"Meet me at Rosie's" has been the opening utterance in many a Milwaukeean's nightlife plans for decades. Conveniently located near many Downtown spots, Rosie's, 1111 N. Water St., fun and friendliness have made it the place to meet up with friends before a night on the town for 29 years.
Rosie's has staying power. In a city whose longterm residents value consistency and comfort, Rosie's neighborhood tavern feel marks it as special on a street that has undergone many changes over the decades.
The mural on the north-facing outside wall of Rosie's is a landmark itself.
"That mural has been there a long time, people are used to seeing it," says Rosie's co-owner Darrell Sanderson. "We thought about putting a building in our parking lot (which the mural overlooks) but blocking that mural, while not the only deterrent, crossed our minds."
This kind of thinking, paying attention to history, tradition and maintaining a sense of Milwaukee, is always on Sanderson's mind and is in fact Rosie's very business plan.
"Part of the reason we always wanted to keep things 'Rosie's' is that everything else changes," says Sanderson, who often uses the bar name as a concept if not also to indicate a state-of-mind.
Sanderson's partners are Jim Pack and Brian James. Together they are three guys from the northern suburbs who have been friends since their high school / early college years and always dreamed of owning a bar together. In 1998 they got their chance when Sanderson and Pack met then-owner Andi Shafton, who agreed to sell them Rosie's.
"At the time, we were shocked that she'd actually part with the bar, because of all its history and because (Shafton's) dad had given it to her. But she knew we were going to keep it Rosie's – keep that family feel – this was important to her, more so than money, and she entrusted us with the bar," says Sanderson.
The bar was formerly called Rosie's Waterworks and is now technically Rosie's on Water, but it's always been known by most folks simply as Rosie's. The bar's roots run deep. In the space before Rosie's was a bar called Sheridan's, which, along with Sweetwater (now Fitzgibbons'), were once the main drinking establishments on the street.
"It was a different area back then (the '70s). As other places have come along and the street has changed, one thing we've always liked is Rosie's association with other places on Water," says Sanderson.
Sanderson will tell anybody his thoughts on Milwaukee's bar history and traditions, how taverns have always been social clubs, "that's why they're in neighborhoods," and why Rosie's needs to keep its tavern feel in the middle of a major entertainment district.
"This is a tough business, especially nowadays. I know that's why there are a lot of changes in the bar / restaurant scene. I still tell people when they walk through the door that they've left America, in a sense, and they're now in our world. I say, 'Leave your troubles out there and be our guest,'" says Sanderson.
Maintaining that feeling of consistency and comfort that customers expect involves a lot of hands-on work. Co-owner Pack will be found many Friday and Saturday nights either tending bar or in the Rosie's crowd.
"Our kitchen has feel-good pub fare. We try to use local stuff, including products from Sciortino's Bakery, New Glarus Brewing's Spotted Cow in the fish fry beer batter and hot pretzels from Miller Bakery," says Sanderson.
The beer cheese sauce for dipping the Miller Bakery pretzels is made in house. Other menu items include homemade chili, a grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwich, four kinds of chicken sandwich, a mushroom patty with swiss cheese and the Eleven-Eleven burger, celebrating Rosie's address.
"It's the best address in the city, a phenomenon. People have this feeling about '1111' in a lucky way. We had a lot of fun with it on 11/11/11," says Sanderson.
And Rosie's Blue Moon burger has a personal story attached to it. "I asked Traci to marry me in Madison, on Halloween, after a Bob Dylan concert, on a blue moon," Sanderson says, speaking somewhat shyly about his wife.
"Maybe that's a little cheesy, but it's why the Blue Moon burger is on the menu. And Halloween still means a lot to us," he says. The couple has one son.
Business partner Pack has two kids and James has three, but Rosie's has always been a family affair. The Rosie's staff, which runs between 15 and 20 people, become part of this family and so do many of the customers, who have come to employee birthday parties at the bar.
Nick Hippman has been tending bar off and on for 10 years and worked at Rosie's for four years. "The owners trust us immensely," he says.
"This bar is our baby," says Sanderson, who along with Pack and armed with brooms and shop vacs cleaned up after construction crews every day following portions of the roof collapsing during heavy storms in 2010.
The owners' commitment to Milwaukee is palpable in the bar, and not just because of a few historical photographs near the front. Rosie's exudes a Milwaukee feel because of the people who frequent it.
"I love this city. It's a great place to raise a family, a great place to grow up. I love the lake, the people, I'll never leave it. The nicest, most genuine people live here. Everyone staying at Downtown hotels who stop in here say the same thing about Milwaukee people," says Sanderson.
"I think I can speak for my partners on this when I say that's what keeps us here."
One might think that a bar with such a long history and sense of place wouldn't have the origin of its name in question, but on the other hand that seems to contribute to Rosie's just being Rosie's – both as a state-of-mind and Water Street mainstay. According to Sanderson, when customers would call Shafton "Rosie," the previous owner would sometimes charge them a dollar.
"And this may not be completely factual, but the story I've given for years is that the name came from the '70s TV show MASH. The officer's club where they went to drink and escape from the outside world was run by a woman named Rosie."
This is fitting for a place that prides itself on being an escape for everyone who walks through the door. From Downtown workers and people on their ways to live shows to college students to Packers Antonio Freeman and Frank Winters, who enjoyed just sitting at the bar with his girlfriend and not having a fuss made over his presence.
"You can be a superstar, but in here you're a regular person just getting away from it all. Hang out and enjoy it," says Sanderson.
Royal has taught courses in critical pedagogy, writing, rhetoric and cultural studies at several schools in Wisconsin and Minnesota. He is currently Adjunct Associate Professor of Humanities at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design.
Royal lives in Walker’s Point with his family and uses the light of the Polish Moon to illuminate his way home.
