The menu is concise while managing to have something for everyone.

Deptolla: 1⁄2 overall for the refreshed Brown Bottle

After sitting vacant for two years, the Brown Bottle — one of Milwaukee’s great examples of Old World artisanship, in the old Schlitz Stock-House — got a facelift last year that injected some youth but left it classic at heart.

I could say the same for the new restaurant’s menu.

Chef Ben Hudson made smart choices for lunch, dinner and bar snacks when the Brown Bottle opened in late 2014, preparing pub classics in modern, flavorful ways. (The restaurant now is owned by the developers of Schlitz Park and operated by Davians, the catering company that also runs a cafe at the brewery-turned-business-park.)

Take the deviled eggs ($6 for four). Instead of stacking on toppings that don’t necessarily make a deviled egg more delicious, the Brown Bottle simply sears the eggs, browning and crisping the filling. It’s a basic snack made better.

For the Reuben ($10), served at lunch and dinner, one kind of fermented cabbage is swapped for another. Kimchi tops the corned beef instead of sauerkraut, and its spiciness turns out to be just what this rich sandwich needed, served alongside crisp fries, or a salad.

The rest of the menu is concise while managing to have something for everyone.

The salmon bowl ($16) might have been my favorite main dish; a sweetened soy glaze was caramelized on the fish, served over soba noodles and broccolini in bacon dashi broth a la New York’s Momofuku restaurant, a broth with lovely depth.

Some homey plates are tucked into the half-dozen main dishes, like meatloaf ($12) with tomato jam, served with garlic mashed potatoes, broccolini and mushroom gravy, and macaroni and cheese ($10), topped in crisp breadcrumbs vividly green with herbs.

Pretzel crust on a thick pork chop ($14) is a natural for a restaurant that celebrates the beer that made Milwaukee famous, or so Schlitz sloganeered. (Schlitz spikes beer cheese soup and mussels here, and pours for $2 a glass from the tap.) It’s a satisfying chop, served with wilted chard and herbed spaetzle in mustard cream sauce. The tiny dumplings pop up again as a vegetarian main dish ($12), tumbled lately with sweet potato, zucchini and yellow squash.

The chef, before working at the fine-dining restaurant Bacchus downtown, led a kitchen with vegan and vegetarian dishes in Portland, Ore., and those roots come through.

One of the best sandwiches you could order at lunch is the mushroom dip ($10), a sub roll filled with roasted mushrooms, onions, peppers and provolone cheese, with herb aioli and mushroom jus.

The Brown Bottle makes a nice vegan patty ($10) at lunch, and Angus burgers ($10 for a basic burger to $12 with toppings like pulled pork) looked great on a glossy brioche bun. Too much bread to meat, maybe; it just didn’t deliver a great bar burger.

A salad served at both lunch and dinner makes the best of the season, combining lettuces in walnut vinaigrette with croutons, walnuts and cranberries over a bed of butternut squash puree ($8).

This all-purpose menu includes flatbreads with crisp edges, good for snacking at the bar or for a simple dinner. Thai chicken flatbread ($11) is served at lunch only, with spiced peanut sauce, chicken, peanuts, cilantro, carrot and mozzarella.

At dessert, the Brown Bottle escapes cliches with mini pineapple empanadas ($8), garnished with rum caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream. Beyond that are sorbets and a sundae old-fashioned for two, with flavors of the cocktail — brandy ice cream, brandy caramel sauce, cherries muddled in bitters and an orange tuile. The menu, though, could use another thoughtful dessert or two.

At the bar, the beer selection will shift to all-Wisconsin brews on tap and more signature cocktails in the coming weeks. A couple of classic cocktails were wan, including a Tom Collins served in a glass bigger than a collins glass.

That watery cocktail aside, the new Brown Bottle has appeal. The sore-thumb diner-style booths are gone from the dining room, and modern seating fills in bar alcoves. Clear pendants over the bar brighten the space, though I miss the old, vintage sconces in the dining room (hope they’re just stored in a Schlitz attic).

The restaurant drew good crowds on the weekend and the bar always had patrons, but crowds could be sparse for dinner on weeknights. With its 4,000-plus employees, the business park delivers a built-in clientele during the day; as ever more apartments spring up nearby, the restaurant’s after-work potential grows.

The Brown Bottle is off the beaten path, but it’s worth seeking out to soak up a little Milwaukee history while dining on dishes that connect with the present.

The Brown Bottle bar area has new furniture and lighting. At the bar is a mix of craft beers and big brews. In the near future, the selection will shift to all-Wisconsin beers on tap and more signature cocktails.

Instead of stacking on toppings on deviled eggs, the Brown Bottle sears the eggs, browning and crisping the filling.

Some homey plates are tucked into the half-dozen main dishes, such as herb chicken jus with mashed potatoes, caramelized Brussels sprouts and pork belly.

The Brown Bottle’s riff on the summery Tuscan panzanella salad for winter includes butternut squash puree under mixed greens with cranberries, walnuts and croutons with roasted-shallot vinaigrette.

JOURNAL SENTINEL The bar serves cocktails and a variety of wine and beer including Schlitz.