First, the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, the flooding that devastated parts of the Milwaukee area in early August. It’s been a challenge, to say the least, for popular Bay View bar The Mothership since it opened its doors in 2019.
The bar, known for its quirky edge, reopened on Nov. 11 following a three-month closure due to extensive flood damage.
“It was bonkers. We ordered a normal week’s worth of inventory and completely sold out,” The Mothership owner Ricky Ramirez says of the response from patrons to the reopening. “People were really excited to get in here.”
Despite facing an array of challenges, The Mothership, on 2301 S. Logan Ave., has developed a loyal following since replacing Urban Bay View.
But the flooding came close to dealing a fatal blow, with reopening seeming to be a nearly impossible endeavor at times over the past several weeks, according to Ramirez.
In a social media post at the time, he noted that the heavy rains caused considerable damage.
“We lost total capability to operate on Aug. 10 because our entire basement was flooded,” Ramirez explains. “Not having a functional basement is pretty much the worst thing that can happen to a business like ours.”
The bar lost its HVAC system, cooling for its upstairs area, wireless capabilities, sound equipment, a water heater, the prep area for its craft cocktails and an estimated $90,000 worth of inventory.
After an extended period without electricity, the next step after power was restored was to clean everything in the bar’s lower level.
A new walk-in cooler was purchased for more than $30,000 and replacing the HVAC system cost “several thousand dollars.” A pair of ice machines, a culinary centrifuge, and a recently replaced tap system added almost $40,000 more to the bill.
“There are still some invoices lying around. We’re not even at the final number yet,” he said.
Business interruption and general insurance, totaling about $50,000, only covered a portion of the costs.
Ramirez seriously considered not reopening The Mothership.
“I consider myself a pretty lucky person, and I had just never been handed so much bad news constantly, even up to a few days before we reopened. It was insane how many times the city or a contractor would come by and give us bad news,” he says. “Until one of our employees started a GoFundMe, I was 90% certain this was too big of a challenge to reopen.”
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“I put my house on the line to open this place. I’m not an investor that owns a bar. I’ve been a bartender since I was in my early 20s,” Ramirez continues. “It’s what I’ve done my whole life and [when] I had an opportunity to open my own place, people around the city embraced it.”
Yet, financial issues have constantly threatened The Mothership’s existence.
“It’s hard because we had COVID right after we opened. We were only open about 10 months and we had to shut down,” Ramirez said. “My house has gone under foreclosure for stuff like this. I didn’t pay myself that whole first year we were open, and I wasn’t eligible for any assistance. I got myself out of the hole.”
After reopening when the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown ended, Ramirez got creative and expanded The Mothership’s drink program and other offerings.
Then the flood hit.
“It just feels like every time we’ve had the opportunity to show off what we’re capable of doing the rug gets pulled from underneath us, and we have to start all over again,” Ramirez says. “That’s kind of where we’re at right now. The people in the neighborhood and all over the city is what props us up. If it wasn’t for our customers, I would have just given up and found a new job.”
Neighboring bar owners also stepped up with support.
“There was a raffle that the Newport set up with its sister bar Creed’s Foggy Dew, along with Club Garibaldi, The Vanguard, The Wiggle Room and Blackbird Bar. And the Cactus Club hosted us for a pop-up so our staff could make some cash. We really felt the love throughout the neighborhood.”
Bar operators from outside the Milwaukee area also kicked in.
“Our friends in Madison, Public Parking, threw us a bunch of money from their first-year anniversary party. Even our friends in Chicago, Long Room, had a night where they donated a bunch of money from their sales to us,” Ramirez adds. “It was just a lot of love from all over the place.”
Creative cocktails continue to be The Mothership’s focus after its reopening, though the bar also offers classics and beer.
“We really want to focus on letting the people know we’ve always been really good at making drinks, [and] we want customers to know about our cocktails. It’s what we spend most of our labor and inventory on,” Ramirez says.
Some of the standout drinks on the Mothership’s drinks menu include the Bloody Jerry, an Asian-inspired take on the classic with sriracha, soy sauce, and toasted sesame oil, the Boricua Martini with Puerto Rican inspired flavors, including the staple Sazon, and the BFD Old Fashioned with flavors of cinnamon, cardamom, and sunflower butter. The bar has also added the Feetfinder Snobunny, which features allspice, espresso, and steamed, clarified milk chocolate, and the Rad Ish, a bright drink with coconut, Mexican Orange Wine, and strawberry Amaro.
“Since we first opened, we wanted people to feel like they were on a UFO being transported around to different places,” Ramirez says. “This menu is the most accurate description of that.”
