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    Mader's

    3.7 (820 reviews)
    ModerateGerman
    Open • 11:30 am - 10:00 pm

    Mader's Photos

    MADER'S ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Classy
    Dogs allowed
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Mader's

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    Brent E.

    It was so refreshing to eat a good German restaurant. I do not understand A poor reviews. The place is classic. The service was great in the bar. The food was a very fair value and extremely tasty. I had a German sampler and an apple strudel with vanilla ice cream. The strudel is prepared fresh. The beer selection was nice and the heffevisen paired well with my meal. The ambience was totally old world.

    Judith C.

    This place is always at the top of the game. If you're looking for good food consistently, Maders is your stop. Service is spot on and place is Old World flavor. Beer selection is the best of German beers. If you eat your once, I promise you .....you'll always come back

    Cyrus A.

    Good German food in a historic setting, all with fantastic service! I came to Mader's for some schnitzel and spaten, and they delivered. The schnitzel wasn't the thinnest I've had, but it had a nice breaded crust and the gravy that came with it was tasty. Spaten was okay, nothing too noteworthy there. For dessert, the server brought out a whole tray with sample platings to choose from, so old school and a really nice touch (worked on me, I ordered one!). Matt was a fantastic server, very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu, with good recommendations and even advice on sightseeing in Milwaukee. The building has an old world feel, like dining in a medieval hall. The stained glass and knight armor make the trip that much more fun. Is it the best meal in Milwaukee? I'm sure there's other, modern cuisine but Mader's is an experience worth checking out!

    Reuben rolla which were a little heavy in the kraut
    Lori L.

    Mader's is an iconic restaurant with amazing German decor that is worth seeing just to check out the beautiful stained glass windows. Service is always impeccable with a valet service for cars because parking is not easy in this area. Water is constantly refilled and they don't miss a beat. We went for lunch downtown dining week because I haven't been in years and two friends had never been there before. I didn't make the best meal choice with Reuben rolls and Jager schnitzel. Friend chose the pretzel and the beef goulash which was way better than what I ordered. The Reuben rolls were mostly kraut and very little else so I ate a few bites and was done. The pretzel however was served warm with fried pretzel spears which were very flavorful and hot. Pretzel also came with cheese and mustard. The schnitzel was very bland and as well as the spaetzle. It needed salt and just flavor. I know they cater to a more senior crowd so that explains the salt it yourself. The beef goulash did need some salt but it at least had flavor. Mader's is definitely a tourist destination and should be seen for the novelty of the decor. However if you're looking for good German food I would try another restaurant. Hopefully as the client base ages they can draw in new crowd.

    Old fashioned
    Julian W.

    A unique restaurant specializing in German cuisine. The Tour of Germany serves two and samples some of their signature dishes - including the schnitzel, pork shank, and ham. They have a giant pretzel (not listed on the menu) that could easily serve as an appetizer for 6-8. The old fashioned was ok but nothing impressive unfortunately. Our waitress was very nice, and extremely attentive. The interior of Mader's is so unique and full of history. The art, trinkets, and mounted weaponry alone made it worth visiting.

    One of the finest restaurants in the country. I've been coming here for over 50 years and Mader's has never failed to please. Authentic German cuisine in authentic German surroundings. Feels so much like places I've eaten in Europe and the food is delicious. Add a tremendous collection of bona fide medieval armor and weaponry and it really does feel as though your visiting a German hunting lodge. Wonderful experience, always.

    Potato Pancakes
    Tiffany L.

    While visiting WI for my nieces graduation, we came here after the ceremony. I loved loved loved the ambiance in this restaurant! So much history, and the fact that our waiter educated us on so much of the restaurants history was an added plus. Even though I found the food to be bland, the cocktails and service were amazing. We ordered the potato pancakes, pretzel loaf, kartoffelsuppe, butter chicken schnitzel, and apple strudel. The soup and loaf were pretty good, but everything else just didn't do it for me personally.

    Dining Room (of several)
    Jack G.

    Very good German comfort food. Generous portions. The plate-sized off-menu pretzel (just ask for one) is great; ideal appetizer for a group while enjoying drinks and deciding what to order. Decent traditional German dishes. Lovely service and great Bavarian ambiance.

    Men's Restroom
    Joe S.

    If you give a Schnitzel about good German food and you're in downtown Milwaukee, you have to give Mader's a try. It was a short walk from the hotel and although it was a bit pricey, it was worth it, especially since it was on an expensable meal. The complimentary pretzel bread was good and came with plenty of butter! Service was pretty awesome with the waitress letting us know there would be plenty of food with our schnitzel meals, and she was right. There were two nice pieces of pounded breaded pork over a nice pile of spatzel which was definitely homemade. I ordered it Jager style which had a delicious mushroom gravy. I had an espresso martini as I had just had some beers at another spot and needed a pick-me-up to get through the dinner after a long week. Great meal, cool place, and excellent service.

    Breanne B.

    Excellent experience! We were fortunate to be there for a group event. Appetizers included mushroom bites in phyllo dough, spanakopita, quiches, sausages and sauerkraut. Entree was a phenomenal salmon with spätzle. Waiters were dressed up and the espresso martini was the best I've had. I definitely had two of those. This was a business trip and I hope to be back next year. Thank you!!!!

    Pretzel loaf
    Norah T.

    Finally had the chance to go to Maders after living in Milwaukee for 20 years. The inside was gorgeous with all the interior decorations being older and historical. We ordered the pretzel loaf as an appetizer and it was the perfect size and it was nice and warm. I got the butter chicken schnitzel which was good. I loved the light cream sauce, but I wish there was more because the spatzle was very plain and did not have much flavor. The dish only came with 3 broccoli which was not enough. The chicken was great though, nice and crispy. For dinner we split the apple strudel which was crispy, hot, and had lots of caramel. I love this history of Milwaukee and recommend people to give it a try. Very expensive though!!!

    The bread pudding wasn't what I hoped for.
    Clark B.

    Maders is an old place with claims to great German food. They get the old right, and the decor is awesome. The food doesn't live up to my - admittedly high - expectations. I ordered a Hefe weizen and Jaeger Schnitzel. I'd well reviewed the menu before going since I had to wait relatively late to get a seat on a busy game night. The food came quickly, but my Spidey senses immediately flared up when I saw the mushroom sauce on the side. Look, Jaeger Schnitzel needs an abundance of thick sauce. This was thin and light on mushrooms, they offered to bring more but it just set me back. This is the second time I've seen this and it made me sad. The schnitzel and spaetzle itself was okay. The sauce marginal. The sauerkraut wasn't wonderful but I don't usually like it. There was a lot of food but I did try the dessert which was a chocolate bread pudding with brandied cherries and pecans. Wasn't sure if they could remove the pecans but they did. I didn't care for it. Service was quick and fine with garbed gals in dirndls and guys in lederhosen. I give it a 3.6 which rounds to a generous 4.

    Struedel at german restaurant Mader's
    Susan S.

    German restaurant fixture in Milwaukee. Traditional fare. Good service. A must try when you are in Milwaukee.

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    Page 1 of 21

    Ask the Community - Mader's

    Does their bar have TVs?

    It does! They're not super conveniently placed. And they're a little bit smaller, but they are there!

    How is the Sunday brunch?

    Their brunch is Awesome! Definitely worth every penny. The variety of food to build your own omelette. Starter's,fruit, pastries, choice of meats, soups salads...well, what can I say just amazing. I will recommend to come hungry. They're now only… 

    Does anyone know when it'll reopen? I signed up for the email newsletter and they sent me a 20% off coupon but it expires tomorrow.

    If you go to their webpage they'll have a pop up and it talks about them being closed and if you leave your email address there they will send you an email when they are open or will be open

    Is there a dress code?

    No. Casual. Don't miss the liver dumpling soup.

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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    Milwaukee Brat House - Southsider / Tots

    Milwaukee Brat House

    4.1(871 reviews)
    0.0 mi•Downtown, Westown, Bronzeville
    •$$

    Introduction including Milwaukee Sports:…read more Final of 3 reviews representing 3rd quarter of 2021 in scrapbook series is Brat House. In September 2021, I went on a Chicago/Milwaukee vacation. I attended 3 baseball games: White Sox, Cubs, & Brewers (in chronological order) on 3 consecutive days with my friend who joined me for the vacation. Of the 3 baseball games I went to my conclusion is Go Brewers! My favorite basketball team, Phoenix Suns, where I'm from before living in the DC area the past 15 years, lost to Milwaukee Bucks in 2021 championship, which was disappointing. But I was happy for the Bucks as they seemed to be a nice team and was glad it wasn't Lakers, Knicks, or Spurs. Speaking of the Bucks, Milwaukee Brat House is right by where the Bucks play in what they call the Deer District. Experience: My friend was a bit crazy. He wanted to go to a baseball game a 4th consecutive night for a 2nd time in a row for Brewers. As great of time as I had, I wanted to see other things in Milwaukee. So, I drove around the around seeing various things. Then, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to eat for dinner and gravitated to the deer district area. I walked along Doctor MLK Jr Drive, a nice corridor with various bars & restaurants. I settled on Milwaukee Brat House. I ate outside as it was pretty busy, was hungry and just wanted to eat. I ended up getting a bratwurst and cheese curds. I think they had BOGO beer as I had 2 beers (as pictured). Brat was great, but I stopped eating pork not long after; so I'd probably get a standard hot dog. The #1 selling point for me was getting cheese curds. When in Rome in Wisconsin, I wanted more cheese curds. They were awesome! The beer was great too; I purposefully picked some local beer company. The server was nice & helpful too. Overall, a great choice.

    If you're in Milwaukee and looking for a great place to grab a brat, Milwaukee Brat House is…read moredefinitely worth a visit. It was a busy location, which is always a good sign, but the service kept things moving. The giant pretzel was excellent--crispy on the outside with just the right amount of salt and perfectly soft on the inside. The variety of dipping sauces made it even better. The cheese curds were also delicious and are a must-try if you're visiting Wisconsin. The bratwurst was very good and full of flavor. Overall, everything we ordered was enjoyable, and I'd definitely recommend stopping by Milwaukee Brat House if you're in the area.

    Photos
    Milwaukee Brat House - Bar and dining areas

    Bar and dining areas

    Milwaukee Brat House - Jumbo Bavarian Pretzel

    Jumbo Bavarian Pretzel

    Milwaukee Brat House - Cutest darn chaser with the Bloody Mary. Ask for a bit of spice, delish!

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    Cutest darn chaser with the Bloody Mary. Ask for a bit of spice, delish!

    Old German Beer Hall - Giant Bavarian Pretzel

    Old German Beer Hall

    3.9(343 reviews)
    0.0 mi•Downtown, Westown, Bronzeville
    •$$

    Our grandson brought us to the OGBH for lunch yesterday. The experience was great! The seating and…read moredecorations, especially in the back half of the restaurant, brought to mind several of the authentic Gasthäuser I visited in the Black Forest of Germany when I was in the Army in the early 70s. The food and drink were just as evocative. I had the pork schnitzel with mushroom gravy and pomme frites. My grandson ordered the currywurst (fried sausage in a delicious curry-tomato sauce). My wife went vegetarian with rotkraus (roasted red cabbage) and kartoffelsalat (warm German potato salad). All of the food was outstanding. I paired my meal with a liter stein of true German Dunkel. We will definitely be returning!!

    This is do not miss place - somehow I have missed this on every trip to Milwaukee...including at…read moreleast a dozen on the same street! How does this happen? Thanks as always to Yelp for finding OGBH - because this place is AWESOME! We wanted to sit at the bar, but the bar was busy, so we grabbed a table in the other room and the bartender came to us about 4 minutes later and said there were 2 spots at the bar! So, we moved to the bar and thoroughly enjoyed the next 3 hours - we might still be there, if it wasn't for the Brewers game we had tickets to! We enjoyed several different beers on tap, talked with the bartenders - specifically Mitch and Sarah and of course the other people at the bar. We enjoyed the OGBH Brat - for sure the best brat I have ever had. The bun is perfectly warm and toasty, the brat is delicious and full of flavor and of course, it's snappy! We even tried the bavarian pretzel with the yummy cheese! I love this place - I don't have to search for anywhere else to go now that I have found this gem!

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    Old German Beer Hall
    Old German Beer Hall - Not seasoned spatzel but still good

    Not seasoned spatzel but still good

    Old German Beer Hall - Dunkel and Amber

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    Dunkel and Amber

    Kegel's Inn - Pretzel

    Kegel's Inn

    3.9(362 reviews)
    4.1 mi
    •$$

    This was our second time here. First time we though: hey, my parents awould enjoy this place. So,…read moreparents are in town and where do we go? Exactly. Glad we actually remembered what we said... So, we sat outside on an absolutely gorgeous afternoon. Fully crowded by the yellowjackets. Ahhh, late summer in the outdoors. Maybe put out a trap or two? Anyway, our server (same one as last time Mary, awesome) came out and was genuinely helpful and friendly. We all ordered a fish fry (it was Friday) and loved it. The potato pancakes were actually good! So many are a bit soggy or greasy or just meh, but these were not. My wife's fries were exactly on point with a good crunch. She can't live without her fries on meals like this. Just after we ordered our food, we heard some music start up. Yup! German music playing at the German restaurant. That was just perfect.

    Just Okay It's okay…read more We sat outside, which was pleasant enough. There was some live music, although much of the time it wasn't actually live music. One major issue: the yellow jackets/hornets were incredibly aggressive once the food arrived. It made it difficult to relax and enjoy the meal. We came specifically for German food, only to discover that there's no German food on Fridays--Friday is "Fish Fry" night. Unfortunately, the food was among the blandest I've experienced recently. We were expecting hearty, flavorful German food and instead left pretty disappointed. Overall, it was an okay experience, but not one I'd go out of my way to repeat.

    Photos
    Kegel's Inn - Original Kegels Dining room

    Original Kegels Dining room

    Kegel's Inn - Curry wurst, Duck, Pretzels, Sausages, Burgers, Brats

    Curry wurst, Duck, Pretzels, Sausages, Burgers, Brats

    Kegel's Inn - Real Fire Pits

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    Real Fire Pits

    Bo’s Schnitzelbunker - Curry ketchup, pork schnitzel sandwich, Pork Schnitzel Tenders, Omas Sauerkraut, Bratwurst, Potato Salad

    Bo’s Schnitzelbunker

    4.0(29 reviews)
    17.9 mi

    Amazing food and very nice staff. Honestly, I do not…read moreunerstand the negative reviews. I am from Germany (immigrated in 2011) and this is definitely a "taste of home". The place looks and feels very homey, like a small restaurant would look like in Germany. Sure, if you are expecting a Pretzel with Beer Cheese dip (No true German would EVER!!!) it might not be the place for you.... BUT: The Schnitzels are nice and thin and breaded just right, exactly how they are SUPPOSED to be. The authentic German Curry Ketchup was SO GOOD, I will go back and buy a whole bottle! The home made Spaetzle with the Jaeger Sauce were AMAZING, and my friend had a Curry-Wurst, that looked exactly what it would look like in Berlin, Germany, eaten as street food (cut up into pieces, yes, that's how it is eaten in Germany!) We will for sure be back! Keep up the good work!

    This was possibly the worst dining experience yet. We came for Sunday lunch, and there were only 3…read moreother tables present. Yet it took a server a good 10 minutes to even bring menus. We finally get to place our order and while we waited noticed the table behind us getting plate after plate of the wrong food. We order and waited another 15 minutes for drinks. Our food finally starts coming out one dish at a time and it's not even correct. We were waiting for the last dish to arrive and our server took it to the wrong table, collected it from the wrong table and tried serving it to us after it was touched by someone else! So, terrible service. To top it off the food just sucks. Tiny portions that are overpriced. Not authentic German, not even close. The schnitzel were absolutely tiny and paper thin, you could barely even notice it was meat. For $15 you get two puny schnitzels and a tiny bowl of potato salad. During our time there at least 5 tables came in, sat and left not even getting drinks.

    Photos
    Bo’s Schnitzelbunker - TV, beer and cute atmosphere

    TV, beer and cute atmosphere

    Bo’s Schnitzelbunker - Fries, assorted schnitzel & sides

    Fries, assorted schnitzel & sides

    Bo’s Schnitzelbunker

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    Usingers - Airport bar

    Usingers

    1.8(77 reviews)
    6.7 mi•Mitchell Field
    •$$

    l ordered products to be shipped for a Christmas gift. Took the time to visit the store instead of…read moretaking the chance online. Half of the order was not shipped apparently due to a shortage. We were not notified . it was embarrassing when we found out the recipient did not receive what they should have. We called customer service and had to leave a message. Did not receive a call back. We had to call again and customer service refused to make it right by shipping the product which we would have paid for. They said it was now in stock. I asked for free shipping as it was their mistake . They don't care. We will never buy their products again.

    With its location in the Milwaukee airport, Usingers has an advantage being inside the security…read morearea and their customers have limited choices where to drink & dine. I had 4 hours before my flight and planned to have lunch and a beer or 2 before flying back to Seattle. I ordered the Italian sausage covered with peppers and sauteed onions on a Brot bun. (sauerkraut is also offered) Your choice of a side of chips, fries or Coleslaw and I opted for the healthier option, crispy and fresh but, not a good choice as it lacked any flavor, fortunately the petite Italian sausage was flavorful with its firm and tasty brot bun bed. It had a similar texture to a bagel and yes I would order it again! The 20 ounce Leinenkugel Seasonal Porter ($9.75) was cold, dark and wet while disappearing quickly. Yes, $21 plus tip is on the expensive side even at an airport for this small portion however on the positive side, my empty spot was gone until dinner!

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    Usingers
    Usingers
    Usingers

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    War Memorial Beer Garden

    War Memorial Beer Garden

    4.6(14 reviews)
    1.0 mi•East Town, Downtown

    A great place to stumble upon while walking along the lakefront with friends! Such good vibes on a…read morebeautiful summer night in MKE, with refreshing beer and Kegel's Inn serving up some delicious and unique German food. I ordered the Kegel Brau Lager, which paired perfectly with my loaded brat, "The Cream City." It's a 9" smoked Hungarian brat topped with homemade coleslaw, curry ketchup, and curry powder, and it was honestly delicious! I wasn't sure what to expect from the combination, but everything worked so well together. Definitely something I'd order again. And to mention it one more time, you really can't beat hanging out by the lake with a cold beer, good food, and friends on a nice night in Milwaukee

    I randomly found this on Google Maps when I was searching for a lunch spot close to the Milwaukee…read moreArt Museum and Betty Brinn Children's Museum. The location is convenient because it is a 5-minute walk from the art museum and you get the lake view. We had the Uber app platter and hofbraus. The Uber app platter came with a huge pretzel, cheese, sausage bites, bacon schmear, and fresh cheese curds. They were not kidding when they said the amount is good for 3-4 people. Everything on this platter was spot on, especially the giant pretzel! The hofbrau is a 9-inch chicken bratwurst with bacon schmear, sweet relish, and diced red onions. It's your standard German fare and worth a try.

    Photos
    War Memorial Beer Garden
    War Memorial Beer Garden - Nitro Old Fashioned

    Nitro Old Fashioned

    War Memorial Beer Garden

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    Mader's - german - Updated October 2026

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