Erv's Mug — Restaurant in Oak Creek

I was looking for a place that would have a Wednesday Fish Fry because I'm always working on Fridays. A co-worker suggested Erv's Mug, and swore that it was great, so we went...

I'd like to say that my coworker was on point, but I'm sorry to say that she was wrong, wrong wrong. Many of the previous bad reviews complained about slow or absent wait staff. I didn't have that problem. I want to say that my waitress Ann K, was great, great, great. She was quick and responsive and delightful.

On the other hand, we got the Beer Battered Fish Fry and came in with high expectations. Even though I'm born and raised in Milwaukee, this was only the second time that I've been out for fish. My previous experience was at the Maple Inn in Ashippun. If you ever want an amazing all-you-can-eat, that's the place.

Back to Erv's Mug. Maybe Wednesday night is not a good night for a fish fry. My gf and I both got the two piece. The fish was lackluster, at best. Sorry, my gf actually said "This is mediocre at best." My expectation, as with my last experience at Maple Inn, was a crispy, crunchy batter and fish that just flaked apart. At Erv's, we had neither. My fish was on the verge of being burnt (it was a deep brown instead of a light tan). There was no real separation of crust and fish; it all just kind of mushed together.

What was wrong? Overcooked? Old used oil? Left out under a heat lamp? Some combination of all of those. I suspect all. If someone in my family had made that fish, I wouldn't have given them the courtesy to eat both pieces. But I had paid good money for this fish, so I channeled the mother in me and made myself eat it, because I know my mother would have made me eat all my nasty food on my plate, no matter what. (although my mother is a really good cook. Love you mom)

If Erv's invited me back, and offered to give me my $29 dollars back to eat the fish again, I would respectfully decline. Thanks for not putting your best foot forward, Erv's.

#truestory

(edit)

Response to owner:

Thank you for your response. In defense of my review, after the fact, as a patron, I can choose to review whenever I choose. It was later in the evening when we visited, we went out on a whim, and really just wanted to get back home, especially with my tired gf expecting. Therefore, we didn't feel comfortable voicing our dismay. Unfortunately, your response seems defensive, and a bit of an attack at me. My review is as matter-of-fact as I could make it, without trying to attack your establishment.

The most basic thing that you must understand, Owner, is that had your food been the remarkable fare that I'm sure you're capable of providing, which you should know how to do after 38 years, then I wouldn't have to provide a negative review. My negative review should be motivation to tighten up the ship, and keep sailing with your fine establishment. Unfortunately, I'll be catching...

I gave this one star to make a point about the impeccable rudeness my partner and I experienced here a couple evenings ago.

The bar tender, a rough looking middle aged blonde, was the rudest person I’ve literally ever encountered in the service industry. We came to the end of the bar, ASKED if we could sit down while waiting for table which we were told would be ready in 5-10 minutes by the hostess. Bartender said yes. My partner ordered himself a beer off the menu. She got his beer, then looked at me and I told her I would probably just wait to grab a drink since our table was almost ready. At that point it was like a switch flipped in her. Her entire demeanor changed, she said in a very disgusted tone “Well I’m gonna have to ask you to get up then and let someone else have these seats!” My boyfriend was like “yes of course” and got out of our seats trying to figure out where to stand, very taken back by the fact we are being kicked out of the seats for absolutely NO REASON!

Then she proceeds to get even more snarky and says “yeah I’m gonna need you to give me that menu back too!”. Okay. I hand it back to her. I honestly would have walked out right then and there and still wish I had except he had his drink and I was really taken back by the whole interaction. There is absolutely no excuse to treat anyone like this. We shouldn’t have been asked to get up from our seats, seeing as we bought a drink. I’m also pretty certain there was more than one menu at the bar. We witnessed her being over the top nice to everyone else at the bar referring to people as “honey boo” “love” etc. Except for us, apparently we’re not even worthy of a seat. Coincidentally enough my boyfriend was the only non-white customer in the place.

We got to our table and the server, a young brunette, was very sweet. But unfortunately the entire mood had been muted by the rude welcome from the bar tender. I genuinely hope she is dealt with because I get A LOT of traction on my google and this will be seen by many eyes. I have also already told several people about my experience here.

Food was decent. Probably would’ve tasted better if I...

My partner and I had seen Erv’s come up under “best Milwaukee fish fries” and were eager to try out the spread. The food was as good as ever: generously sized fried fish pieces, a potato salad with a one of a kind flavor, and to die for potato pancakes. However, our experience was ruined by the disparate treatment my partner and I received by our server.

Things with our server felt off almost immediately. We were asked what we wanted to have, and our server only addressed me. My partner had a question about the menu, and as he was asking it, our server was walking away. “Okay”, I thought, “maybe she didn’t hear him.” Then, our server came back with our drinks and soups. One of the soups was not as tasty, and when my partner tried to offer that feedback. again, as he was expressing an idea, she was walking away from him, not even responding to the feedback. When she came back around with our meals, my partner attempted to talk with her about how much he was enjoying his potato salad. And again, she was walking away from him as he was speaking.

When it was time for the check to be paid, our server brought it over and set it in front of me. My partner put his card into the check, and I told her that he had left his card for the payment. When she came back around with his card, she gave the check to me, not him, even though I told her it was his card.

He was not rude, belligerent, or otherwise out of line. He is, however, Black. And as we reflected on our time and behavior in the restaurant, we collectively came to the conclusion that our disparate treatment by our server, we couldn’t see many other reasons for the behavior, whether it was unconscious or not.

Okay, one might say. Maybe it was a busy serving night. And certainly it was. And yet, this is a service experience, and engaging with all parties is a part of the gig. Simple things like being acknowledged make people feel welcome and want to come back. My partner and I had the same consensus on the way out: good food, but incredibly uncomfortable service, and we likely...