On June 1, Milwaukee became home to The Palm Tavern, 2989 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., a new bar with a different feel, owned by ex-Chicagoans Bruno Johnson and his wife.
After 20 plus years in the bar business, Johnson and his wife were looking for their own place in Chicago, but found the friendly and much less expensive nearby Milwaukee more inviting.
Johnson also cites the other businesses in Bay View as an inspiration: "There's other cool places around: Cactus Club, Rush-Mor (Records), Palomino, that kind of give you a focus as to what could happen."
So what's so cool about his place? Well, for starters there are no pool tables, loud video games or intrusive music. The Palm Tavern is the kind of place you go to enjoy a good cocktail, single malt or bourbon, or, my favorite, one of 15 different Belgian Ales.
The beer list, itself, is quite extensive, featuring samplings from throughout the world. All this in an atmosphere that's hip, but welcoming enough for those in either casual or business attire. It's a bar for anyone.
"I really just want it to be a nice kind of refuge; a place that I would always want to go to," Johnson says. "The concept of the interior was to have clustered groupings of tables and chairs, so you could come in with four or five people and have a conversation, or play a game of chess, or read the paper."
Inside this refuge, there is an array of framed posters and record covers, featuring not-too-typical stuff for Milwaukee music fans. Various soul, jazz and improvised music artists line the walls, an intriguing step beyond the typical Sinatra/martini bar vibe.
{INSERT_RELATED}This intrigue is also reflected in the non-intrusive music the bar plays.
"When I initially started to put it together, I decided to focus on the years 1963-1972," Johnson explains, "pretty much anything in there. I really love jazz, I also run a jazz label. I want it to be stuff that most people haven't heard, I mean, people have heard of Coltrane, but they really haven't heard him, you know. In the evenings, I concentrate mostly on soul, from that same era, with some rock. I also play some weird English and European stuff. It's really important to me; I spent a lot of money on the sound system, I really want it to sound good -- clean and clear."
Clearly, music is really important to Johnson, who has also been the owner of the legendary Chicago jazz label Okka Disk for nine years. The label's 50 releases cover music from a variety of U.S. and European jazz artists, such as Fred Anderson, Ken Vandermark, Peter Brotzmann and many others.
Balancing the work of the label and bar is what Johnson calls, "a labor of love," and it shows. Both The Palm Tavern and Okka Disk reflect a level of quality that Milwaukee should be proud to host. Stop in, and stop in frequently. The Palm Tavern is a refreshing change of pace for people who want a good drink in a good place.
The Palm Tavern opens 3 p.m. every day.
