Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Milwaukee

Where to host a party in Milwaukee?

InvestorMD — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:33:42 -0800

Milwaukee Filter: Where is a good place to host a get together for around 20 people with food for an average of 10-15 bucks per person? We've hosted our annual get-together at a Mexican restaurants and Olive garden's but are looking for something new. We prefer locations that are friendly to having the bill split up multiple different ways since handling a bill for 20 people is exhausting when there are mixtures of cash & credit. In addition, some people will add various mixed drinks and wines which makes splitting the bill evenly not fair.

We tried having a get together at Melting Pot but the price scared some people away, while some loved the new idea of fondue.

Atmosphere is important too. A loud bar where nobody can really talk to each other is not what we are looking for. Neither is a nice quiet restaurant since we all see each other once per year making us not the silent eaters.

These can extend to the suburbs too. Thanks!

Plan the best road trip EVER

pyrom — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 09:53:36 -0800

Help me plan the most epic road trip from Wisconsin to Aspen, Colorado! Three friends and I have just been given an awesome opportunity. We're going to visit an uncle who lives in Aspen, Colorado. He's invited us to come over the winter holidays and stay at his house and ski, provided we can get there ourselves. We want to leave the day after Christmas and come back on the 3rd of January, giving us 9 days total for the trip. We figure we'll allot two days for travel both ways, which will give us plenty of time to do some sightseeing while getting there.

I know that one stop will be Colorado Springs, because I really want to visit the Air Force Academy there. Otherwise, everything else is open.

With a quick google mapping, this will generally be the route we'll take.

Where can we stop along the way? What cities are worth walking around in? Google puts us through places like Des Moines, Omaha, and Denver. Of these cities, what are some cool things to see or places to eat?
For those of you who've been on long road trips, what should we bring to make the experience easier or more enjoyable?
What should I expect as far as driving conditions in late December through these areas?
What can we see once we're in Aspen? We figure we'll ski most days, but I'm planning on one or two off days where we'll bum around town or drive somewhere nearby. Where do you suggest we go?
Any other fun advice you can give us?

Thanks!

Tellers in crappy polos and aprons need not apply.

thebestsophist — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 10:45:05 -0800

Help me find a good credit union or small bank around Milwaukee, WI. I recently opened a business account with Guardian Credit Union but have had nothing but trouble and terribly unprofessional service. I need to move, and soon. I've had experience with other banks in the Wisconsin area, such as US Bank, Wells Fargo (though the closest one I've seen was Madison), and Associated Bank. I will not do business with any of them every again. I would think my requirements are simple, but apparently not:

Professionalism. I am never doing business with a bank where the teller is not wearing at least a button down shirt or blouse ever again. If someone is handling several thousand dollars of my money, I want them to dress like it.

Payroll for me, and my partner.

Online banking, including electronic transfers (not that many, just need to be able to do them).

Decent interest rates on savings, and checking if possible.

Responsive customer service. If I call and leave a voicemail, I expect to get a response in one business day.

Things such as being able to have a relationship with my banker, is a big plus.

Best way to move from Chicago to Milwaukee

desjardins — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 08:58:52 -0800

Need recommendations for the best (read: lowest stress) way to move from Chicago to Milwaukee. We've never dealt with a moving company before. We've moved three times in the last five years and it has ROYALLY SUCKED each time, probably because we did it ourselves (with help from family). So we're willing to pay someone this time, but we don't want to get ripped off. We have an average amount of stuff for a middle-class couple with no kids. A bedroom, a living room, 2 home offices, kitchen stuff. Nothing particularly valuable; we'll move the few sentimental things on our own.

We've had one of the most stressful summers on record, so I'd like this to go as smoothly as possible. Your suggestions?

The Fun Can Not Be Halted.

indiebass — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:21:59 -0800

Going to Milwaukee for a wedding next month. Need to rent a car, and would love to try a Nissan cube. Is this even possible? Whenever I have rented a car, it has always been utilitarian, and of course: American. So I've ended up with some Ford Focuses and the like. But I wanted to try something cool for a change, and I'll admit that those commercials have worked on me. I'll be driving to Lake Geneva from MKE, and the gas mileage seems pretty decent. I can't seem to find a way to search for a rental by vehicle, and I admit my Google-Fu may be weak. Any help from the Hive (or Milwaukee-based MeFites)?

(Any additional advice on the trip are welcomed, too. Never been to WI before, and already know I need to try 'cheese curds'. But the CUBE was the real question here)

How to choose an accountant.

thebestsophist — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:25:10 -0800

I am looking for a good accountant in the Milwaukee, WI area. I am starting a two-person LLC, any tips on either what to look for in an accountant or know of good ones in the area?

Will I get stuck in Chicago traffic if I drive from the Milwaukee airport to South Bend, Indiana, starting at 4 pm Friday?

ruff — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:28:09 -0800

Chicago-driving-filter. If I leave Milwaukee (airport) at about 4 pm on Friday, and drive to South Bend, Indiana, will I spend hours in Chicago rush hour traffic? Can I avoid that somehow? What if I could move my departure time a bit earlier? Is this the route to take? Random bonus question: anyone know a convenient Apple store along this route? Thanks!

P.S. I saw this semi-related question, but it's kind of a different route.

Best place to View a sunrise in/around Milwaukee, WI

niles — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:03:50 -0800

What is the best place to see a sunrise in/around Waukesha county, Wisconsin (just east of Milwaukee)? I had a few ideas (say, the Lapham Peak observation tower), but it turns out the State doesn't take kindly to park visitors at 5am.

For what it's worth, I'll take anything within an hour or so of the Waukesha area. Location-generic ideas (tall office buildings? I don't know) would be helpful as well.

Thanks!

Things to see or do in Milwaukee this weekend.

damn dirty ape — Fri, 22 May 2009 09:45:20 -0800

Things to see or do in Milwaukee this weekend. Im spending the weekend in Milwaukee with my SO and am looking for tourism suggestions. Other than the zoo and a museum or two we have nothing planned. I'll have a car and GPS, so I can drive around if need be. Thanks.

What's it like in the Cream City?

theantikitty — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:16:36 -0800

What's it like to live in Milwaukee? MeFi residents of the Cream City, please advise! Specific details/questions follow. So, one of the doctoral programs at UWM has extended me an amazing offer for next fall. YAY! I'm very strongly considering (and, at this point, leaning towards) taking their offer. I've done a bunch of research about the city, and I like a lot of what I see. My husband and I currently live in Pittsburgh, and I'm detecting a pretty similar vibe going on in Milwaukee. Neither of us has ever set foot in Milwaukee, though, and I would love to hear about what it's like to live there from current or past residents. Some example questions:

What are the best and worst parts about living in Milwaukee?
Is the snow and cold really as bad as people say?
Is it a mostly safe city?
Which neighborhoods should I totally avoid, keeping in mind that I will probably need to stay within reasonable distance of UWM. (A lot of people seem to refer to areas as "between this and this block," but I'm finding it a little hard to picture right now)
Which neighborhoods are great?
How bad, in general, is traffic in Milwaukee? I'm coming from the land of bridges and tunnels, so I'm assuming anything will be better than here.
What's the job market like in software/IT there? This is especially important, as my husband will need to find a new job when we move.
Any experiences with UWM as a school that people might want to share? I'll also be teaching, so I am interested in the general student population there.

If there are other relevant things that I haven't asked about (great library system? Amazing/diversity of restaurants? These festivals I keep hearing about? Lake Michigan?) please feel free to talk about those as well. Thanks for any and all responses. I'm very excited about the opportunity and the chance to live somewhere new, but I'm also feeling a bit nervous about moving across the country.

Help me find a phone booth around Milwaukee, WI.

niles — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:47:09 -0800

I need to find a phone booth in the Milwaukee, WI area - not a pay phone, but an actual booth. Is there a map/mashup online that lists US phonebooths, or do you just know of one? Every year for New Years, I participate in a scavenger hunt with a large group of people. Every year we need to take a picture of a phone booth, and every year the winner has a picture of a pay phone. In the interest of accurate scavenging (and me winning the hunt next year), can you help me find a phone booth around Milwaukee or the suburbs west of the city? All of my searching only lead me to this booth, which is a bit far downtown for the time we have. A giant listing of phone booths would be amazing!

Need ideas for a da

ok — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 18:42:55 -0800

In between Milwaukee and Chicago. Friend and I want to hang out tomorrow (10-10-08) in one or the other. Any cool idea's for something to do.

Frequent Midwest Travel Transportation

yellowbkpk — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 05:05:12 -0800

Alternative methods of traveling between Milwaukee and Minneapolis? I travel between Milwaukee and Minneapolis every 2 weeks. Earlier, I took Amtrak but their fares have gone up into the $40-100 each way range, so I switched to Megabus ($1-30 each way). I just finished my 21st Megabus ride and I've never had a normal, on-time trip. Bus breakdowns, 2+ hours late, drivers forgetting to make scheduled stops, etc. are all taking a toll on my ability to deal with this cheap travel.

Driving is $50-60 each way depending on where I stop.
Flying is $250-300 each way.

Can the AskMe universe think of a better (not necessarily cheaper than Megabus) way to travel between the two cities?

MKE rental advice

sulaine — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 09:31:47 -0800

Advice for finding a rental (house or apt) in Milwaukee? We are looking for a 2+ br rental in Bay View (preferred) or south of there (St. Franics, Cudahy, South Milwaukee). I am scouring Craigslist, but that seems to be the only place I see anything. And there are quite a few Bay View places listed, but we have a dog and a few other requirements and haven't seen anything we want yet.

I have tried newspaper ads (MKE, and Sherpherd Express, Journal Sentinel) but not much is listed. We are doing this from Madison, and have been driving over maybe once/week. I have driven around looking for signs, but that is somewhat less practical since we are usually just in town for the day.

Should I be looking anywhere else for ads? Any other advice?

A Harley is a motorcycle, right?

pitseleh — Sat, 10 May 2008 14:47:11 -0800

Please help me enjoy the Harley Davidson 105th Anniversary tickets I just bought! My partner is a big Bruce Springsteen fan, so even though we're not Harley types, I just bought tickets to the Harley Davidson 105th Anniversary festival in Milwaukee at the end of August, where Bruce and the E Street band are headlining. Unfortunately, I've now found that every hotel within 50 miles of the city is booked solid. I live only 1.5 hours away in Chicago, so we could drive into Milwaukee just for the day (or just for the Bruce concert), but even then, I'm worried about finding parking and navigating the city in general. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Bayview or Racine

sulaine — Fri, 09 May 2008 08:12:51 -0800

Which commute is better? Racine, WI to 94 and 45 in Milwaukee (Wauwatosa area) or Bayview area in Milwaukee to just south of Racine? We are moving to SE Wisconsin from Madison this summer. My boyfriend will be working just south of Racine. I will either be working at home or in Milwaukee (near where 45 and 94 meet). I am leaning towards the job in Milwaukee and am trying to gauge the commuting choices.

We are going to be renting, and ideally it would be a house (rather than apt) and would have a fenced in yard (small-tiny is okay) for our dog and allow gardening. A walkable neighborhood is best, with close local grocery, bars, restaurants being ideal.

Which living arrangement is likely to lead to the easiest commute? Keeping in mind commuting to work would probably be early in the morning (before 7) either way. Which place (Bayview vs. Racine) is likely to offer the type of living we would like?

Camping in a Car in Milwaukee.

Becko — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 20:10:48 -0800

Where is a good place to camp out in a car in Milwaukee, WI? This weekend my fiance and I are taking a trip to Milwaukee. We have a hotel room for one night, but were thinking of camping out for a second night.
We have an SUV that has seat's that fold down and has tinted windows, so we planned on packing blankets and pillows and hanging up a curtain. However, we are stuck on the location of where to camp out. Is there a safe place we can legally camp out in Milwaukee?

Real world AT&T DSL speeds?

conigs — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 12:41:49 -0800

What real-world DSL speeds (AT&T) do people experience in Milwaukee (Bay View area)? I'm currently considering switching from Time Warner Cable (7M/512k) to AT&T DSL (6M/768k, dry-no phone). However, before I actually decide to make the switch, I'm wondering what real-world speeds people are seeing from AT&T DSL in the Bay View neighborhood? I have no idea how far from the office I am and thus cannot gauge the speeds I might actually see.

If you live in the Bay View area, can you check your speed at http://speakeasy.net/speedtest and let me know your results and which package you have (1.5/3/6)? It would also be helpful to know what area of Bay View you are in (nearby cross streets), but I understand if you are uncomfortable posting that... I'd even be uncomfortable posting that.

Getting Married in Milwaukee?

yellowbkpk — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 11:57:35 -0800

Where is a cool place to get married and have a reception in or close to Milwaukee? At the risk of getting yelled at for duping this question, can anyone suggest a site for reception and ceremony in the greater Milwaukee, WI area?

I like all of the suggestions about talking to caterers and photographers in the thread I linked to above (and will definitely look into it), but can you offer and specific suggestions?

Bonus points for finding a place less expensive than the Milwaukee Art Museum's Calatrava addition (way too expensive), but just as cool.

We (the couple) are youngish, are interested in a pretty/interesting/neat-looking site, and have fairly large families. The guest list is 200 people right now.

Thanks!

Gift for Brewers fan?

airguitar2 — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 10:43:57 -0800

I need a cool gift for a Milwaukee Brewers fan. Help! Any suggestions for a gift for someone who loves the Brewers, history, and also the Packers? I know very little about baseball/football, but am wondering if there are interesting historical artifacts from the team(s) that might be cool. Any thoughts mightily appreciated!
Thanks.

Places to go in the Milwaukee area?

mcarthey — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 05:37:46 -0800

I have a friend visiting the Milwaukee area from Peru. She will be here for a number of months, so I would like to spend time showing her the local sites. I'm looking for recommendations on places to go that would represent the local culture. Summerfest and State Fair would be good examples of what I'm looking for, but they are over. Other easy things that come to mind are the Museum and Zoo, and perhaps the Domes, but I'm not sure these places would exactly be significant except that they would be a fun way to spend a day. We are going to El Tondero (Milwaukee's own self-proclaimed "only Peruvian restaurant") but I would like to find other restaurants and, perhaps, walking tours as well. I had thought of the Safehouse and then walking around the Third Ward, as well.
I'm not specifically limiting this to the Milwaukee area and would consider anything throughout the state if it were worth travelling to see.
I should add that we are both in our young to mid-30's, male and female.
Thanks!

Where's a Bears-friendly bar in Milwaukee?

pokermonk — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 16:25:51 -0800

Where is a good place to watch a Chicago Bears game while in Milwaukee? The ideal is a place where I can guarantee myself a comfortable view of the Bears/Chargers game that serves good food and is cozy enough for an S.O. to relax and maybe do some studying. But I'll listen to any options, as this may be a repeating affair.

Smooth job relocation/transition?

yellowbkpk — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 19:03:25 -0800

She said yes, you said go to her. How do I do that? I've decided that I need to go up and live with my fiance. In order to do that, I'd like to have a smooth transition into a job up in Minneapolis from my job here in Milwaukee. Based on that premise, I've got a few questions:

- When do I tell my current boss that I'd like to go up there? The company is huge and might have job openings in Minneapolis metro, but I haven't seen any on the internal job postings page since I got there in June. The project we are working on is supposed to be "done" in May 2007 or so, would that be a good time to jump ship?

- How do I approach my boss about this when I decide to tell him? We have a very good relationship (he hired me, he oversaw the internship that got him impressed with me, etc.) so I'm comfortable talking with him.

- What would a rough timeline be for a smoothish transition from Milwaukee to Minneapolis jobs? When should I give 2-week notice? When should I move? When should I make sure we (fiance and I) have an apartment that will fit us?

Thanks for whatever insights you have (you don't necessarily have to answer all the questions) in advance!

where else to go in Milwaukee?

jacobm — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 13:21:53 -0800

Another question about travelling to Milwaukee, a follow-up of sorts to Frank Grimes' recent question. My girlfriend and I are going up to Milwaukee this weekend; are there any neat non-beer/bar/brewery-related things to do and places to visit? And does anybody know of a good vegetarian restaurant or two there? I see that the collective mind gave Frank lots of good suggestions, but he was looking more for breweries, bars, that sort of thing. Unfortunately most of those suggestions don't apply to us, since we're both vegetarians and we've done enough brewery tours to last us a few lives already. I will be looking into the Jelly Belly factory and the Mars Cheese Castle, though.

Where to go in Chicago, Madison, Milwaukee (or in between)?

Frank Grimes — Sun, 05 Mar 2006 15:51:11 -0800

Chicago-Madison-Milwaukee Bachelor Party Roadtrip ideas... In two weeks I'm flying to Chicago to join a bachelor party. The plan is to drive to Ho-Chunk casino near Madison and hit New Glarus Brewery and Capital Brewery on the way. On Friday it's a trip through Milwaukee to sample their brews on the way to Chicago for St. Patrick's day. Does anyone have recommendations for cool attractions or breweries to hit? This trip is supposed to re-create a road trip that several of us took in college.