Lupi & Iris — Restaurant in Milwaukee

Update Dec 2022: At the end of December, I visited Lupi & Iris (2nd visit)for my sister's birthday with a party of six (7pm). The dining room was buzzing with patrons eating, and the open kitchen dispatching dishes.

I started with a glass of 2017 Barolo and the seasonal special, risotto tartufo. The risotto was creamy and toothsome with the aromatic pungency you expect from tartufo. The portion size was exactly what I wanted for my first course.

During the first course, we were provided bread service, consisting of 2 types of bread andsalted butter. My sister is a bit of a paniphile, and she approved.

For my main, I ordered a glass of 2013 reserve Barolo and the lamb chop. The lamb was perfectly cooked and the Barolo was impressive for BTG.

The food and service during my second visit was molto buono. Our server was personable, polite, and funny. 4.9/5.0.

Summer 2022: This was our first experience at Lupi and Iris, a new fine dining restaurant in downtown Milwaukee. My wife and I dined here together on a Saturday evening after spending the day visiting some family in Milwaukee.

The restaurant is located inside of a fairly new building, and is connected to very nice parking garage that made parking and entering the restaurant a breeze. We paid $15 for parking due to special event pricing, but felt it was worth the convenience.

Our reservation was rather early, but a number of tables were already seated when we arrived and the restaurant only became busier as the night progressed. Visually, the restaurant is very modern, with a full glass wine cellar in full view when you enter the restaurant. This stunning feature leads to an open dining room that is anchored by the open kitchen. The vibe feels upscale and modern throughout the restaurant.

Things that went well: The food was very well executed and presented a surprising value for the quality. We started with the appetizer special of grilled octopus, followed by complimentary bread service. We each got an appetizer portion of pasta, followed by a main course each, and then shared a single desert. This was all accompanied by a very nice bottle of wine, and a large bottle of sparkling water.

Standouts were the linguine, roasted chicken, and grilled octopus. The focaccia from rocket baby bakery was also fantastic. My favorite part was the wine, which was well-presented by the SOMM, who was friendly and knowledgeable, without being overbearing.

Things that could use improvement:

As we perused the wine list, the waiter brought a wine to suggest. There were details lacking in the knowledge and presentation of the wine that, I believe, need to be present when presenting a wine suggestion. These include the region the wine is from, the winemaker, and the varietal - at minimum.

Next, during the clearing of our pasta course, my wine glass was knocked over, spilling 3/4 of a glass of Chablis on myself and the floor. The waiter apologized, but nothing else was done to rectify the situation. Thankfully, it was white wine, so the stains on my clothing are less noticeable. However, offering to pay for dry cleaning or bringing a small tasting of an alternate wine, or something of the sort would’ve been appreciated given the cost of the wine ($100).

Between courses; there were water spots and crumbs that fell onto the table. A nice touch for fine dining would be to wipe down the surface before bringing the next course (very minor criticism).

During the desert offering, I was disappointed to find that they had no Madeira available. Not a deal breaker, but I would’ve enjoyed this, personally.

Finally, the table next to us concluded their meal with complimentary cookies, which the waitress mentioned is how all meals conclude at the restaurant. We did not receive any cookies. This would be a non-issue had we not overheard the comment, but suggests some inconsistency.

Overall, This place is putting out great food, the wine list is solid, and the overall experience was very enjoyable, despite small missteps in service. We will be back for a follow...

This is gunna be a long one so to give you the main point: you HAVE to go here and give this place a try.

I come from a restaurant background having worked at and starting one of my own in the past. I also have travel the country quite a bit for work and frequently seek out the best spots everywhere I go, and never have I had a better experience and food than here at Lupi & Iris.

As a solo diner you typically get some judgement and less attention, but here they treated me with same attentiveness and respect as any other guest. From the moment I walked in I was quickly shown to the cocktail lounge to wait for a spot at the bar without even a question about someone else joining (First time ever). The waitress there was nothing but delightful and even came back later in my visit after moving to the bar, to check if I got the drink I was waiting to get til later. Which was sweet!

After checking out the menu in the lounge I decided I had to eat here and made my way over to the bar where the bartender gave me some of the best service I’d had in the last 5 years of dining. There was not a second that went by where I was waiting for something, and she was very helpful in recommending dishes and answering any questions I had on the different options. If you go here - definitely listen to what the staff has to say as they know their way around the menu and drink options quite well. It’s obvious this restaurant works to hard to train their staff and give them an opportunity to test things to be able to help guests.

Apart from the immaculate service, the food was spectacular. I started with the scallops appetizer that had a creamy sauce perfectly blending spices and with a small hint of sweet from the brown butter. Then I jumped to the main course and got one of their Chef specials, the ribeye with a red wine mushroom sauce. Which I asked to be somewhere between medium rare and rare, a request that usually results in a steak too done, or too rare, but not here. It was the perfect middle with a bit more red and still having some warmth to it, which was only icing on the cake given how delicious the red wine sauce was. I have no idea what wine they used, but the dark red wine chosen couldn’t have been better. It paired beautifully with the steak and mushrooms. I only wish I could’ve slowed down eating to enjoy it more, but it was just that good!

To finish it off I snagged the Torta al Cioccolato after the bartender recommend it, it’s a chocolate cake with loads of delicious toppings, which was the best devils food I’ve ever had. Like holy crap it was delicious. It also paired beautifully with my Armagnac which was totally not planned.

Finally I just gotta say it was refreshing to find a place with a wide selection of Armagnac and Bhakta in general. It’s not often you run by it in restaurants so I made sure to take advantage and try the “1928” rye + Armagnac blend, 2024 bourbon in a classic old fashioned, and the 1973 Armagnac as an after dinner drink. Highly recommend giving these a try and pairing that 1973 with the chocolate dessert. Also can’t forget the espresso to wrap it all up, which was again, perfection.

Seriously I can’t say enough good things, hats off to the owners, managers, front of house staff, and chefs. Keep up...

This is a foodie dream experience. Sitting at a table in full view of the kitchen watching the executive chef, mere feet away, expediting service, calling out the other chefs for order after order of exquisitely plated food! As the night wears on, the staff begin to interact with you more and more until they are commenting and joking with you as you gleefully dine on delectable plates of yummy goodness! All within the surreal setting of Lupi & Iris. This is as good as it gets, folks. Don't kid yourself and pass up a chance to dine here if you're in Milwaukee. Yes, it is expensive. Yes, it is worth every penny. Yes... sit at the chef's table if you can. Worth. It. Talk to your server, ask them for recommendations, and let them help guide you to some pretty amazing dishes. The Cozze e Vongle (Mussel and Clam) appetizer was a great start to the meal, and a good bit of spice helped this dish bring out the flavors of the broth, beans, and tomato along with a hit of anchovy. And save that wonderfully warm bread to get every last drop of this broth... better yet, ask for seconds... that bread is too good to wait on! The asparagus, mushroom, and fried egg salad was just light enough with the sherry vinaigrette to help balance out the egg and frisee. If you love pasta, then this is also a great place to start because they offer several dishes on a rotating basis as appetizers. We tried three, and they were all heavy on flavor and perfect portions to get away with trying multiples without feeling too guilty. We recommend Corzetti with walnut sauce. O. M. G. Amazing. The Daube de Ravioli is filled with braised in a red wine sauce, and if you like lobster, try the risotto...so many huge chunks of meat! The Dover Sole is de-boned tableside and a darn good fish cooked to perfection, but be careful with the persillade sauce... it packs some saltiness hidden in that yummy goodness... use sparingly. A roasted veal chop grilled with an anchovy crust... you read that right... anchovy crust... so, so good, and we don't usually like anchovies. One of our favorites of the night was the Caramel Pots de Creme... basically salted caramel baked custard with incredibly decadent whipped creme and crunchy chocolate wafers. Oh... so good! Staff was amazing and attentive and the ambiance could...