Jackie Dreyer

A quick game of word association will reveal that much like peanut butter is to jelly, German influence is to Milwaukee. Starting in the 1840s, floods of German immigrants made their way to Wisconsin—and Milwaukee, in particular—and settled down, largely thanks to cheap land and the exciting rush of liberation from their homeland. And if drawing connections between Germans and Milwaukeeans (which, in some cases, can be interchangeable) can amount to nothing more than the love of a good pint (or five), Von Trier helps make up the glue that holds that connection together. The history of the building in…

As the last few years have come and gone, a resurgence of small-scale establishments have come, too—and stayed, hopefully for good. Excelling in a particular food or drink style, they’ve taken their passion and run with it, and then they’ve shared it with us.   Take Café Corazón, for example: Located on the north side of Riverwest, it seems the Mexican bar and eatery has effortlessly crafted its décor, menu and ambiance to perfection. You know exactly what type of experience you’re in for as soon as you walk in the door. There may be a wait—because the place is delightfully…

If there is one thing to be said for Riverwest dive bars, it’s that the night of the week you decide to saddle up to the bar determines the type of night you’re in for. Now I mean this in the most loving way possible—as Riverwest is my neighborhood, and it is very near and dear to my heart—but let’s just say my experiences vastly differed at Bremen Café, located at the corner of North Bremen Street and East Clarke Street. Midweek, at a reasonable hour, you could call Bremen Café, dare I say, quiet, subdued even. Wednesdays are their…

There are bars located in Wisconsin, and then there are Wisconsin bars. What’s the difference you might ask? Let’s just say that the Wisconsin bars let their Wisconsin all hang out, proudly. Blackbird Bar, located at 3007 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. in Bay View, most certainly falls into the latter category. It’s safe to say that most bars in the Greater Milwaukee area pay tribute to Wisconsin breweries, old and new, but Blackbird Bar takes the cake. The interior of the bar is filled with more Blatz, Schlitz and Pabst memorabilia than any bar my eyes have ever beheld. Yet let…

Completing the quad of mainstay Bay View bars (including Club Garibaldi, the Cactus Club and At Random) in a two-block stretch of East Russell Avenue is Palomino Bar. Oddly enough, all the lip service I’ve heard paid to this establishment over the years has centered on its vegetarian and vegan-friendly dishes, not its drinks. This lady likes to eat, I’ll tell you that right now, but something stirred within me to take it as my personal mission to explore Palomino’s under-discussed drink menu. After a long, busy day of work, I dragged an equally-as-exhausted coworker into my car, and off…

Nestled into a residential stretch of Kinnickinnic Avenue, there is a place where few venture in unless otherwise previously told of its exact location—and it happens to be one of the best beer bars in the city. Truth be told, there’s no way I would’ve easily found The Palm Tavern if not for warnings given by friends and fellow craft beer lovers. One friend even told me he drove past the bar three times before and, on his fourth time around, someone stood outside and waved him in. With the exterior so noticeably lacking of any detail that would help…

  Imagine walking home from dinner with friends. As you near your front door, you’re not expecting to find much more upon entering than all your things exactly where you left them, except for the cat who has surely moved from her favorite chair in the corner to a more comfortable position on the blankets piled on the sofa. But what if it were close to your birthday, and your friends had planned a surprise party for you? You’d swing your front door wide to a room filled with your nearest and dearest, a bevy of themed decorations and, likely,…