Bar Time Contest

After hundreds of votes and comments, Milwaukee Magazine staffers have come to a decision. We looked at the poll results, read each comment posted and spent some serious time analyzing who could really handle the daunting task of drinking (and writing) each week. Ultimately, we got greedy. There were so many great writers that we couldn’t pick just one. So we went with two… Michael Klecker (County Clare) and Rebecca Rinn (At Random) We are confident that Michael and Rebecca will bring much different takes to area establishments and will be highly entertaining along the way. Be sure to check back for their first official…

After several weeks and 19 official entries, Milwaukee Magazine staff has pared down hopefuls to a fantastic five. We took into account the writing quality, depth of reporting, creativity and overall wit. Now, we need your help. Of these five, who deserves the gig? Who do you want to read more from? And who should we rule out? You can only cast one vote, but all comments will be carefully read and taken into account. Good luck, finalists, and happy voting, Bar Time readers. 1. Spell of the Iron Horse by Kate Clark 2. Foundation by Nick Kotecki 3. At Random by Rebecca Rinn 4.…

Koz’s Mini Bowl (2078 S. 7th St) is a quintessential Southside Milwaukee dive-bar: a kitschy, comfortable, cozy throwback situated on the corner of Becher and 7th, it’s the kind of joint you go to when you want to get away from the modern hipsters or the over-coiffed Taylor’s crowd. Wall décor is big on neon beer signs, stuffed taxidermy of questionable quality, and old farm implements. The old corner juke-box has enough predictable classics and popular tunes to please most Milwaukeeans and was the only means of background noise besides the Brewer’s game broadcast on a pair of flat-screen TV’s.…

By James Hill For this week’s journey into boozedom I grabbed Wife and took up root at Gee Williker’s Saloon at 2578 N Dousman St, Milwaukee in good ‘ole Riverwest. Corner of Clarke and Dousman if you’re familiar. And if you happen to love a Hole in the Wall as much as I do…you’ll fit right in. One pool table, a jukebox, and plenty of people willing to tell you their own embellished tales of victory, defeat, and the time they drank Robin Yount under the table at County Stadium. In a town full of neighborhood taverns hidden amongst residential…

By Joey Taylor What’s more fun than a glass of beer? TWO glasses of beer. On a trip to New York, one of the founders of the Milwaukee Brat House (1013 Old World Third Street) came across a bar that served its beer in pairs of mugs, rather than single glasses. How is it possible that we didn’t think of this in Brew City? Milwaukee may not have invented the paired beer, but the Brat House is doing its best to steal a great idea and make it our own. Here’s a new drinking custom I think Milwaukee can get…

By Derick Braun In rounded neon letters, the word “DANCING” shines from one of Mad Planet’s windows unto the southwest corner of Booth and Center Ave, beckoning all Riverwesters who crave a Friday Night Retro Dance Party and the nostalgic glamour that is naturally associated with the 80s and 90s. The building is unassuming; appearing more like a shack than hipster bar, but the ambiance inside is delicious kitsch. The bleak paintings of aliens, the dark mural walls, and multiple archways may suggest some campy mix of space mod and pseudo-emo chic which probably bears heavy on the eyes during…

By Liz Van Pay Small bars are a dime a dozen in Milwaukee, and most are downright forgettable. The scene plays out as it has so many times before: you walk in, grab a beer, and walk out – maybe you have a decent conversation with a stranger to pass time after a long work day or in an attempt to extend last night’s bender. At Bay View’s Blackbird Bar, leaving without a memorable experience and a smile on your face is not an option. Situated at 3007 South Kinnickinnic Avenue, it can be difficult to find unless you’re looking…

By John George Buchel 763 North Milwaukee Street Milwaukee, WI 53202-3715 (414) 276-9646 My Office is serious business. It’s been a bar since 1975, in a two-story building that’s been around since who-knows-when. It’s the best pool hall in town; the best juke box bar; the best sports bar; the best martini bar. But it’s none of those things. It’s a bar. My Office features an excellent staff anchored by Warren, the consummate bartender’s-bartender. Warren says, “I’ll be right with you,” and there he is, with a bottle in hand poised to refill your glass. When a hipster asks for…

By Ricardo Torres It has the appearance of being straight out of The Godfather with its a vintage looking 1920’s gangster style furniture and paintings of the old country, no customer is left unsatisfied at Papa’s Social Club on 7718 W. Burleigh. On most nights you’ll find Richard Heil a.k.a. Dickie, serving drinks with a bevy of attractive waitresses, or chatting with the regulars. One particular night at Papa’s I ran out of money, the drinking was over for the night, or so I thought. Dickie opens another bottle of beer and places it in front of me. I told…

By Michael Klecker Within the walls of pubs, we are all dreamers. We step through the portal, entering an institution designated for forgetting. We remember who we are, but only vaguely. We remember the world outside, but seen through a glass or a bottle. And we are all common here. No place is this felt more than the public house. And no public house more than the County Clare. It’s not nestled, like so many pubs, against the towering buildings that surround them. And it doesn’t sit upon a hill, overlooking a glen or a lake, like I imagine Irish…