Pabst Brewery district gets sharing plates, beer at On Tap
A new restaurant and bar will take the space of the former Jackson's Blue Ribbon Pub near downtown Milwaukee, bringing shareable plates, fish fries and beer to the Pabst Brewery district.
On Tap will soonbe at 1203 N. 10th St. It's operated by Gorman & Company, which owns the building and connected hotel, Brewhouse Inn.
“We saw the success that Jackson's had. There's a lot of foot traffic. We have our hotel side and our captive guests there, so we definitely want to have an offering for them,” said Robert Sikkila, food and beverage director for Gorman Hotels in Wisconsin.
Sikkila was formerly the head chef of the 1844 Table at the Stella Hotel in Kenosha, also a Gorman Hotel. He still oversees the Kenosha restaurant in his
new role.
“We felt we have a really strong food and beverage team in place right now and we can build on that, with On Tap being our latest endeavor,” Sikkila said.
On Tap will be beer centric and have a menu of local foods and sharable plates, similar to Jackson’s Blue Ribbon Pub.
“We’re going to keep the vibe kind of the same, a very fun atmosphere,” Sikkila said. “We feel we can recapture that vibe and really give good offerings for the people in the area.”
The bar will feature a liquor selection and 14 tap lines with local brews and Pabst beer as a nod to the brewery that formerly occupied the area.
The menu will feature Pabst beerbattered cheese curds and fish fries. Shared plates include stuffed soft pretzels and beer brined chicken wings.
The chef is Robert Zimmerman, formerly the chef at the Lodge in Antioch.
Jackson’s Blue Ribbon Pub occupied the space from 2013 until 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of the bar near Fiserv Forum.
The new bar is awaiting liquor license approval from the city of Milwaukee. Sikkila was not able to give an opening date yet.