All stories about "Milwaukee"

Yesterday the Chicago Menupages blog published this incredible gallery of bacon Bloody Marys from across the country. I first heard of the brunch concoction when researching the much buzzed-about Chicago restaurant Sepia, and it's one of their most popular creations. However, this photos prove that great minds think alike, or at least that restaurateurs know a good idea when they see one, especially when pork is involved.

Yesterday, thousands of people in cold-weather cities went for painful, annual Polar Bear swims in icy oceans, rivers, and lakes to celebrate the new year. One guy in Trail, British Columbia actually died during his swim, though most other participants just froze their nads off. At the Oregon Zoo, people took literal Polar Bear plunges in the polar bear tanks, and in Rome, dozens of dudes made swan dives in to the Tiber (here's the clip).

If we had to find ourselves a modern-day Renaissance man, why not Matt Kliegman. DJ, artist, writer, and filmmaker, Kliegman's a man of many parts. As proof, check out his site, Steamclam.com, plus regularly irregular nights at New York's Gallery Bar, and even better, he's a Midwestern boy with a thing for farmer's daughters. Though Kliegman's thriving in NYC, he's revisiting his roots for our collective benefit.

We're going to imprison you in the city of your choice for the rest of your natural life. You can do anything you want there, but you must stay in that city forever. Where would you choose?
Usually I'd say New York, but I think in this situation I'd have to say Milwaukee. I feel like the locals would be a little bit more considerate of my bizarre situation.

Why would you live in this city forever and not somewhere else?
There are miles of cornfields just outside the city. I miss being able to jam some tunes and drive around the corn. Burn some gas up.

If the stomach padding enticements of homemade sausages and freshly brewed beer weren't enough to get foodie travelers on the plane to Milwaukee, I think I found the perfect motivator -- butter burgers. Turns out this unimaginably unhealthy foodstuff actually exists and has been served for ages in calorie-happy Wisconsin. I first heard about it because of A Hamburger Today's Beach Burger Bash this past weekend, where attendees scarfed excessive amounts of butter, onion, and pimento cheese burgers at Harry's Water Taxi Beach in Queens.

Our friend and Wisconsin native recently said of Milwaukee, "Beer and tons of sausage factories sorta make the city smell like a yeasty cooked fat paradise." Thus intrigued, we decided to investigate the abundance of these two masculine industries in Wisconsin's capital, Brew City. After the jump find out where the brew is being brewed, where the sausage is being stuffed, and where you can consume it all.

It's election night which means there's a lot of goofy arithmetic going on. To honor this long American tradtion, here's the brilliant yet dubious equation Maxim used to determine the top 10 party cities in the US. By their calculation, Las Vegas comes in as the valedictorian, Milwaukee as the salutatorian. NY comes in at 9th and Chicago, IL at 10.

C A (B + M + T + S ) + F
--------------------------------- = Party Town
$ 0 (100-P) 6 - T

where:
C=last-call time
A=24-hour spots
B=Bars and Clubs
M=Live-music venues
T=Indie Theaters
S=Strip Clubs
F= Number of yearly festivals
$=Average microbrew price
0=Male-to-female ration
P=% population 18 to 40

Vote early. Vote often.

Milwaukee Archives
Las Vegas Archives

Previously: Dance Hall Daze and Night in the NYT, Once the Bronx of Warsaw, Now Praga is its LES, Bocateria For Hungry Party-Goers, Last Night's Agua Luca Crawl

Through the blogvine (consisting entirely of PSFK), we've come across GQ's most important 10 buildings of the 21st century in the world. Though we can't agree full heartedly with the list, we're delighted that it has no Gehry on it. That guy needs to be plated in his own lightweight aluminum and set out to roast on a hot day. But we digress. Here's the list, courtesy of PSFK.

Casa da Musica, Porto, Portugal (2005) - Rem Koolhaas
, Almadenejos, Ciudad Real, Spain (2000) - Sancho-Madridejos
Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis (2006) - Jean Nouvel
Metropol Parasol, Seville, Spain (2007) - Jurgen Mayer H
BMW Plant/Central Building, Leipzig, Germany (2005) - Zaha Hadid
Tubac House, Tubac, Arizona (2000) - Rick Roy
New Museum, New York City (2007) - Kazuyo Sejima +Ryue Nishizawa/SANAA
Scottish Parliament building, Edinburgh (2004) - Enric Miralles
Turning Torso, Malmo, Sweden (2005) - Santiago Calatrava
De Young Museum, San Francisco(2005) - Herzog & de Meuron

Prettiest bunch of toddlers we've ever come across.

PSFK

Previously: Fukuoka? I DOn't Even Know Ya!, Something in Commune in Beijing, Dwelling On Chicago, Surf the Serifs in NYC, D-City Cribs and Rides

Each week, we sieve the sands of the media for nuggets of urban gold in a feature we like to call "Roundup Roundup."

Berlin
The Best of Fall Art [Denver Post]

Boston
24 Hours in... [MSNBC]

Budapest
24 Hours in... [Independent]

Grand Rapids, Mich
36 Hours in... [NYT]

London
Best Luxe Cinemas [Times]

Milwaukee
48 Hours in... [NatGeo Traveler]

Panama City
Best Nightlife [Chicago Tribune]

Pancakes
Best Pancakes in the USA [Flyertalk]

Portland, ME
Best Restaurants [WaPo]

Prague
Best Restaurants [BTO via CNN]

Races
Bizarre Races of the World (As in derbies, not pygmies) [Guardian]

Toronto
"Favourite" Restaurants [Economist]

Previous Roundup Roundups: #35, #34, #33, #32, #31, #30,#29, #28

It seems slogans don't lie. Milwaukee, aka Beer Capital of the World is, according to Forbes's recently published list of the drunkest cities in America, always wasted. Number one in both percentage of adults who drink (>70%) and percentage who binge drink (22%), in Milwaukee the streets are made of hops and the lakes made out of lager. The school hallways are lined with beer water-fountains. Turn on a faucet, and beer spouts from the shower head. Milwaukee, as even the most teetotaling beer historian will know, was once home to four of the largest breweries: Shlitz, Pabst, Miller and the now defunct Blatz. Though every other store is a bar, we don't want you to be left sober in a shit-faced city. Check out these bar guides and beery blogs to help you get through the night, or mid-morning or afternoon.

Drunkest Cities in America [Forbes]
Milwaukee Bar Guide [OnMilwaukee.com]
Milwaukee Bars [BrewCityReview]
Citizen Guide to Milwaukee
The Modern Drunkard Magazine
Best Light [Milwaukee-specific Miller site]
Milwaukee Beer History [Beerhistory]

Previously: The Name's House. Safe House, Milwaukee Public Market, Travel Blogola, Roundup Roundup #5, Roundup #6

I could tell you where the Milwaukee's secret bar the Safe House is but then I'd have to kill you. Actually, if Scooter Libby can divulge national secrets, why can't I? The Safe House is located in downtown Milkwaukee near City Hall (presumably for more convenient sabotage). Safe House, spy jargon for a safe haven for covert agents, is a bar devoted to the art, the subterfuge and the civilized side of spying. Themed bars can sometimes go terribly wrong but this one is authentic enough that the spy theme doesn't feel forced. It's been around for nearly 40 years and started as a labor of love by owner and spymaster David Baldwin. After walking through the door of a front store (International Export Ltd.) you'll have to provide a password or be subtly humiliated by performing stupid human tricks broadcast on closed circuit t.v.'s (pictured above). Once inside, pneumatic tubes whiz shakers full of martinis, spy posters line the wall, bookcase doors line the floor and a specially brewed beer's on draft. There are a ton of gadgets to entertain you and thankfully, in case of fire, the way out isn't as hard as the way in.

Safe House

Note: For more on bookcase doors, we hear from an insider that ex-Counting Crow Adam Durwitz has one in his Manhattan apartment as does the NYC bar The Back Room and of course, Amsterdam's Prinsengracht 267.

[photo: czelticgirl]

Previously: Milwaukee Public Market, Travel Blogola, Spy Bar Sweden

UK econo-coach schleppers Megabus have transmigrated to the US, basing their invasion out the Chicago heartland. For what may be a limited time, they're offering routes to and from Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and St. Louis. The kicker? Express service for one dollar, plus $0.50 reservation fee. The outrageous deal isn't always the case, though -- note that the fares "start" at a dollar. A round-trip ticket from Union Station in Chicago to Grand Circus Park in Detroit over Memorial Day weekend (for the Detroit Electronic Music Festival) is $40, which is still awfully frugal (Greyhound charges $76 for the same trip).

Megabus [Official site]

[Sean Moriva]

Previously: Ride Pimped, Ghost Bikes: Death Kitsch, iPod Subway Maps Free at Last, Fluff Muncher and Sugar Dog, When a Hummer Limo Might Actually Come in Handy

Milwaukee has been on something of an upswing lately, garnering attention as a new secretly hoppin' place. And lately, trendy places are never without organic produce. Hence, the new Milwaukee Public Market, located right in the center of its trendiest neighborhood, the Third Ward. It's been doing gangbusters since its opening in October and will probably have an upswing in the coming warmer months, as there is a palm tree-decorated picnic area to lounge in. Plenty of already-made picnic stuff available, too.

Chicago Tribune [Registration required]
Milwaukee Public Market

[Katherine Spiers]

Previously: Takohachi, Cochon Restaurant, Ezogiku Noodle Cafe, Seafood Cellar, The Best Pad Thai in L.A.

The Roundup Roundup collects recent "roundup" articles or general material about cities and city travel worldwide.

Antwerp
Refinery29 Goes on Location [Refinery 29]

Barcelona
Gaudí designs in Barcelona [Houston Chronicle]

Emergency
Thailand, New Orleans ranked as top vacation spots despite disasters [Houston Chronicle] - Bangkok, Chiang Mai, New Orleans, Phuket.

Helsinki
Holiday In Helsinki [AskMen]

Hotels
Top 10: Hotels To Spot Celebs [AskMen]
Less Style, More Substance [NYT]

Indianapolis
36 Hours: Indianapolis [NYT]

Johannesburg
Boom town [Observer]

Las Vegas
Lights of Broadway shine on Vegas Strip [Houston Chronicle]

Liverpool
Living It Up In Liverpool [AskMen]

London
Poundstretcher [Daily Candy]
The smart guide to London, for every budget [Sunday Times]
Diana's legacy lives on in London [Chicago Tribune]

Madrid
Madrid's New Hotel Scene [Travel Intelligence]

Miami
Miami: a region recovering from Wilma [Telegraph]

Milwaukee
Something's brewing in Milwaukee [Birmingham News]

Rome
Rome Sweet Rome [Budget Travel]

Saigon
New Vietnam to discover [Washington Times]

Salt Lake City
Going To: Salt Lake City [NYT]

San Francisco
The East Bay’s 101 Most Delicious things to eat [Diablo]

Tel Aviv
From Matzo Balls and Kreplach to Lemongrass-Infused Bouillabaisse [Budget Travel]

Vienna
Songs from the heart of the Ghetto [IHT]

The Roundup Roundup collects recent "roundup" articles or general material about cities and city travel worldwide.

Deals
Cheap Tricks [Daily Candy]

Food
It's Do or Dine [NY Post] - Anchorage, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Miami, northern California, Portland OR, Washington DC.

Hong Kong
Hong Kong Reloaded [Condé Nast Traveler]

Las Vegas
On High-Stakes Tables in Las Vegas: Fish, Not Chips [NYT]

London
WorldEats visits London [Passport]

Los Angeles
Why I love LA [Guardian]

Madrid
For Madrileños, Chic and Cheap [NYT]

Paris
In Paris, Eleventh Heaven [Washington Post]

Phuket
Zen and the art of rebuilding in Thailand [Times]

Portland OR
Going To: Portland, Ore. [NYT]

Quebec City
Canada's French flair [Houston Chronicle]

Rome
When in Rome, Plan to See Some Other Cities [NYT]

Rotterdam
Beat but not broken [Guardian]

San Jose
36 Hours: San Jose, Calif. [NYT]

Shop
Foraging Ahead [NY Post] - Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, San Francisco, Washington DC.

Sightseeing
A more leisurely big-city tour is afoot [LAT]

Pay bloggers to blog about travel? Outrageous! Well, perhaps not in the general sense, but Milwaukee cutie-blogger Erin Leffelman is celebrating her town by way of free net access, laptop, camera, and event admissions provided by Milwaukee's tourism office. Great deal for Milwaukee, as Leffelman is producing reams of PR copy and pics for a couple thou worth of equipment and event tickets that would likely be comped anyway. But what about you, the defenseless blog reader? If you see the words, "I was beyond giddy when I saw Brett Favre," you expect that to be a genuine sentiment, right? But how can you know for sure? Pennsylvania's tourism office did something similar, hiring a number of bloggers to traipse around the state. They alerted me to the blog ostensibly written by a couple from Queens, the "hipster trippers" (cringe). This is a more baldfaced PR play than Leffelman's blog, but it comes across as much less personable -- as I told the friendly PA rep, it just reads like a laundry list of activities and points of interest. I have to agree with Business Week's Stephen Baker, who called them "brochures traveling under another name. A dose of tedium, frustration, or fear would make them more believable." Of course, PR doesn't care if they're believable, and tedium, frustration, and fear are not considered selling points for a Pennsylvania vacation. What these attempts at PR blogging need is a compromise between Leffelman's boosterism and the adversity Baker recommends, but with the former eventually (and believably) trumping the latter somehow. As it stands, these viral campaigns aren't vigorous enough to get past a typical reader's credibility immune system.

Bloggers get travel 'sponsors' [USA Today]
Play in the City [Official site]
Hipster Trippers [VisitPA]

Previously: Meet Eater