A mere 10 miles from Downtown Milwaukee, a former stage coach stop and brothel offers diners a rustic supper club ambience with an ambitious contemporary menu. Surprised?
Hiding behind an unremarkable, easy to ignore exterior at 1005 S. Elm Grove Rd. in Brookfield, the Historic Red Mill is an anomaly in upscale suburban Brookfield.
The core of the building, which houses the kitchen and most of the barroom, was built in 1847, before Wisconsin became a state, as a station for the Milwaukee to Madison stage coach. While that mode of transportation became obsolete, some activities never do, and for a while the structure was home to the world's oldest profession. Adding to the Red Mill's colorful lore, ghosts are rumored to inhabit the place.
The building, which was substantially expanded over time, evolved into a restaurant more than 80 years ago. It has had many owners, and for a while it was a major Milwaukee area jazz venue. The current operators, Brian Normoyle and the Grant family, veteran Milwaukee barkeeps, moved into the Red Mill in 2008 and did some serious refurbishing.
Among the finds was a pressed tin ceiling above the bar. A dropped ceiling had covered it.
"We get a lot of people who come in here and say, 'I ate here 30, 40 years ago.' We say, welcome back," front of house manager Ed Koehl says.
Rough-hewn and rural are the words that spring to mind when entering the restaurant through the front door. The old wooden floors creak, and the barroom and adjoining lounge are plain and functional. A few arcade games join table seating in the lounge.
Six tap beers include Guinness, Franziskaner and Fat Tire. Bloody Marys employ a house-made mix and a touch of Guinness. Cocktails, including a featured cucumber and sake martini, are priced from $4 to $8.50.
An adjoining dining room is more formal, with tablecloths and antiques dressing up the space. The bar, lounge and dining room seat a total of 99.
Executive chef Andrew Niay updated the Red Mill's menu at the beginning of the month, and it contains some intriguing items. A 22-ounce Porterhouse steak ($29) would seem to be standard supper club fare, but he tops it with a vanilla ice cream and sour cream sauce melted over the meat.
"The sauce gives the dish a sweet and creamy flavor," he says. Like most entrees, it is accompanied by candied carrots
Three jumbo mushroom caps stuffed with shrimp, crab and lobster, and finished with a light Newburg sauce, sells for $21. Pot roast is offered for $13.95, and a mac and cheese entree with blue cheese crumbles and panko bread crumbs is priced at $10. Shrimp or bacon bits can be added for an additional charge.
All you can eat baby back ribs ($15.99), featuring a house-made sweet and tangy sauce, is the Thursday special, and a traditional Milwaukee fish fry is served on Fridays. Cod is $11.95, perch sells for $15.95, and baked fresh cod is $15.99.
Appetizers include mini BLT's with a side of sour cream pesto ($7), Tuscan bruschetta with a balsamic glaze ($9), and crab and shrimp cakes with a chipotle aioli dipping sauce ($13).
The eatery is open for lunch only on Fridays, with its fish fry being the attraction.
Acknowledging its tradition as a place for jazz, the Red Mill has an open microphone for jazz musicians from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesdays. It also offers karaoke from 7 to 11 on Tuesdays.
The restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays with the exception of Packers game days, when it opens with a special buffet and drinks package.
Damien has been around so long, he was at Summerfest the night George Carlin was arrested for speaking the seven dirty words you can't say on TV. He was also at the Uptown Theatre the night Bruce Springsteen's first Milwaukee concert was interrupted for three hours by a bomb scare. Damien was reviewing the concert for the Milwaukee Journal. He wrote for the Journal and Journal Sentinel for 37 years, the last 29 as theater critic.
During those years, Damien served two terms on the board of the American Theatre Critics Association, a term on the board of the association's foundation, and he studied the Latinization of American culture in a University of Southern California fellowship program. Damien also hosted his own arts radio program, "Milwaukee Presents with Damien Jaques," on WHAD for eight years.
Travel, books and, not surprisingly, theater top the list of Damien's interests. A news junkie, he is particularly plugged into politics and international affairs, but he also closely follows the Brewers, Packers and Marquette baskeball. Damien lives downtown, within easy walking distance of most of the theaters he attends.
