The Trade Hotel, an Autograph Collection Hotel by Marriott, officially opened today at 420 W. Juneau Ave. adjacent to Fiserv Forum in the Deer District.
Built to pay homage to the various trades and tradespeople who built Milwaukee from the ground up, the hotel sports a modern industrial look and feel which embraces masonry, metal and wood to create a beautiful, state of the art environs.
In addition to hotel accommodations, The Trade boasts three food and beverage venues: The Craft gastropub, Solomon’s lounge and Il Cervo, an Italian concept from Madison’s Food Fight Restaurant Group.
While I’ll be presenting a deeper dive into all three concepts moving forward, here’s a first look at each space and a summary of their offerings.
Craft
Among the most casual concepts in The Trade, Craft is a gastropub concept, which is open seven days a week. Currently, the venue offers both breakfast options and dinner service. But both lunch and brunch will be added in the next few months.
The space itself includes a large square bar with plentiful seating and an upper bar designed by the local metalsmiths at Scathain. Guests can enjoy a curated selection of wine, craft beers on tap and a variety of cocktails.
“As we concepted Craft, we carefully considered how we would operate the venue with a high level of hospitality, both on average days and during high traffic Deer District events,” notes Alex Schubert, Director of Food & Beverage for The Trade Hotel.
In keeping with that concept is a seasonal menu of casual fare headed up by Bartolotta’s alum Chef Andrew Muraski showcasing accessible, flexible offerings that accommodate full meals or before dinner gatherings.
Breakfast offerings include Greek yogurt parfaits and acai bowls, along with heartier options like eggs benedict, short rib hash and eggs and French toast.
Meanwhile, dinner options include shareables like cheese and charcuterie, deviled eggs and house wings, along with a special jalapeno cheddar cream cheese stuffed pretzel collaboration with Milwaukee Pretzel Company.
Additional items include soups, salads and handheld options, including Craft smash burgers, a crispy chicken sandwich and smoked pulled pork. Entrees include hanger steak and frites, a Duroc tomahawk pork chop, Atlantic salmon and a Friday night fish fry featuring Third Space battered cod, potato pancakes, coleslaw and all the fixin’s.
Among the amenities for hotel guests is a formal toast, which takes place at 5 p.m. daily at Craft, and features a free pint of The Trade, a collaboration beer with Third Space Brewing.
Hours: Monday through Thursday from 6:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Friday 6:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. to midnight; Saturday 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. to midnight; and Sunday 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 3 to 10 p.m.
Solomon’s
The beautifully appointed Solomon’s lounge is open Tuesday through Saturday beginning at 4 p.m. and offers a menu of shareable plates and beverages..
Designed by NCG Hospitality designer Heather Beal, Solomon’s showcases a well appointed bar area accompanied by varied lounge-style seating.
The menu, which will change each month, includes high end shareables like seared sea scallops, freshly shucked oysters, sliced Australian Wagyu and braised octopus along with a selection of spirits (including a curated whiskey collection), cocktails and beer.
Guests can also take in the view of the Craft bar below, thanks to an open balcony in the center of the lounge.
A covered patio area offers open air seating, along with heated floors and radiant ceiling heaters to keep off the chill.
Hours: Tuesday through Thursday from 4 to 11 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4 p.m. to midnight.
Il Cervo
Il Cervo, a refined Italian concept, is located on the 9th floor of the hotel, offering dinner nightly beginning at 4 p.m.
The expansive restaurant features a main dining room with a view of the open kitchen.
The dining area is divided from a small lounge area by Il Cervo’s 1200 bottle wine collection, which focuses on regions in California and Italy.
Meanwhile a four seasons dining room connects to the bar, offering open air dining during clement months and beautiful views throughout the year.
Meanwhile, the restaurant’s wrap-around patio offers views of the Deer District as well as the surrounding city to the East.
The menu is designed to be innately flexible, with most offerings appropriate for both solo dining or sharing family-style with a group.
Highlights include housemade mozzarella flavored with Calabrian chili crisp, tomatoes and basil, and romesco and served with accouterments and housemade pastas used in dishes that vary from classic spaghetti with sunday sug, meatballs and sausage to ricotta cavatelli with wild boar ragu; and creste de gallo with wild mushrooms, asparagus, pecorino cream and black summer truffles.
Meanwhile, Il Cervo’s house-made sourdough pizzas are prepared using the restaurant’s imported gas powered Wood Stone Fire Deck. Options vary from a classic margherita to unique seasonal offerings like squash blossom, stracciatella, san marzano tomato sauce and pepitas and pancetta with braised chicory, mascarpone, spring alliums and sous vide egg.
Entrees include selections like grilled spring chicken with roasted grape verjus; Scottish salmon with beetroot buttermilk risotto and bone in filet mignon with confit potatoes and mushrooms, roasted garlic butter and black truffle vinaigrette.
Reservations are highly recommended.
Hours: Sunday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to midnight and Friday and Saturday from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m.
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.
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