Café Hollander - Downer — Restaurant in Milwaukee

We used pubpasses and one of the beers they had on tap was unavailable for reasons that had to do with the fact that they just could not get it to pour from the tapper (which is odd for a place known for its special tap beer). So whatever. Then we used a coupon for half off fries (which are pretty pricey to begin with). Our coupon was accepted, the fries were served, and then after we started eating them, someone came over and informed us that in fact the coupon was invalid and we would have to pay full price, saying that the pubpass specifies that it can’t be used with other offers (in the fine print). For one, there is no such fine print (the staff member was relying on what they believed last year’s pubpass stated, and we had to physically show the pass for them to see this); for two, even if the pubpass did state “cannot be used with other offers” in the fine print, it’s not obvious that this should apply to non-drink orders; and for three, even if the coupon was mistakenly accepted, we shouldn’t be asked to pay the difference AFTER the fact of being served the food. If a server gives you something under the mistaken premise that it will be at a discount, the establishment shouldn’t turn around and make you pay for that after realizing the mistake (they should just eat it, because its their mistake - what if we had no additional money?) Needless to say, I don’t think that situation was handled correctly at all by the one in charge there, and hopefully they don’t continue this practice. *Edit: I appreciate the reply from the owner on this. However the point is not that our coupons were honored in the end (or how apologetic the staff member was - in fact, they didn’t seem to be at the time from what I recall, even though I’d be supremely embarassed if I did that as a server/manager) - the point is that the demand for more money was totally out of line, period, and is reflective of pretty bad...

UPDATE REVIEW 2022: The atmosphere in Café Hollander is rather pleasant and relaxed. However...the service and food quality has gone downhill and this has bumped down Café Hollander from my immediate "take someone to" restaurant.

Today I ordered a hot chocolate which did not come with any whipped creme or the usual dark chocolate square, and a Very Berry Basil French Toast. The Very Berry Basil French Toast is supposed to come with marzipan and basil, but when I recieved my order, both of these things were missing. This isn't the first time it's occurred either which is why I've decided to update my review. The restaurant wasn't very busy either, equal amounts of customers to staff, which are often socializing at the corner of the bar. I've been waiting a half hour to even get my check to leave... 😅

I would suggest trying Canela Café which is right across the street; while the atmosphere at Canela is more like a standard breakfast place, they have dishes that come with what they advertise themselves as. I really appreciated the Shakshuka and their Hawaiian Mimosa.

Hope you turn things around, Café Hollander, you've been a favorite for years but have fallen behind lately. Much love and appreciation for the previous years of good food.

Food: I had waffles with a side order of bacon. Both were essentially a bit tasteless. Waffles were competently cooked but lacked in taste, I HAD to use the overly sugary pecan butter with syrup to make it edible. The Glass o Bacon was good in texture but had very little taste - tasted the candied part of it plus a bit of pepper but what happened to the bacon taste?

Service: I have mixed feelings about the service, but in the end, it was good overall. I got my food, not much else on drink refills or offers to, but got my check accurately - a very good thing considering there were 12 people, each of us with our own food and separate checks. Plus our waitress took care of one of my acquaintances when she discovered egg shells in her eggs Benedict - our waitress gave her a heavily discounted check for the shells. Bravo!

Misc: Place seemed nice albeit crowded. Bathrooms are in the back and fairly clean. We initially attempted a reservation for a party of 12, and they could not guarantee such a large group, but this can be sorted out by 2 groups of 6 NEAR each other. Problem solved!

The bunch of us went to Cafe Hollander for brunch, but they seem to have a good menu of other sandwiches and stuff, so its worth another try. Plus they do have beer and...