Jessica "Jess" O.'s Profile

I can't believe I forgot to write a review on my dining experience her a few weeks ago. I have terrible short term memory so I cannot recall all the details to the food. What I do remember is every thing, EVERYTHING from start to finish was superb! The staff was professional and top notch. The food, good gravy, the food was out of this world. Meritage is a beacon of light and hope to the Milwaukee dining scene.

My Worst Dining Experience of 2009

Ambiance - You typical American Corner Tavern.

Staff: Oh Jeez - where to start. We were told we could seat ourselves so we choose the patio because the inside was really smoky. The problem is the patio is right on busy Greenfield Avenue so it's loud with cars buzzing by constantly. Not exactly relaxing. The waitress took our drink orders and came back with them. We put in an order for potato skins right away because we were starving and said that we'd order our dinners once we had a chance to look over the menu. We were then left for 15 minutes, at no point did the waitress come back to see if we were ready to order or to explain why our potato skins were taking so long. When the potato skins arrived they were luke warm and the cheese had started to harden back up. We placed our orders for food. I ordered a Mushroom Swiss Burger - very rare with chips. My boyfriend ordered the Brat with chips. She walked away and we realized she never brought flatware or even napkins. I decided to just go inside and get some cocktail napkins myself. I enter and our waitress is right there ringing up our order. So I ask "Could we have some napkins?" she looks at me doesn't acknowlege my request and says "Did you order chips or fries with your burger?" Ummmm.... okay you literally took our order 15 seconds ago, what would you have done if I hadn't come in looking for the napkins you neglected to give us? So I reminded her I wanted chips. She rewards my answer with napkins. I return to the table and decide to time how long it would take for our dinners to get to the table. Turns out it took over 20 minutes!!! At no point during that time did she return to see if we needed beverage refills, how our potato skins were, or to let us know what was going on with our orders. Unacceptable. When she finally brought out our food she drops it at our table and says "I hope you both wanted chips because I couldn't remember when I rang you up." What? How can that be? I was standing next to you when you rang the orders up and you even asked me if I wanted chips or fries because you forgot?!??!?!  I just glared at her. The food was horrible and I will address that below. She did not stop back to see how our meal was until we were finished eating. She asked if everything was okay and I explained what was wrong with the food. In the waitresses defense she did remove our dinners from the bill.

Food:

Potato Skins: Had they managed to get these to our table while still hot, they might have been good.

Mushroom Swiss Burger: The waitress asked how I wanted done, and I stressed, VERY RARE. I can't stand well done meat, it makes me retch. What was brought to the table was a gray well done burger. It was awful. Add that to the bun that was dry and crumbly and this thing was a disaster piece.

Brat: Dear lord just thinking of this brat makes me sad. It was the dinkiest, driest, most shriveled and charred brat I have ever had the displeasure to see. It was served on a gigantic hard dry roll. No toppings to speak of. Just a dry brat on a dry bun. This is Wisconsin, you can't serve brats like that here, we know better. I've had better brats at gas stations.

I brought all the food quality issues to the waitresses attention. She seemed confused when I told her the burger wasn't rare, I had to tell her to look at it herself so that she would understand. As I said above she did take our dinners off the bill. She said that there was a new kitchen staff that hadn't been fully trained and said she was taking the meals off so that we would come back. I appreciate that, here's the thing. I still wouldn't come back there was too much wrong with our dining experience that can't be blamed on the new kitchen staff.

Ambiance: Rustic French Provincial dimly lit. Wooden distressed chairs, tons of vintage portraits, photos and paintings cover the walls. They have two patios. One right on the sidewalk flanking Arlington and a second more quiet and private patio in the back. The front patio is the perfect spot to be seen and enjoy the hustle and bustle of the Brady street area. The back patio is where you go for more privacy and tranquility.

Staff: We had a pretty crappy waitress. She seemed pretty ambivalent to waiting on us, and she had this air about her that we just weren't cool enough to be her customers. I've been here once before and the service was really really nice so I think she was just a fluke.

Food: Luckily we were able to enjoy dinner despite our lackadaisical waitress. Balzac's kitchen staff really shines and we enjoyed everything we ordered.

Beef Carpaccio: I am a true carnivore and anytime I see meat on the menu that also happens to be raw I find it near impossible not to order it. This Carpaccio was pretty darn good. Thin and tender. Came with a green salad with tomatoes and a balsamic dressing. The tomatoes were fantastic, they were very fresh and firm. They had a wonderful, earthy sweet flavor to them. I literally felt like I was eating summer. They beef came with a side of dipping sauce which wasn't described on our menu or by the waitress. It tasted like it might have been a red wine reduction. Whatever it was it went perfectly with the beef.

Caramelized Serrano Ham and Manchengo Brulee: In contrast to the above dish where it tasted like summer in my mouth, the boyfriend pointed out that this tasted like Christmas. Indeed it did! The Ham was salty and smoky, the cheese was rich with a scant bit of pungency and the chef topped it with a dusting of spices, cinnamon, nutmeg etc, which lent the entire dish an air of sweetness and another layer of complexity. Served with slices of french bread. The bread could've been toasted a little more for my tastes but that is a small complaint in comparison to the taste of this dish. Very unique and very good.

Duck Confit Nachos: Basically if you put duck on something I will inevitably order it. I was not disappointed by these nachos. The duck meat was tender and flavorful and the addition of bacon made these extra special.

Crème Brulee: Served with big beautiful, black berries, strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. The crème was not as silken as it should be, but it was still decent.

Beverages: They have a ton of wine to choose from that rotates constantly. I think you would be hard-pressed not to find a wine to fit your palate.

Parking: There is a small metered parking lot abutting the restaurant. They are 24 hour meters so no matter what time of day you go, you're going to need change. The later into the evening the harder it is to find a spot there. Otherwise it's the hunt to find a street spot.

Pointers: They have a happy hour during the week but it only applies to a small portion of their wine menu. Those wines are 50% off.

We definitely would like to return to Balzac. The food was excellent and we loved the ambiance of this place.

Wow, I am gobsmacked at the low rating Ichiban has on this site. This is one of my favorite sushi sites in Milwaukee. Small and unpretentious and straightforward. Tends to be devoid of the annoying hipster crowd and filled with patrons who appreciate classic sushi.

Well, unfortunately I think my first experience here was a fluke. I returned a second time and ordered pretty much the same thing as last time. Only this time there was something clearly rancid about the sea scallop sushi (hotate). I first noticed a bad smell coming from my plate and I couldn't identify what it was until I put one of these in my mouth. I almost retched. I picked up the second one and it smelled as rancid. And once again the Ikura fell apart which I was willing to overlook last time because everything else was good.  The service there was not as friendly or attentive as it was last time and seemed befudled and intrusive.  So disappointing, I don't think I would return after this last round.

Ambiance: Inside: Wide open space. Tasteful décor. Outside: Beautiful patio, nicely spaced tables and lots of umbrella's to provide coverage from the sun. The bees can be a little aggressive though so while we started outside we had to move inside, which is a shame because the patio was really nice.

Staff: Our waitress Noel was so nice and friendly and attentive. She kept us informed of the status of our food throughout the evening. She was great, had a wonderful easy going personality. She even helped me sing Happy Birthday to my dining companion and when we were done the bar staff clapped and wished him a happy birthday. Everyone here was so nice. Kudos to Juniper for their excellent staff!

Food:

Wow! I was blown away by everything here. I figured I would like it since this place is the sister restaurant to Lulu Café on Howell and I love that place. Juniper 61 did not disappoint. All the menu items were very reasonably priced and the quality and quantity were excellent.

Prociutto Wrapped Figs: This was the special so unfortunatly they aren't on the regular menu, such a pity. Three beautiful figs stuffed with honeyed goat cheese and wrapped in prociutto and baked. They were served atop an arugla salad with walnuts, grapes and a port reduction. While the salad was a bit bland those figs were a masterpiece. If I were a goddess all I would eat all day long would be Figs with goat cheese wrapped in prociutto.

Tempura Green Beans: Huge platter of green beans in a tempura batter, nicely salted with kosher salt and a chili dipping sauce. These were better than any french fry I have ever had. The tempura batter was light and crisp, the big bit sof kosher salt sprinkled on crunched under your teeth giving you pleasant bursts of extra flavor. The dipping sauce was perfect had a little kick but not too spicy. I gobbled these up like it was my last meal.

Sesame Tuna Salad: Generous portion of perfectly rare (per my request) tuna. Had a nice crust of sesame seeds on it and some nice seasoning. The seasoning was spicy but the cucumbers that came in the salad were the perfect companion to soothe your spiced tongue. Dressing was very yummy the soy sauce and the sesame oil were both pronounced flavors and well balanced so that neither outshined the other. By the way this salad was gigantic!

Apple Pie: Just like Lulu's homemade pie crusts and filling. When you dive in with a fork a eruption of flaky goodness is left on your plate. Homemade pie crust is a million times better than commercial grade pie crust.

Drinks: I had their Mojitio Special Flavor of the night. Starfruit Mojito. I loved it, refreshing and tart. I would like to sum up the drink with this poem I wrote...

Carambolas in my drink
To the bottom they do sink
Mixed with lemons, rum and mint
Some sugar too, but just a hint
Over my tongue and into my gullet
A few of these and I'd even love a man with a mullet
Sip and sip and sip and slurp,
Bartender! Fix me another, I say with a burp!

Parking: Small lot adjacent to the restaurant. Easy in and out access. Otherwise street parking is available with minimal fuss.

I would definitly return to Juniper 61. We had such a fabulous evening here. Everything was tip top. I cannot recommend this place enough. Show owner comment »

Had to knock a star off due to the experience we had last night for three issues:

1) They still have a large beer selection but the bartender could not help with selection at all. She admitted she knew almost nothing about the beers.

2) We wanted to order burgers but was told they were all out of burgers as they had no ground beef.

3) I ordered the Maui Pizza instead and upon inspection found a hair melted into the cheese, this was not hair from someone's head by the way. Thank god I hadn't taken a bite yet. The bartender apologized and had a new pizza made for me. The pizza was very good.

I will return to Vecchio in the future and hopefully I will have the type of experience that will restore additional stars.

It's a buffet. The food quality is average. The price is average.  The selection is decent and I would think almost everyone could find some things they could eat. Breakfast is decent and a pretty good deal.

What can I say - They have good fricken chicken wings! Plus lots of different sauces to chose from. Yeah, it's a chain, but they're doing something right and unless the quality goes down I'll probably keep coming back for those yummy wings. They are so satisfying.

Ambiance - Drab, dismal space with no character or personality. Crappy, cheap tables.

Staff - Our waitress was average, not overly friendly or rude. Just kinda - meh. Like the décor I guess.

Food - Alright, I'll tell you a secret many, many moons ago I worked for the DeMarini's when they were up on Hwy. 100 and hadn't been there since I left 12-13 years ago. Back then the food was really really good and I couldn't wait to be swept up in the nostalgia of it. I was so sorely disappointed in how far the food quality has sunk. We're talking Titanic proportions here.

Breaded Mozzarella - Bland, tasteless - even dipping it in the sauce didn't save it. I'm not sure what brand cheese they buy but it tastes like rubber.

Garlic Bread with Cheese - Okay the waitress brings out a plate with 4 slices of..... SANDWICH BREAD!!!!! WTF? When I go to a restaurant, none the less an "authentic" ITALIAN restaurant and order garlic bread you best be coming correct with some Italian or at the very least French bread. I don't know what is with that Wonderbread sh*t but that does not cut it! And, and, and not a whiff of garlic! But don't worry that icky tasteless rubber cheese I mentioned was there to save the day. VARF.

Linguine with White Clam Sauce - Comes in a large size or a small size (just like McDonald's! Oh how quaint!). I opted for the small - thank god. The small was about a pound of linguine - I wish I were kidding. I can't imagine what a large is. Regardless - In completing the apparent tasteless theme the sauce was horrible. No taste, no richness, it was like they poured a can of carnation instant breakfast over the pasta, threw in some canned clams and called it a day.

My meal came with a side salad. I ordered it with the bleu cheese and was so excited about it and even convinced the bf to get it too. When I worked there, I use to HATE when patrons would order it because it was homemade - fresh by the server for each individual order. It was such a pain. Back then I would begrudgingly admit the dressing was phenomenal and everyone should order it. I could not wait to dig into that salad with that creamy, delicious home made blue cheese dressing. What was served was not fresh, not home made and clearly straight from an industrial sized bag of murky white dressing. - I would not feed that to a pirhana that I wanted to die.

Beverages - Eh- nothing special

To reiterate, I was so sorely disappointed in the apparent slide in quality. I remember when they use to have excellent food and a great dimly lit supper club old school appeal to the restaurant! Oh if only I could get my hands on their old bleu cheese recipe and make it myself! This place was the pits! What a sad, sad state of affairs.