Points East Pub — Restaurant in Milwaukee

I'm so torn on this review. I dont know whether to give them two stars or five. Or three.

So I read in a "best of" that they had the best chicken wings in Wisconsin. I'd already tried Chicken Lips in Sun Prairie WI, which advertised the best wings, anywhere. I figured if Chicken Lips didnt beat them in best of Wisconsin, I needed to see for myself. THEN a friend posted on Facebook that they had the best wings in Milwaukee. Ok, that's confirmation, they're on my list.

I dont live in Milwaukee, but I work there occasionally. I made time en route to a recent work commitment to stop and pick up some wings, and I figured I could eat them at work. I checked their website and Google to confirm that they were open. When I got there, there was a sign on the door: NO CARRYOUT OR TO GO ORDERS. They had a bouncer at the door checking ID, and I asked him is it always no carryout? He said yes, and was kind of rude about it.

I didnt have time to eat in before work, and even if I did, the place was so jam packed I dont know where I would have sat to eat. Plus I dont like crowds. At this point, I had decided it wasnt in the cards for me to try Milwaukee/Wisconsin's supposed best wings, and planned to leave them a 2 star review for their NO CARRYOUT policy.

(I mean what is that? What possible advantage is there to turning away paying customers who arent taking up space in your establishment?!)

However I got done with work before 10pm, and their website said they served food until 11pm, so I decided to give them another chance. If Speed Queen hadnt been out of outside shoulder, it might have been a different story.

They have no parking lot and street parking is hard to find. When I got there the same rude bouncer carded me (there's no way I look remotely under 18). It was still crowded but there were some seats available and I decided to sit at the bar. The bartender was friendly and helpful. I asked, if I ordered a large amount of food, could I take leftovers to go? He said that was fine, so I ordered 18 wings, the largest portion. They have a lot of other food items but the other signature item was "garlic fries" so I also ordered a large of those.

The wings came out fairly quickly. The website had advertised "hand sauced" but these appeared to be dry, and I figured maybe they had my order wrong? However what appeared to be the a dry rub was extremely flavorful, smoky and spicy at the same time. I asked for a side of sauce. When I received the sauce I understood. The taste of the sauce is exactly the same as the taste of the wing spices. In other words, they had sauced them just enough to soak up the flavors, but not enough so that they were still wet. I appreciated that, as a lot of hot wings are WAY too wet. I still prefer SLIGHTLY more sauce than they came with, if they are not meant to be dry. If you eat your wings with ranch, as I do, they do not give you enough and you will need to ask for extra. They make the ranch in house.

My fries didnt come out until I was almost done with my wings (and I ate more than half of them). The garlic fries are fresh, crispy fries topped with minced garlic and something else (oil? sauce?) The combination is VERY good if you like garlic. But you HAVE to like garlic. The garlic taste is very strong. I presume there are no vampires left within 90 miles of Milwaukee. I brought some home, and my wife, who was asleep in bed with the door closed, woke up and said "what smells like garlic?" Both of us love garlic, but if you dont-- steer clear. Also, they do well dipped in the ranch.

NOW FOR THE WING RANKING.

Best wings in Wisconsin: Sweet Honey Chilli Glazed Wings from That BBQ Joint in Madison:

Best hot/buffalo wings in Wisconsin: Original wings (dry rub with sauce) from Chicken Lips in Sun Prairie

This place MIGHT make third place. Second if you only count hot wings.

And if you like dry wings, go to Monte Carlo in Minneapolis. I've been thinking about those wings since...

(This review was published during pre-covid19 vaccine. ♿ Accessibility information below)

One of these places that almost always feel very hard to visit. I have been planning on visiting this place for a very long time. Maybe a year. It's one of those places you feel like you have to adapt to rather than expect them to adapt to customers. For example they have a no cellphone 📵 during ordering sign. You dont walk in with the "customer is always right" sense.

Not necessarily a bad thing, but it's definitely there. From working hours to long lines, dont be disappointed if you plan on going and end up rescheduling. It's a place with character.

The place is not very big. Few tables and a bar. They have another section for extra space but it wasn't operating when I visited. The place is clean and they are very big on infection control and social distancing. The bar tender was fast and responsive. 🚾 The restroom was not what I expected. Not super dirty but could use some work. I expected something more comfortable and less industrial. 🅿 There is a carry out only zone outside for cars so if you are ordering to go it should be easy to find somewhere to pull over. Parking overall isn't a big issue when not busy. That changes when it's crowded.

Food took awhile to prepare, although another couple walked in later and got their food much much faster so it could be a frying cycle kinda thing.

🍗 Wings come in 6, 12 and 18. Only one flavor available. Hot wings rubbed in some kind of very subtle dry rub. Not saucy at all. You can get ranch and/or blue cheese on the side. Wings are good size but not huge. Clean meat. Not oily. I give it 4/10 on spicy scale. Are they good? Yes. The best? Not so sure. But I don't see how you can hate them. At least worth one try.

🍟 Garlic fries comes with sauce on the side. Plain fries + the sauce. Fries are good. Sauce is not bad. Maybe try putting some of the sauce on the fries instead of dipping.

🌶️ Jalapeño poppers are filled with some sort of cream cheese. You can definitely still taste the green crunchy jalapeños. They're fried of course. Comes with red dipping sauce.

♿ The place is flat enough to be wheelchair friendly. At least when it's not crowded. The center middle empty area makes it easier to move around. Bars are too high for wheelchairs. I give it good 7 for accessibility.

I would most likely be coming back. But I won't go out of my way for it. I won't wait in lines. I personally have had better wings. I like wings but I'm not an expert. It's good. A bit intimidating with all the rules but still good. Visit this place...

No one likes to be skipped in line for any reason. So, I was at the back bar (rude lady bartender) and I waited for roughly 5 minutes after noticing there was a back section. While my friend found somewhere to sit, I was going to do the ordering. There were four caucasian males in front of me, so I continued to wait until all four were taken care of, the bartender did acknowledge me in the process and I was thinking, ok I'll be next. The guys sat down, the bartender went to the register then two ladies approached the bar. This is when it got tricky, the bartender turns back around and then proceeds to take the two caucasian females order. At this point I know that I am not eating here but I did want to let the bartender know how rude that was but her explanation was that they were with the four guys that ordered before me. This type of "thing" is totally unacceptable, especially considering the way this operation is set up. I couldn't imagine that if I sat down while someone with me was ordering and there were other patrons ahead of me (remember I'm sitting down, away from the bar) but because I was with someone that ordered I would be given preferential treatment, so we can have our food at the same time. Fact is "wait your turn" that simple. I am not one to call someone racist and I have yet to hear someone own up to it anyway but the level of implicit bias this bartender (establishment) has is disappointing. Treat everyone respectfully and be fair, pretty easy concept!

I wish I would have read the reviews prior to my visit, apparently there is a history of this sort of thing at this place, I will surely never recommend this place to...