Have you walked past the 770 N. Jefferson St. building recently? The former Senior Frogs, Howl at the Moon, etc. space is laced with imagery touting Blackthorn Pub and Grill.
Blackthorn is expected to open later this month and will be the first non-typical Irish pub in the Milwaukee area. Judging from its Web site and the photos that grace its windows, it also will be the first Irish pub with skirts, high heels and attitude.
Indeed, Irish and Scottish pubs are big business across America and now this somewhat new flavor of pub puts attractive cast members (if you will) front and center for your drinking and dining experience.
The Tilted Kilt Pub and Eatery, one such chain of new wave Irish Pubs, already has four Wisconsin locations (in Green Bay, Madison, Stevens Point and Oshkosh) and locations in 18 states. Milwaukee, of course, doesn't have a national Irish pub player yet but is full of many locally owned Irish pubs.
According to city records and The Irish Emigrant, Taha Aitali, is the owner of Milwaukee's Blackthorn Pub and Grill. He also owns Waukesha-based Compass International Aerospace.
What are your thoughts on this new Celtic bar idea? Will it work in Milwaukee? Use the talkbacks and chime in. Slainte!
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
