"Bar Month" at OnMilwaukee is back! For the entire month of March, we're serving up fun articles on bars, clubs and beverages – including guides, the latest trends, bar reviews, the results of our Best of Bars poll and more. Follow along with the #DrinkOnMke hashtag too. Grab a designated driver and dive in!
It's March, and that means there's madness in the air. But the madness vibe is particularly strong at Don's Diner & Cocktails, 1100 S. 1st St., where they're gearing up for a contest unlike any other.
In fact, if coming up with amazing flavor combinations is your jam, then they've got a contest ready and waiting for you. All you have to do is come up with the craziest – and most delicious – boozy milkshake concoction that this world has ever seen.
You up for the challenge?
Get all the deets
The contest, which launches this weekend, will pit 16 amazing milkshake flavor ideas against one another in a bracket-style competition during which Facebook voters will determine the lucky winner. The winner's creation will be featured for a limited time on the Don’s menu and he or she will receive free Don’s milkshakes for an entire year (one milkshake per week for 52 weeks).
Sunday, March 8 through Saturday, March 13, boozy shake creators can submit their ideas for the contest in one of three ways:
- Head to Don’s Diner and submit a shake idea sheet … while you enjoy one of their current boozy shakes for inspiration, of course!
OR - Create an Instagram post (any picture to help sell your idea will do) with a caption describing your milkshake concept. Be sure to tag @donsmke and use hashtag #donsmke #milkshakemadness in your post.
OR - Head to the Don's Diner Facebook page and leave your idea in a comment on the "Don’s Milkshake Madness" event discussion board.
From there, Stand. Eat. Drink. Staff will choose the 16 flavors that will be included in the competition. Those flavors will be entered into a bracket and the public will be able to vote for their favorites on Facebook (beginning March 14), advancing winning entries round by round until the Final Four is reached.
Taste the Final Four on Mad Shake Sunday
The Final Four shakes will then go head-to-head in a Mad Shake Sunday battle on March 29 from 5 to 7 p.m. During the event, attendees will be able to sample all four shakes and vote for their favorites alongside a panel of MKE Proud judges.
The cost to participate in the judging is $10 per person and includes four shake samples. Half of the proceeds will be donated to a local charitable organization.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
