The Mecca bar has a 38-foot screen spanning 2 floors
750 can watch the game, 240 from patio seating
The Milwaukee Bucks continue to reinvent the local game-watching experience, and the latest example is The Mecca Sports Bar and Grill on the Fiserv Forum plaza.
The Mecca features a 38-foot highdefinition screen that spans the two floors of the bar, plus an additional 64 screens. With a capacity of 750, there isn’t a spot a TV screen can’t be seen.
There’s stage lighting that shoots down from the ceilings and hidden LED lights splash light throughout the bar. CO2 cannons can shoot off after a big play.
Game-day audio will be blared through a sound system that rivals concert venues in Milwaukee.
Between two levels of outdoor seating, 240 people can find a spot to catch the game on The Mecca’s patios.
Oh, and when patrons walk into the bar, they’ll hear a crowd cheering from audio looped at the front door.
“We want people to feel excited when they walk in. So you walk into a crowd cheering for you, and then you walk into the space,” Bucks Vice President of Hospitality Justin Green said.
Because it’s owned by the Bucks, patrons can expect the home team’s games to be a big deal at The Mecca.
Green said they’ll air other big sporting events, like the Kentucky Derby this Saturday and the Women’s World Cup this summer.
The Mecca is a sports bar first, but it can be used for more than that.
“We’re really prepared for anything. We have a unique ability to be more than a regular sports bar,” Green said. “After games, when sports kind of go in the background, we’ve got a fully capable DJ booth and we will play music.
We want people to come in here, drink, and have a good time.”
When it comes to food, there are just 18 options, but they are well thought through.
“We seat 750 people, so the worst thing we can do is have a menu that is too big. So from the beginning it was always about figuring out what can we replicate over and over again, and do it well,” Green said.
Executive Chef Matt Kerney said the goal was to create what he calls “elevated sports fare.”
They started with normal sports bar fare: wings, burgers, nachos and fries, and figured out how to make it unique from there.
Food prices begin at $4.50 for an individual taco or $5 for the Mecca Soup or soup of the day. The steak frites entrée, a Bronx cut strip steak with caramelized onions, garlic-herb butter and Mecca fries, is the priciest plate on the menu at $21.
The favorite so far? Kerney and Bucks President Peter Feign agree. It’s the crispy shrimp appetizer.
Feign said The Mecca was always part of the vision for the stadium and surrounding entertainment plaza.
“This was one of the real anchors of the entire district. These bars have been unlike anything else in community. It’s all a part of the experience,” Feign said.
The bar is open ahead of its grand opening Friday. Until May 12, the bar will be open beginning at 4 p.m. until midnight Sunday to Thursday, and 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Beginning May 13, normal hours are 11 a.m. to midnight Sunday to Thursday, and 11 to 2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Jordyn Noennig covers pop culture and entertainment in Milwaukee. Follow her on Instagram at @JordynTaylor_n. Find her on Twitter @JordynTNoennig. Call her at 262-4466601 or email Jordyn.Noennig@jrn.com.