.
Recommendations for a casual lunch include the aforementioned cucumber sandwiches which are small, crisp and refreshing on a warm summer day and the sweet, smooth caramel iced coffee. Customers visiting the city with a group may wish to reserve a spot for the “Kiwi Full Tea Service” which includes assorted tea sandwiches, two scones and a dessert for $40. The popularity of this service means that guests must make reservations the day before. Vero’s Tea Room is open on weekends and Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
For those looking for a quiet, casual place to have a sandwich or coffee, Js on the Go is your best bet. After helping her father run the community staple Super Mercado Jimenez for 16 years, Bianca Jimenez was inspired to start her own business.
After three years of planning and determining a location, Js on the Go opened in late May of this year at 312 Sixth Street. It offers a variety of savory and sweet breakfast and lunch items in a vast, welcoming environment. Two of the most popular items are the mixed berry granola parfait, which is currently sold out, and the cortado, an espresso mixed with warm milk. Two other notable underrated items are the ham and cheese sandwich with garlic aioli and the peach white mocha latte with cold foam.
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Another distinctive feature is the sheer size of the place. While the downstairs seating area is spacious and peaceful, perfect for a casual lunch patron or student working on a paper, the upstairs is devoted to a large reading room (with books donated from the Vintage and Modern Books store) and a still-developing media center. The aim is to establish a vintage media room with a record player and VCR as well as opening a podcast room for people to start their own broadcasts. Overall, Js on the Go is on the road to Jiminez’s goal of “providing the space for the community,” as she told the Racine Journal Times. It’s worth a trip for the food and observing a great institution in the making. Js on the Go is open Mondays through Saturdays, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
Photo by Jenny Maurer
Dragon Pitt BBQ - Racine
The interior of Dragon Pitt BBQ in Racine, Wisconsin (2026)
Right next door to Js on the Go, at 322 Sixth Street, is the old new establishment, Dragon Pitt BBQ. The business started during the 2020 pandemic when self-taught chef Emerson Holliday moved from Racine brunch staple The Maple Table to starting his own restaurant out of The Branch on Washington Avenue.
After promoting his cuisine for three years via his food truck and trusty smoker, Holliday finally opened Dragon Pitt BBQ in October 2024. The space is both casual and elegant; the red and black hues on the walls and stained-glass backdrop of the bar lend an art deco night club feel with the menu both diverse and familiar. Holliday’s biggest influences are barbecue, southern cuisine and soul food: this is apparent on the menu where pulled pork sandwiches, brisket tips, and collard greens sit side by side in harmony. The food is subtly strong in flavor with the help of seasonings such as dry rub, a combination of salt, spices, and herbs that are applied to raw meat before cooking, and spices such as the Caribbean Jerk seasoning which contains pimento, thyme, and scotch bonnet peppers.
You get a nice meal and a small cooking lesson at a good price. Dragon Pitt BBQ is open Wednesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.
The final stop for this section is The Tulip Tavern at 509 Sixth Street. Opened in June of 2025, this modest and relaxing cocktail bar is run by Tracy and Larry Shepherd who travelled the world before setting up bars in Los Angeles and Racine. The influence of their travels can be found in the menu which offers Italian and Spanish Spritzers along with their new food truck, open Thursdays through Saturdays, which offers items such as Thai pork kebabs with tamarind sauce and Lemon feta chickpea salad. The diverse range of foods is paired with a mix of relaxing and fun features: there’s a working skeeball game in the corner along with a spacious and sunny patio in the back. The tavern is expanding its offerings too: they’ve been holding bingo nights on the first and third Thursday of each month along with a trivia night on the second and last Thursday of each month, respectively. With good food and an easygoing atmosphere, The Tulip Tavern is worth a summer weeknight visit. The Tulip Tavern is open on Saturdays from 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Sundays from 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays from 3-10 p.m. and Fridays from 2 p.m.-12 a.m.
Main Street
Photo by Jenny Maurer
hye ground cafe - Racine
Hye Ground Cafe in Racine, Wisconsin (2026)
Around the corner and three blocks north from the Sixth Street restaurants, you’ll find Hye Ground Café at 321 Main Street. Opened in February of this year, the owners, Ari Antressian and Melanie Buchaklian were influenced by their Armenian heritage and experience with community activism, Antressian being a previous member of the immigration activist group Voces de la Frontera, before he started a coffee business.
Hye Ground Café is cozy, quiet and adorned with Armenian culture décor such as an Armenian phone book and distinct rug patterns. The menu is small and robust with fruit smoothies and traditional coffee along with samples of Armenian cuisines such as bagels with basturma, a spiced cured beef and choreg, a sweet bread. The main attraction is Armenian coffee, a finely ground coffee prepared with an electric burner and a small sand pit behind the counter. The coffee is brewed at a gentle boil in order for thick and foamy cream to form on the surface. It is a small cup but well worth the taste.
New features include a coffee ground donation box for fertilizing gardens and another Armenian pastry known as a nazook, a pastry made of flour, sour cream and yeast that is often filled with fruit or nuts. The owners told the Racine County Eye that they hope to “create a comfortable space that meets the community’s needs” along with educating people about Armenian culture. With the daily amount of people that come through, it is safe to say they’ve succeeded. Hye Ground Café is open Mondays through Saturdays from 7 a.m.-3 p.m.
Third Street
Photo by Jenny Maurer
Busias XOXO - Racine
Busias XOXO in Racine, Wisconsin (2026)
The final place we’ll be featuring is Busias XOXO at 210 Third Street. Opened in November of 2025, this cottage like store, named after the Polish word for “grandmother” doubles as a craft store and bakery. The interior is a little snug yet it’s clear there’s a passion for the city’s crafting community and Wisconsin’s East European heritage history. The owner, Amy Valukas, aims to share her family’s Polish heritage through selling baked goods such as the cream filled and sugar powdered kolazcki and the iconic pierogi.
The bakery even has theme weeks with the cookies, two of the most recent being “Summerween” (Halloween iconography in beach wear) and Shark week (Shark shaped cookies with gray blue frosting). The store also has artistic wares, selling handmade crafts from local artists and hosting monthly classes in collage making or cookie decorating. The store is passionate about bringing out the artists and artistic patrons in the Racine populace.
Much like the Hye Ground Café, Busias’ XOXO provides a safe haven not only for the community at large but also for the owners to celebrate their heritage. Busia’s XOXO is open Wednesdays through Fridays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sundays from 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
With this second installment, the theme uniting these places has turned more inward. It’s more than about sole sharing themselves with the world: it’s about creating a space to artistically express themselves and through providing accessible, personal spaces, inspiring others to find their passion in life. Whether it’s an artist selling wares at Busias XOXO, learning about cooking at Dragon Pitt BBQ, or just making friends at The Tulip Tavern, these institutions ensure Racine has a place for everyone.
