Get the latest dish on new restaurants, bars, stars and more in the latest edition of OnMilwaukee.com's Milwaukee Buzz.
JAM MASTER JAY, REST IN PEACE
Run DMC founder Jam Master Jay was in Milwaukee at Pure just four days before is death. No conspiracy theory here, just an interesting factoid. Rumor also has it that former partners Run and DMC are retiring from the music biz.
STEP UP TO THE BACHELOR, LADIES
ABC holds a casting call for "The Bachelor" on Thurs., Nov. 21, from 4-8 p.m., at The Charcoal Grille, 5171 S. 108th St. in Hales Corners. Single women, ages 21 or over, can audition for the chance to appear as one of 25 bachelorettes on the show, which enters its third series in February.
VIDEO VISIONS LOSES SIGHT
Video Visions in the Prospect Mall is closing. Good deals on old VHS tapes and DVDs going on now.
SOUP'S ON
"Soup's On" is the name of the new restaurant coming to the former Pier 221 space on Water St. (221 N. Water St.) in the Historic Third Ward.
SEAFOOD'S ON, TOO
A new seafood joint at 770 N. Jefferson St. is now open for lunch and dinner. Check it out, it's called, fittingly, Mason Street Crabshack (and Seafood). Watch for an OMC review soon.
MORE SOUP FOR YOU
Here's another OMC first, Soup Bros. (you know them and love in Walker's Point) has opened up a new location on the East Side in the former Ciao Pizza space at Prospect and North. Stop in for fresh soups and chili each day and a small sandwich and salad menu. Say hello to owner Richard Regne when you stop in.
CART AT NIGHT
The CART Racing Series is looking at starting an under-the-lights night race and The Miwaukee Mile might just be the first location for a Saturday night Summer race.
VIKKI VOYAGES
One of the Journal Sentinel's best young writers and reporters, Vikki Ortiz, is leaving the paper. She covered a variety of beats, was one of its up-and-coming reporters and really helped get the paper to cover more young and "cool" stories. She's moving to D.C. at the end of the month,
where she will be covering schools/youth trends in Maryland for the
Washington Post.
LITTLE DONUTS?
Rumor has a mini donut maker moving into the cool white bus shelter space at Oakland and North Ave. Stay tuned.
GET FRAMED
There is a new frame shop called 2010 Frame Garage that opened in the garage at 2010 E. Thomas. They had their opening last month. They are emphasizing music framing though they will do anything. Owners are Jim and Jo Korn and they did a really nice job renovating this East Side space.
TILES
A new tile store is scouting locations in the Third Ward. It would be a nice addition for all the condo dwellers/home improvement nuts in the Third and Fifth Wards.
MILWAUKEE HAS SOUL
This from Fortune Magazine and an article entitled Got their mojo working. The subtitle to the piece is A battle of the bands at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame shows that corporate rock imitates life. Milwaukee is mentioned twice in the article for its homegrown bands from Harley-Davidson and Briggs & Stratton. Here's the text, "Get your motor running. From Milwaukee comes Parts Rock and Accessories Roll, the house band of Harley-Davidson. Like its band, this company looks to be firing on all cylinders. But a Wall Street contingent says Harley's gains are coming from its financing unit, not Hogs. The company says that's hogwash. Maybe the band was trying to reinforce that notion when it played a tune by No Doubt. Also straight from Milwaukee (that city has soul!) were the Briggs Bluesbusters from engine maker Briggs & Stratton. They did a nice, eclectic set--Led Zep (a metal tune from a metal company), the 'loaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light," and one of my fave tunes of the night, "Briggs & Stratton Man," a warped corporate jingle. Briggs has been kind of idling along for the past couple of years; maybe a new jingle would do it some good." Read the full article at fortune.com.
WHAT'S YOUR POINT?
Lately, we've been hearing a lot of people refer to Walker's Point as "downtown." What's up with that? Are Milwaukee's young people rewriting the city's long-standing geographical rules? What do you think?
BROADWAY PAPER MOVE
Broadway Paper, 181 N. Broadway, is moving just North, up the street to a newer, bigger space.
BURRITOS ON THE EAST SIDE
Q-Doba is coming to Prospect Ave. and Chipolte continues to hunt for an East Side local too. Read our review of the new Chipolte here, www.onmilwaukee.com/dining/articles/chipotle.html.
BOOK BUZZ
The new Borders in downtown Milwaukee is beautiful and a visit on Sun., Nov. 17 found the place packed at 5 p.m. -- the store's closing time. The Buzz has learned that they are already looking at expanding hours and may also open earlier for morning coffee if demand from fine folks like you is there. Of course, it will help to tell management that you want the store open earlier and later until 11 p.m. like other area book stores. The Buzz has also learned there's a Borders opening in Sheboygan before Christmas and Barnes and Noble and Borders are vying for a space in a new suburban strip mall in Delafield.
BANK ON IT
A branch location of Lincoln State Bank will open at 1000 N. Water St. giving the bank's holding company a full-service space in downtown.
WANTED!
The Boulevard Ensemble Theater is searching for spirited volunteers, dedicated board members, and talented guest personnel (directors, scenic, costume and graphic designers, fund raisers, grant writers, advertising reps) required as it begins its 17th season. Hardworking, interested parties should call (414) 744-5757, and ask for Mark Bucher or Katie Landa.
GALLERY DAY AND NIGHT
As the Buzz first reported, Gallery Night is expanding to Gallery Weekend. To this end, the East Town Association, Inc. received a $37,781 state tourism grant to help promote Night and Day-A Gallery Tour of Downtown Milwaukee, January 17-18 and April 25-26, 2003. The grant was awarded through the Department of Tourism's Joint Effort Marketing (JEM) grant program. The funds, matched by local promotional dollars, will be used will be used for advertising and public relations.
ANOTHER MILWAUKEE CHAMPIONSHIP
Milwaukee will host the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, June 19-22, 2003 in U.S. Cellular Arena and Midwest Airlines Center. It's the most prestigious national gymnastics competition of the year, featuring the top stars in the sport vying for the coveted national title and a berth on America's 2003 World Championship Team. The event will showcase men's and women's gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics and sports acrobatics. Milwaukee's own 2000 Olympians Paul and Morgan Hamm of Swiss Turners are expected to compete along with U.S. national team member Chellsie Memmel of Salto. The U.S. Gymnastics Championships adds to the list of successful Olympic-caliber sporting events hosted in Milwaukee including the 2002 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, 2001 USA Open Volleyball Championships, matches in the Men's World League Volleyball, The Davis Cup Semi-Finals and various NCAA men's and women's basketball championship games.
CHARLANE COMES TO CHAMBER
The Chamber Theatre has hired Charlane O'Rourke-Hertig to the position of Managing Director. She has a long-standing career in the arts. Most recently, as Director for the Pabst Theater where she successfully led a 9.3 million-dollar capital campaign for the renovation of the National Historic Landmark. Prior to The Pabst, Ms. O'Rourke-Hertig served as business manager at Milwaukee's Melody Top Theatre.
STAR LOVES MILWAUKEE
Referring to the shortening of the Park East Freeway, a Kansas City Star reporter wrote: "That's just one multimillion-dollar sign that Milwaukee is serious about creating a new sense of its downtown." The reporter also interviewed Mike Bosc, with the Greater Louisville Chamber of Commerce, who accompanied a delegation of 125 civic leaders from Louisville to Milwaukee. Here is what Bosc had to say about Milwaukee: "I was blown away by how much progress they've made. ... The whole city was spit-shined. ... It says community pride. ... It says that the city of Milwaukee cares about what the rest of world thinks about it." Read the article here.
CATHY RIGBY IS COMING TO TOWN
Cathy Rigby will star in the national tour of "Seussical" the Musical at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts from January 21-26, 2003.
INDY TO MKE
CBS 58 is hiring a new female reporter from South Bend, IN. Details at 10, or as we get them.
HOOTERS, TUXES -- GONE!
Hooters and Desmond's Formal Wear are both vacating their Wisconsin Ave./Shops of Grand Avenue locations. Hooters is looking for another home in greater downtown.
SPEAKING OF HOOTERS
The Fire Pit Sports Bar and Grill inside Potawatomi Bingo Casino has added its own version of Hooters-type entertainment, the Fire Pit girls.
DON BOLTS DOWNER
Don Quijote, 2624 N Downer, will vacate its lovely little space on Downer street and move to Walker's Point
GET WET
"Wet" is the working name of a new bar/restaurant for Water Street planned to be built next to Fizgibbon's Pub.
SOCIAL CASITA
Kevin Sloan, the man behind The Social, is revamping the former La Casita restaurant.
FARWELL COFFEE CLOSES
Farwell Coffee, the charming, little coffee joint on yep, Farwell, has closed.
MAXX AND LINENS
As the Buzz talked about months ago, The Shop of Grand Avenue has singed Linens 'N Things and T.J. Maxx. Both will open in the fall of 2003.
WINE IN THE WARD
Word on the street is that a local restaurateur is eyeing locations in the Third Ward for a big wine shop. Sources then dropped names like Sam's and Binny's, two wine superstores in Chicago, suggesting that the new shop would be of similar scope. We're ready.