The plates that define Milwaukee: what they are, where they came from, and where to eat the canonical version.
Signature dishes
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Wisconsin Friday fish fry ★ 4.9
The Friday fish fry is Wisconsin's social meal: beer-battered or breaded lake perch, cod or walleye with rye bread, coleslaw, French fries or potato pancakes.
Where to try it: Lakefront Brewery, Five O'Clock Steakhouse, River Lane Inn, Blue Jacket, Buckatabon Tavern and Supper Club
Price: $15-22 per plate
Wisconsin's Friday fish fry began in 19th-century Catholic Lent observance, when the German and Polish immigrant population avoided meat on Fridays. Through Prohibition, taverns moved beer revenue into hot food, with the all-you-can-eat fish fry becoming Wisconsin's defining social meal by the 1930s. Today every Wisconsin supper club, brewery hall and corner tavern from Milwaukee to Madison runs a Friday fish fry; Lakefront Brewery's Riverwest hall with the polka band, established in 1986, is the city's defining version.
Watch out for: Gluten, Fish
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Butter burger ★ 4.9
The Milwaukee butter burger is a fresh-griddled beef patty with a generous pat of butter melted on top, served on a toasted bun with stewed onions.
Where to try it: Solly's Grille, Sobelman's Pub and Grill, Kopp's Frozen Custard, AJ Bombers
Price: $8-12 per burger
Kenneth Salmon, known as Solly, opened Solly's Coffee Shop in 1936 near Green Bay and Burleigh, and the shop popularised the butter burger, a pat of butter on a fresh-griddled patty with stewed onions; the diner moved to North Port Washington Road in Glendale in 1971. The style spread to Sobelman's, Kopp's and other Milwaukee chains, and the term butter burger entered the Milwaukee lexicon by the 1950s. Solly's still serves the original version with the butter visible on the patty as you eat it; Sobelman's adds toppings; Kopp's pairs it with daily-changing frozen custard.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy
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Wisconsin cheese curds ★ 4.9
Wisconsin cheese curds are squeaky fresh cheese pieces, either eaten raw or beer-battered and deep-fried, served with ranch dipping sauce as a Wisconsin bar.
Where to try it: Lakefront Brewery, Kil@Wat, Crafty Cow, AJ Bombers, Sobelman's Pub and Grill
Price: $8-12 per basket
Wisconsin's cheese curd tradition dates to the state's 19th-century immigrant Swiss and German cheesemakers, who sold the byproduct curds from cheddar production fresh at the dairy door. The fried cheese curd, deep-fried in a beer batter, became a Wisconsin tavern staple in the 1970s when state cheesemakers and brewers cross-promoted; today fried curds appear on every Wisconsin tavern, brewpub and supper club menu. Clock Shadow Creamery in Walker's Point produces them fresh daily for Milwaukee restaurants.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy
Book food experiences in Milwaukee
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Wisconsin frozen custard ★ 4.9
Wisconsin frozen custard is a denser, richer cousin of ice cream made with extra egg yolks and slow-churned at low overrun, served in cones, cups.
Where to try it: Kopp's Frozen Custard, Leon's Frozen Custard
Price: $4-7 per scoop
Wisconsin frozen custard emerged from Coney Island and Atlantic City beachfront stands in the 1910s, but found its home in Milwaukee when Leon Schneider opened Leon's Frozen Custard on South 27th Street in 1942 and Elsa Kopp opened Kopp's in 1950 in Glendale. Both used continuous-churn machines that produce custard at very low overrun, making it denser than ice cream; the high egg-yolk content makes it richer. Milwaukee now has more frozen custard stands per capita than any US city.
Watch out for: Dairy, Eggs
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Wisconsin Old Fashioned ★ 4.9
The Wisconsin Old Fashioned uses Korbel brandy instead of whiskey, muddled with a sugar cube, orange slice, maraschino cherry and Angostura bitters.
Where to try it: Bryant's Cocktail Lounge, Five O'Clock Steakhouse, Boone and Crockett, Hi Hat Lounge, At Random
Price: $10-14 per drink
The Old Fashioned cocktail originated in Louisville in the 1880s with whiskey. Wisconsin's variant emerged in the 1880s when the state's German and Polish immigrant population preferred brandy, which had been imported in volume from Germany. Korbel Brandy from California, distributed cheaply across the Midwest, became the canonical pour; by the 1950s the Wisconsin Old Fashioned was a defining state cocktail. Bryant's Cocktail Lounge in Lincoln Village has poured no-menu Old Fashioneds since 1938.
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Bratwurst on a hard roll ★ 4.9
Milwaukee bratwurst is beer-simmered then char-grilled, served on a Sheboygan-style hard roll with stadium mustard, sauerkraut and a glass of Wisconsin lager.
Where to try it: Usinger's Famous Sausage, The Vanguard, Old German Beer Hall, Lakefront Brewery
Price: $5-9 per brat
Bratwurst reached Milwaukee with the German immigrant wave of the 1840s and became the city's signature sausage by 1880, when Fred Usinger opened his sausage shop on Old World Third Street. Sheboygan, an hour north, claims the hard-roll style; Milwaukee took up the bratwurst on a hard roll as its tailgate, Summerfest and Brewers-stadium food. Usinger's still makes the canonical version; the bratwurst remains the city's defining sausage in 2026.
Watch out for: Gluten
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Kringle ★ 4.7
Kringle is a long oval Danish pastry with fruit or pecan filling, baked from layered laminated dough and topped with icing, the official state pastry.
Where to try it: National Bakery and Deli, Grebe's Bakery, Peter Sciortino's Bakery
Price: $15-25 per kringle
Danish immigrants brought the kringle to Racine, Wisconsin, in the late 1800s; by 1949 the O&H Danish Bakery in Racine was producing them at scale. The Wisconsin Legislature declared the kringle Wisconsin's official state pastry in 2013. Today O&H ships them nationally, but Milwaukee bakeries including National Bakery, Grebe's and Holtz also produce them, especially around the Christmas holidays.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy
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Wisconsin State Fair cream puff ★ 4.8
The Wisconsin State Fair cream puff is a baked choux pastry shell filled with sweetened whipped cream and dusted with powdered sugar, sold by the dozen each.
Where to try it: Milwaukee Public Market, Grebe's Bakery
Price: $5 per puff
The cream puff was introduced at the Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis in 1924 by the Wisconsin Bakers Association, which still operates the booth. By 2026 the Cream Puff Pavilion sells more than 400,000 cream puffs during the 11-day fair each August, making it the fair's most-ordered single item. The recipe has not changed in over 100 years; choux pastry, sweetened whipped cream, powdered sugar dust.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy, Eggs
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Pierogi ★ 4.6
Pierogi are Polish dumplings of dough wrapped around fillings including potato and cheese, sauerkraut and mushroom, or sweet farmer cheese, boiled then.
Where to try it: National Bakery and Deli
Price: $10-15 per plate
Polish immigrants brought pierogi to Milwaukee in the 1880s and 1890s, settling the South Side around what became Lincoln Village. By the 1950s Polish bakeries and South Side delis sold them by the dozen; New Palace Bakery and South Side delis carry the tradition forward. Polish Fest at the lakefront each June is the largest Polish festival in the US, with pierogi by the thousand.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy, Eggs
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Milwaukee-style pizza ★ 4.5
Milwaukee-style pizza is a thin, crispy cracker-crust pie cut into squares rather than triangles, often topped lightly with cheese, sausage and house-made.
Where to try it: Transfer Pizzeria Cafe
Price: $18-25 per pizza
Milwaukee-style pizza traces to the city's Italian-American population in the 1950s and 1960s, when Brady Street pizzerias began baking cracker-thin pies cut into squares, a style locally known as tavern-cut. Maria's Pizza on West Forest Home Avenue, opened in 1957, is considered the canonical Milwaukee-style pizzeria; Zaffiro's on East Farwell since 1954 and Pizza Man, opened in 1969, are part of the same tradition.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy
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Lake Michigan perch ★ 4.7
Lake Michigan yellow perch is a sweet, mild freshwater fish, traditionally beer-battered or pan-fried, served on rye with tartar sauce and lemon.
Where to try it: Lakefront Brewery, River Lane Inn, Third Coast Provisions, Blue Jacket
Price: $18-26 per plate
Lake Michigan yellow perch has been the canonical Wisconsin fish fry fish since the early 20th century, when commercial fishing fleets out of Milwaukee, Sheboygan and Two Rivers landed perch by the ton. The Wisconsin DNR limited commercial perch fishing in the 1990s after stocks declined, but recreational fishing still supplies area restaurants, and Lakefront Brewery, Pier 222 and River Lane Inn still feature it on the Friday fish fry.
Watch out for: Gluten, Fish
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Wisconsin beer cheese soup ★ 4.5
Wisconsin beer cheese soup is a thick, savory soup made with sharp cheddar cheese, Wisconsin lager and a mirepoix base, served with a soft pretzel or rye.
Where to try it: Mader's Restaurant, Old German Beer Hall
Price: $8-12 per bowl
Wisconsin beer cheese soup emerged from the state's brewing and dairy industries in the 1940s and 1950s, when German immigrant cooks combined leftover sharp cheddar with the abundant local lager to create a thick warming soup. By the 1970s it was a Wisconsin tavern staple; Old German Beer Hall, Mader's and many supper clubs still feature it on the menu. It is the unofficial soup of the Wisconsin winter Friday night.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy
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Lake Michigan smoked whitefish ★ 4.4
Lake Michigan whitefish, brined then cold-smoked over apple or maple wood, served as a whole fish or flaked into salads, dips and chowders across Milwaukee.
Where to try it: Third Coast Provisions, Milwaukee Public Market
Price: $15-25 per pound
Commercial whitefish fishing on Lake Michigan dates to the mid-1800s when German and Scandinavian fishermen settled the Lake Michigan ports of Milwaukee, Sheboygan, Manitowoc and Two Rivers. Smoking preserved the catch for shipment inland; Empire Fish Co. on East Layton Avenue and Susie Q Fish Market on East Mason Street still smoke whitefish daily. The smoked fish is now a Wisconsin specialty staple, paired with rye crackers, dilled cream cheese and a beer.
Watch out for: Fish
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Italian-American cannoli ★ 4.6
Cannoli are Italian-American crisp fried pastry shells filled with sweetened ricotta cheese and chocolate chips, dusted with powdered sugar.
Where to try it: Peter Sciortino's Bakery
Price: $3-5 per cannolo
Cannoli reached Milwaukee with the Sicilian immigrant population in the late 1800s and early 1900s, who settled the Brady Street neighborhood. Peter Sciortino opened his bakery on East Brady Street in 1948; his ricotta-filled cannoli became the canonical Milwaukee version. Festa Italiana on the lakefront each July features dozens of cannoli vendors. The Milwaukee cannoli uses fresh whole-milk ricotta and includes mini chocolate chips and citrus zest in the filling.
Watch out for: Gluten, Dairy, Eggs
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Polish kielbasa ★ 4.5
Polish kielbasa is a coarse-textured smoked garlic sausage made from pork shoulder and back fat, served grilled or boiled on rye with mustard.
Where to try it: Usinger's Famous Sausage
Price: $8-14 per plate
Polish kielbasa reached Milwaukee with the Polish immigrant wave of the 1880s and 1890s, who settled the South Side around Lincoln Village. The Polonia neighborhood and South Side delis still produce kielbasa from family recipes; Maciolek Bakery and Sausage on South 17th Street and Srodek's in Hamtramck-style production are canonical sources. Polish Fest at the lakefront each June draws crowds for kielbasa, pierogi and Polish beer.
Signature Dishes in Milwaukee, FAQ
What food is Milwaukee known for?
Milwaukee's signature dishes include Wisconsin Friday fish fry, Butter burger, Wisconsin cheese curds, Wisconsin frozen custard, Wisconsin Old Fashioned. See our signature dishes chapter for where to eat each.