Uncle Wolfie's Downtown & The Wolf — Restaurant in Milwaukee

I was very excited to try this location but was left underwhelmed. Parking is tough and nobody seemed to be working valet on a Saturday evening. Luckily we Ubered so it was not a problem, but I do like to scope things out. The host was so sweet and engaging. We were sat for our reservation at a cute little two top by the bar. The atmosphere is incredible! It's cozy but spaced out enough that you don't feel like you're having a meal with the table next to you. Service is very laid back despite there not being that many tables. We were given menus and told to think things over and then were left without service for quite a while. The drink menu was not very enticing. Everything looked like it would be very sweet and hurt our teeth. We ordered drinks and were again left alone for an extended period of time. When the server returned with our drinks, she suggested giving us time with the menu. We quickly ordered the chips. The Arnold Palmers were perfectly balanced and I'm kind of picky about those. I'd come back for the tea alone! Another staff brought out the chips and we had them finished before our server came back to get our dinner order. The cheese tasted processed and there were barely any shallots which was the selling point because I love pickled onions. I was disappointed by the menu because they made several changes that weren't reflected on the website which is where I got excited about the food. Our food became out pretty quickly. The steak tartare was excellent, the dressing on the salad was amazing, and the patty melt was also delicious. One thing I noticed when reheating the sandwich is that there were no mushrooms. I could have sworn those were in the description. It's unfortunate when you pay for an entree and one of the ingredients are missing. We sat with mostly empty plates for quite a while before having them cleared. I will note that our server walked past plenty of times to help other tables so she was certainly working. It seemed more like maybe the multitasking was not there. We were tucked in the back so she might have kept missing us. She was very sweet and knowledgeable about the menu, so we enjoyed that! She brought us the dessert menu and we again had to grab her before she left the table. The ube cheesecake was an easy sell and oh gosh, definitely worth it. I would come back again but I would like to give the location time to figure out a...

Cute little spot downtown. It’s smallish inside, though stylish with nice vibes. I wouldn’t necessarily come here with a big group, but perhaps a date night or a small group of 4.

I had a nice experience with everyone I interacted with, from beginning to end. Saw lots of smiles. Always a plus.

They have an interesting, one of a kind menu. It’s not just basic fares, but everything has a little twist or fusion vibes. We’re talking Mexican to Vietnamese in fine dining. That said, the menu called the dishes “Shareables”, and I expected them to be larger sizes to share, but it’s actually the opposite. They are more like Spanish tapas - small appetizer sized dishes, that I don’t want to share cuz they’re good lol.

Usually when i think of tapas, i think of a plate with items that can be shared easily, with everyone just grabbing a piece by hand, or a quick spoon. These shareables were like Italian family sharing kind of food (salad, steak, etc.) but in super small portions. Among the four of us, we each got maybe a bite or two of each dish. So really, it was more like we were “tasting” than “eating.”

Cheviche Fresh! Yum!

Tofu something Delicious. We had a vegetarian in the group, so I felt bad eating more than a bite, but definitely would have othewise.

Watermen salad This was ok. Definitely fresh and good taste, but the watermelon itself was not super sweet and didn’t really add to the salad.

Flank steak I would have been happy with this dish on my own. It’s an awkward dish to share, though the steak does come cut up, to make it easy to share, i assume.

Pork tacos Yummy tacos.

Lumpia Fried spring rolls, kinda like eggrolls. Good, but not break my keto kind of good.

Again, all the food items are pretty solid, though the experience of sharing these “shareables” weren’t my thing. Everything is quite pricey for the amount of food we got. My tastebuds were happy, but my stomach wasn’t satisfied. May be better for a splurge date night, with me eating more...

Update: We howled, they listened—and brought back The Wolf🥂

Big BUT—up until now, the menu was unsympathetic to high maintenance guests like myself who are not only wheat, but meat free. Trust me, it sucks trying to eat out with those restrictions, especially when you want to support a place, but there’s little on the menu as far as protein choices or those clever little GF emojis.

Tonight’s new menu has opened up options for vegans, veggies, pescies…well, you won’t feel pesky anymore asking for a substitution.

Thanks Uncle Wolfie—a little bit of accommodation goes a long way when it comes to customer love. Last time the server rolled his eyes when we explained we don’t eat anything with fur, but this new menu says Respect.

To be clear, the Wolf staff are all solid. I understand why he was annoyed when we were trying to find something to eat off the old menu.

I’ll be back, and y’all should check this place out, too!

Original post (2024): I really want this place to make it, but since rebranding it’s been disappointing and dead as doornails.

Bring back “The Wolf,” the classier, better executed first version. We already have an Uncle Wolfie’s, which is great. Newsflash—nobody wants diner food anymore (been to Ms. Katie’s lately? Didn’t think so, cuz while beloved and adorable, their food belongs in the eighties.)

Also, this place doesn’t look like a diner—it’s drop dead gorgeous. Give this hot number the dinner lineup she deserves, upscale, inspired entrees and sexy salads, not soggy French toast and greasy breakfast potatoes. Having spent time in Indonesia, the original menu was a score. The Wolf was the first in Milwaukee to offer informed takes on Javanese standards, and they got it right.

I’m going to refrain from mentioning the specifics of my last experience, details we can chalk up to a staff that’s probably frustrated their once lovely locale now sits nearly empty on Friday nights.

If you’re listening, please—for everybody’s sake—bring...