CULTURE & TRAVEL

A Weekend in Milwaukee: Stay in a Brewery, Try a Butter-Burger and Enjoy Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan's sunset shore offers plenty of beer history with Pabst and Miller and a beautiful RiverWalk.

Steve Stephens
Columbus Monthly
The downtown Milwaukee skyline along Lake Michigan

Beer made Wisconsin’s largest city famous. Visitors will still find plenty of the sudsy stuff, from brewing giant Miller to dozens of craft brewers, producing beer in so many styles and varieties it would have made your Pabst-drinking grandpa’s head spin (if it wasn’t spinning already).

But a weekend trip to this city on Lake Michigan’s sunrise shore offers visitors, even teetotalers, so much more.

Where to stay and dine on a Friday in Milwaukee

Milwaukee has a wide variety of lodging options including the historic Hilton Milwaukee City Center, a beautifully restored downtown Art Deco landmark, from $134. The Brewhouse Inn and Suites is located within the former Pabst Blue Ribbon Brewery, from $159. 

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For the hungry, Wisconsin-style goodness can be found at Solly’s Grille, famous since 1936 for its butter-burger which, as you might guess, consists of a ground sirloin patty topped with cooked onions and a big dollop of Wisconsin butter. Milwaukee, however, has a food scene that goes well beyond the traditional brats and cheese cuisine that the region is known for. Three Brothers in the city’s lakefront Bayview neighborhood has been turning out Serbian-inspired favorites since 1956. For an upscale and contemporary foodie experience, try the Mediterranean-centric fare at Lupi & Iris. Or for a terrific small plate and shareable menu, consider Odd Duck and its globally inspired, but locally sourced, cuisine.

One of Solly's Grille's signature items is its Cheesehead Burger, which comes with 2/3 pounds of beef, grilled mushrooms, stewed and raw onions, cheddar, American and Swiss cheese and plenty of butter.

Explore Milwaukee's beer history on Saturday

Milwaukee’s Miller, Schlitz, Pabst and Blatz breweries were once among the largest in the world. Of those, only Miller, now part of multinational Molson Coors Brewing, remains. And the Miller Brewery is a great place to begin exploring Milwaukee’s brewing past and present. Visitors can take a 70-minute indoor-outdoor guided tour that explores 170 years of brewing history and technology. Tours are also available at several of the city’s modern craft breweries. And you can navigate the craft brew scene with the free Brew City Beer Pass at visitmilwaukee.com.

Brewery fortunes also led to the construction of some of Milwaukee’s grandest mansions, including the splendid Pabst Mansion, a Gilded Age masterpiece of stone, brick and terra cotta. Tours of Frederick Pabst’s 1892 home reveal gorgeous 19th-century décor, furnishings and craftsmanship, and an impressive fine arts collection.

Take in the Lake Michigan views on Sunday along the RiverWalk

Milwaukee’s Lake Michigan waterfront is beautiful and compelling. A great view is available from atop the Grand Staircase at historic Lake Park, designed by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. But the Milwaukee River has been the heart of Milwaukee since the town’s earliest days. The 3.1-mile accessible RiverWalk connects three city neighborhoods with walkways on both sides of the river. 

Exploring the RiverWalk is a great way to spend a morning or entire day. The paths link Downtown’s skyscrapers, shops and restaurants; the Historic Third Ward’s classical 19th-century buildings containing boutiques, galleries and night-spots; and the Beerline “B,” a neighborhood with a long tradition of brewing.

Other unique Milwaukee attractions include the downtown Harley-Davidson museum and the Milwaukee Museum of Art, whose three lakefront buildings, designed by legendary architects Eero Saarinen, David Kahler and Santiago Calatrava, are as much a part of the experience as the art collection.

This story appeared in the February 2025 issue of Columbus Monthly.Subscribe here.