Loved my first trip to Milwaukee (Glendale, Lincoln: salons, city hall, condos)

[Bondurant]

Last weekend I visited Milwaukee for the first time. Visited an old friend that lives near Timmerman Airport. The main reason for the trip was to attend the Monday Night Football game at Lambeau and watch my beloved Detroit Lions on the road. Aside from this past Monday the entire trip was in Milwaukee and I loved it.

Downtown has beautiful architecture. The food was amazing. My friend took me on a cemetery tour to see the final resting places of the barons of beer and encased meats. I paid my respects to Blatz, Schlitz, Miller and Pabst & Klement and Usinger. The public museum was fantastic. Loved the Streets of Old Milwaukee exhibit. I've been a longtime fan of Sprecher root beer so my friend took me to the brewery in Glendale. Sampled other flavors I hadn't seen elsewhere.

On my last day, Tuesday, we walked a bit downtown, had lunch at Old German Beer Hall and checked out the city hall building.

Had a blast. I spent a decade living in the Chicago area and had always heard great things about Milwaukee but never made it up there. My loss.

Just wanted to drop by your forum and pay my respects to Milwaukee. A great city you all have.

[adr3naline]

Milwaukee is indeed a great city. Underrated, but that's changing.

If it were not for the frigid weather, I would have stayed.

[cfbs2691]

Originally Posted by adr3naline

Milwaukee is indeed a great city. Underrated, but that's changing.

If it were not for the frigid weather, I would have stayed.

Ditto!

Glad you had a good time OP!

[Master Jay]

Bondurant, what part of Chicagoland were you from? I have been a fan of Chicagoland for a long time. I make the trip down on a weekly basis, and prefer it to Milwaukee, actually! I have met many people in Chicago (the city) that have not left their own neighborhoods, let alone venturing out of Illinois. THAT always struck me as a Chicago thing.... But also, I have met plenty of Chicago-land people that do quick getaways to Wisconsin, the same way i do that in Illinois!- Jay

[Chicago Wanna-be]

I know I'm in the minority in this viewpoint, but I find Chicago far friendlier than Milwaukee, and I am a Milwaukee native who, for various reasons, still lives here. I used to work in the northern suburbs of Chicago (Lincolnshire, IL) and did the daily commute. Here's why I feel the way I do:

Milwaukee, in my opinion, is a city where people get married early in life, stay married for better or worse, tend to hang around only with people that they've known for years and years and years, and are very wary of letting "newcomers" into their inner circle. Every social event seems to involve A LOT of drinking. If you are a single or divorced guy, you quickly find out that the available women act like they are Playboy centerfold models even though a lot of them are average-looking at best. Why do they act that way ? Because they know that there's a lot more available single and divorced guys in Milwaukee than there are single and divorced women. So they can be choosy and have the upper hand in whom they choose. And all people seem to talk about are the Packers, cars and deer hunting. Conversations seldom get very intellectual. And I've never seen a city where there is so much white flight to the suburbs. Professionals who work downtown flee as soon as they are done for the day. There is a slight exception: the downtown Third Ward area, which used to be a lot of abandoned warehouses, is attracting some attractive boutique shops, beauty salons, coffee shops and restaurants. But most of the people who hang out there are VERY well-paid, younger professionals. The condos that have opened up there are in renovated warehouses. They are attractive, but again, we're talking big bucks.

On the positive side, there are tons of good restaurants, fun summer ethnic festivals (which again involve a ton of drinking), and a nice lakefront. And the cost of living is less than Chicago overall, and there's less congestive traffic. But I find Chicago to be far more welcoming to transients and newcomers. If Chicago was less expensive, there really would be no contest between the two.

Just my opinion.

[Master Jay]

Chicago Wanna-be: I'm with you! I'm a Milwaukee native that spends weekends in the great city of Chicago, for the last several years!

[jefffla01]

I prefer Milwaukee to Chicago.
I find the people to be very friendly......there may be groups of people who have their own inner circles, but on the whole I find the people in Milwaukee to be just as friendly or even more so, than Chicago.
Milwaukee is an underrated city, and the word is getting out. Chicago is nice for an occasional weekend getaway, but Milwaukee has almost everything Chicago has, just on a little less grandiose scale.

[WINH]

I too prefer Milwaukee to Chicago by a huge margin. Daughter and husband live in Chicago and I absolutely hate going there for too many reasons to articulate all of them Am only 2 hours away in WI and go there only if it is a must. Went there the weekend after Thanksgiving and the people were truly rude on the streets and in stores. Sorry but less is better in Milwaukee.

[Master Jay]

Well, I can say this: As the 3rd largest city in the United States, I have had 2 or 3 experiences where a Chicago resident remembered me from either a one-time conversation in a park, or serving me a drink one time at a church festival, that took place months or even a YEAR prior! Now, THAT is saying something about the friendliness and warmth of people that I experienced in the great city of CHICAGO!

[Mezter]

I've been very interested in Milwaukee lately.Just looking around on Google Maps, it looks like an underrated city. The waterfront and amazing architecture look amazing. I'm a little surprised it's not more talked about when it looks like that.