At Random is a restaurant in Milwaukee.
At Random on South Delaware Avenue in Bay View has poured tiki and dessert cocktails in a red-velvet lounge since 1964; recently revived after a brief.
Why locals love it: A red-velvet 1964 Bay View lounge with tiki and dessert cocktails revived after a brief closure recently.
Tip: Order a Tiki Love Bowl or a Pink Squirrel; cash-friendly bar with no menus on most tables.
Address: 2501 S Delaware Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53207
Sherman Phoenix on West Fond du Lac Avenue houses 30+ Black-owned food and retail businesses in the former BMO Harris Bank building, opened in 2018.
Why locals love it: 30+ Black-owned food businesses in a former bank building in Sherman Park most downtown visitors don't reach.
Tip: Try Funky Fresh Spring Rolls or Buffalo Boss wings; food court runs Monday through Saturday.
Lazy Susan on South Howell Avenue in Bay View runs a small-plates menu of wood-roasted vegetables, steamed buns and a cocktail program with an Asian pantry.
Why locals love it: A Bay View small-plates kitchen with steamed buns and wood-roasted carrots that most visitors haven't heard of and locals book year-round here.
Tip: Order the wood-roasted carrots and steamed pork buns with kimchi from the small kitchen counter.
Discourse Coffee on North Broadway downtown is a small-batch espresso bar focused on single-origin coffees, with a tight pastry case and minimal.
Why locals love it: A small-batch downtown espresso bar with minimal seating and rotating single origins most visitors miss.
Tip: Order whichever single-origin pour-over the barista recommends and watch the daily-rotating list.
Hi Hat Lounge on North Arlington Place on the Lower East Side is a classic Milwaukee cocktail lounge with a tin ceiling, brandy Old Fashioneds and the Garage.
Why locals love it: A tin-ceilinged Lower East Side cocktail lounge tucked just next to the Brady Street bar strip that most out-of-town visitors walk straight past tonight.
Tip: Order a brandy Old Fashioned and ask the bartender for the cocktail-of-the-month from the chalkboard.
Rita's Mexican Tacos on South 5th Street in Walker's Point is a small storefront known for birria de res tacos with consomme dip, hand-pressed tortillas.
Why locals love it: A Walker's Point storefront known for birria de res tacos with consomme dip that fills with lunch lines.
Tip: Order three birria tacos with consomme on the side; the cooks crisp the tortillas on the plancha.
Shahrazad on North Oakland Avenue on the East Side serves Middle Eastern food in a long-running family-run dining room with shawarma, kebabs and mezze.
Why locals love it: An East Side Middle Eastern room locals book but tourists miss, run by the same family since 1991 today.
Tip: Order the lamb shawarma plate with extra garlic sauce and a side of tabbouleh.
