Big changes are coming to Black Sheep Milwaukee (216 S. Second St.). Among those modifications already announced is a new management team, as well as a new chef — Justice Neal, formerly of now-defunct Walker’s Point restaurant Blue Jacket. Neal’s menu — a blend of small plates and “large, traditional entrées,” as described by managing partner Wes Shaver — is set to launch on Thursday, August 25. It continues to feature “haute” dogs, but includes more. Seasonal ingredients and local sourcing play a role. Look for a section of bar snacks, along with new dinner items such as house-made gnocchi with peas, green beans, radishes and herb butter; octopus with chorizo, fingerling potatoes, grilled frisée, candied lime and cilantro vinaigrette; and pork tenderloin with creamy polenta, green beans and rum-bacon vinaigrette.
Extended hours (starting Friday, Sept. 4) mean more choices as well. On the 4th, the restaurant starts its Friday-Sunday brunch (served from 10 a.m.). With it comes a larger brunch menu, including shrimp and grits, a breakfast dog (with bacon, scrambled eggs and maple syrup), and white Wisconsin cheese curds, which incorporate pancake batter, maple syrup and cheese curds.
Weekday hours, starting Sept. 7, are Mon-Thurs, from 4 p.m.
As for the team running Black Sheep these days, Shaver — who handles marketing for a handful of bar-restaurants including Trocadero and Red Lion Pub — partnered up with Mike Sorge (whose resume includes working for Hospitality Democracy, which operates AJ Bombers and Smoke Shack, among other restaurants).
