They say that food tastes better when it's made with love. Perhaps that explains the delectable eats at Mazo's, a family-owned and -operated restaurant since 1934.
"A lot of fads have come and gone, but we've stayed the same," says Jackie Mazo, granddaughter of John Mazo, the original owner. Jackie now runs the business with her parents, Nick (John's son) and June, who met in the restaurant in 1954 and married two years later.
When John Mazo opened the south side diner (3146 S. 27th St.), he charged a nickel for his soon-to-be-famous burgers. Today, the sliders are still affordable (between $4-6.50), made from John's original recipes and fresh-ground every day. They aren't quite as large as Kopp's, or quite as buttery as Solly's, but every bit as satisfying.
{INSERT_RELATED}All sandwiches, including the classic-diner-delicious grilled cheese, come with two "sides" -- something Mazo's offered long before Boston Market -- of either fries, soup, baked beans, cottage cheese, cole slaw or apple sauce.
The family makes all of their own soups, chili sausage and cole slaw dressing, and June's homemade cheese pie is a favorite among regulars.
Although the menu has stayed the same, the decor recently changed. In January, the family closed the restaurant's doors for the first time in twenty- five years and spent three weeks remodeling. Nick, now 70, made new wooden tables to replace the booths, while other Mazo family members replaced the floor and created a brighter, sparser space.
Before the remodeling, the walls were covered with memorabilia, including vintage license plates and newspaper articles from the '30s. "It used to be that if you wanted something on the walls, you just had to bring it in," Jackie Mazo says. "When we remodeled, it took us an entire day to take everything down."
Today, there are fewer wall hangings, mostly oil paintings of musicians and celebrities from decades passed. The paintings, brushed by a customer's wife, originally hung in Nick's rec room.
"No one can ever guess the Jerry Vail," Mazo says, referring to a portrait in the collection which also includes Dean Martin, Johnny Cash, Nat King Cole and Andy Williams.
Sadly, John Mazo passed away last December, but he left behind a solid business and loving family, including a dedicated great-granddaughter. Nine-year-old Kathryn is Jackie's daughter, and these days, you might see her helping out around the restaurant.
"She's the same age I was when I started working here," Jackie says. "She comes in to help papa make hamburger and mom cook the eggs. It's good as long as it's not too many hours... She always says someday she's going to be here all the time, but we'll see."
Mazo's is open Tuesday-Saturday from 8 a.m.-7 p.m.
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.
