Milwaukee recs for nice dinner (yes I tried to search 1st)

I'm headng up to Milwaukee for a couple of nights after T-giving. One night I'll be forced to relive my huband's college days with dinner at Pasta Tree (not so bad actually), but I'm looking for suggestions for the other dinner. Here's what I'm looking for: entrees ~$20-$30, decent wine list, 'nice' bluejeans acceptable (husband is not packing a sportcoat), and tries to source ingredients locally.

Any suggstions? Also, if anyone has a favorite bar in Milwaukee let me know. I'm sure we'll hit Wolski's but I'm looking for other places too.

Have you done a search on this site? There are several Milwaukee threads.

I did look through the first 10 pages of postings in 'Beyond Chicagoland' did find one post that was Milwaukee specific, but the threads suggested in a follow-up post consisted mostly of postings a couple of years old or recommendations for more road-food type diners - I was hoping for a more current recommendation and a little fancier destination.

Having moved back from Milwaukee this summer, I'm sad to report there is not much exciting stuff up there IMO. Have you tried the Bartolotta restaurants? They're pretty good. Eddie Martini's has good steaks, and Coquette Cafe (same owner's as Sanford) is in your price range.

http://www.bartolottas.com/

http://www.eddiemartinis.com/welcome-ed ... w-web-site

http://www.coquettecafe.com/index.htm

That's the top of my head list-where in Milwaukee will you be? What kind of food are you looking for?

Jeff

My suggestions:
I've enjoyed Coquette Cafe, which is a French bistro downtown.
I recently had a very nice meal at Meritage, http://www.meritage.us/
It's a small place on the Milwaukee Wauwatosa border, so you might not want to head out there, but the food were very nice and VERY reasonably priced.
I have read about Roots, which is a farm to table kind of place, but have never been there.

Jonah

Tobermory-

I apologize if my post seemed abrupt. The search function (located near the top of the screen) can be customized to search for "Milwaukee" in "Beyond Chicagoland." In this case, I would select "Topic Titles Only" to reduce the number of duplicative posts. There are some relatively current threads out there.

Sobelman's Pub & Grill — Milwaukee

Sanford in Milwaukee

Maria's Pizza - Milwaukee WI

Milwaukee Road Trip, and not a bratwurst had

Cafe El Sol - Milwaukee Southside

Roots Restaurant & Cellar, Milwaukee

Weekend recommendations for Milwaukee

Hope this was more helpful. I go up to Milwaukee every six months or so, but I am more focused on catching up with friends than on where we eat.

-Mary

let me put in another vote for coquette, we had a very good meal there

Mary & Jonah - thanks! Roots looks like a strong contender as does Meritage (if I can convince my husband that a little driving isn't so bad).

I can only mention a couple of old 1950's super thin crust pizzerias that many of us love. Maria's Pizza and Zaffiro's Pizza. But you sound like you want something with more substance, more variety perhaps.

jvalentino wrote:Having moved back from Milwaukee this summer, I'm sad to report there is not much exciting stuff up there IMO. Have you tried the Bartolotta restaurants? They're pretty good. Eddie Martini's has good steaks, and Coquette Cafe (same owner's as Sanford) is in your price range.

http://www.bartolottas.com/

http://www.eddiemartinis.com/welcome-ed ... w-web-site

http://www.coquettecafe.com/index.htm

That's the top of my head list-where in Milwaukee will you be? What kind of food are you looking for?

Jeff

I've enjoyed my meals at Ristorante Bartolotta and at Lake Park Bistro.

There are a lot of good ethnic places in Milwaukee, but that doesn't sound like what you are looking for. You might also like Elliot's Bistro. No idea about local ingredients, though.

Also, check out this thread: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=23063&p=246954

Elliot's Bistro
http://www.elliotsbistro.com/
2321 N. Murray Avenue
Milwaukee WI
414.273.1488

roots sounds like exactly what you're looking for.