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When Ryan Gardner turned 21, friends took him to Curly's Waterfront in Pewaukee to celebrate. Little did he know at the time he would some day own the bar and grill overlooking Pewaukee Lake.
Gardner started out at Curly's as a "door guy," and then worked as a bartender, manager and the general manager. When the former owner and namesake of the resort, Kevin "Curly" Kleczka, passed away, Gardner and his wife, April, purchased the bar from Kleczka's estate.
"We were happy to keep it going," says Gardner, who officially took over ownership in March of 2023.
Buying the bar appealed to the Gardeners because they already knew many of the customers and wanted to give back to the community. They established a $10K scholarship at Pewaukee High School and have donated to many causes. The couple, who have a 12-year-old autistic son, have raised more than $100,000 for various autism support and awareness organizations.
What to expect at Curly's Waterfront
The vibe at Curly's is friendly and relaxed. The space features a 24-foot ceiling with a canoe hanging from it over a large bar; a patio overlooking the lake; a plethora of indoor seating; lots of beer and sports memorabilia; and 15 TVs for unrestricted Packers games viewing.
Packers and Badgers seasons are huge deals at Curly's. Traditionally, Gardner hosted raffles for team jerseys on game days/nights, and this year, will also raffle off two 75-inch Samsung televisions.
In the summer, the clientele is a mix of neighborhood people and those who boat in for food and drink. In the winter, instead of boaters, ice fishers bring a lot of business to Curly's.
"We're just as busy in the winter as we are in the summer because non-profit groups host ice fishing jamborees and we have a lot of meat raffles," says Gardner.
Curly's high-end meat raffles offer steaks, bags of shrimp, pork tenderloins and more.
Curly's Waterfront food and drink menu
Primarily a beer-and-shot bar, Curly's sells domestic beers and simple mixers like Jack or Captain's and Coke. A seasonal cocktail menu is also available.
On the food side, Curly's has a large menu of scratch-made food, including pizza, burgers, sandwiches, salads, wraps and an extensive Friday Fish fry. The fish fry options are baked or beer-battered cod, and shrimp, perch, walleye and bluegill dinners. There's also a Catch of the Week special. All of the meals come with rye bread, coleslaw and a choice of fries, tots, haystack onion strings or potato pancakes.
Curly's hosts a weekday happy hour from 3 to 6 p.m.; Monday Wing Nights; Taco Tuesdays; Rib Dinner and Bingo Wednesdays; Sliders and Trivia Thursdays and a Hangover Burger on Saturdays and Sundays.
"We couldn't do it without our staff," says Gardner. "I do everything I can to bring people through the door, because our staff is awesome."
Curly's Waterfront Sports Bar & Grill is worth the drive for a lake view, friendly folks and oodles of Wisconsin food and drink classics. The bar and grill is open daily from 11 a.m. until 2 or 2:30 a.m.
For more information, go to Curly's Website here. Follow Curly's Facebook page here.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.