If you’re like me, you’ve long since grown tired of the over-priced, over-crowded amateur night that is New Year’s Eve. Plus, you can’t find a babysitter.
But, New Year’s Day, that’s altogether different, especially because it’s a holiday of its own in our house. So, each year I fire up OnMilwaukee.com’s restaurant listings and I start calling around trying to find a place that’s open for dinner on Jan. 1.
Here are some places I’ve found that are open for the first dinner service of the 2015...
Locavore at the Potawatomi Hotel and Casino serves brunch from 7 a.m. until 2 p.m. and then re-opens for dinner service at 4:30 p.m. RuYi, meanwhile, is open from 11 a.m. until midnight.Open until 10. Note that Dream Dance Steak and Wild Earth Cucina are closed on Jan. 1.
- Cafe Metro – in the Hotel Metro at Mason and Milwaukee – begins dinner service at 5 p.m. Maybe you can nab a seat in the Sidecar.
- A true Milwaukee classic, Mader’s, is open pretty much every day, including New Year’s Day, for all your schnitzel and sauerkraut needs.
- Looking to start off 2015 by celebrating the Wisconsin supper club tradition? The Packing House is open from 4 to 9 p.m.
- If seafood’s your game (see what I did there, foodies?), Devon Seafood Grill at Bayshore Town Center is at the ready on 1/1.
- Aiming for something simpler, pubbier, perhaps? Both Water Street Brewery and Trinity Three Irish Pubs Downtown serve brunch from 10 a.m. and remain open all day.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He can be heard weekly on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories.
