Mega Weekend in Waukesha

This weekend is going to be a big one for Waukesha. There is so much going on and the weather is looking to cooperate as well (knocking on wood as I type this).

First and foremost is the rescheduled Spring Clean Up. The weather looked uncooperative last weekend and a decision was made to reschedule it until May 2. Some groups still braved the chilly weather and cleaned up some last weekend. But this weekend, is the main cleanup.

Next up is the first Waukesha Farmer's Market in downtown Waukesha and it opens at 8 am. The market is located on Riverfront Plaza and could possibly stretch to the other side of the river on the Riverwalk if space is needed. The market has the following when seasonally available:

● In-season fresh vegetables  ● Fruits   ● Cut flowers, annuals and perennials
● Dried flowers   ●Baked goods   ● Oils   ● Herbs   ● Jams   ● Salad dressings
● Cheeses   ● Locally raised meats including lamb, beef and pork
● Locally-made art and craft items.

 I hope that Key Westconsin is planning to have their breakfast again this season!

Next up is the Riverwalk for Cancer in Frame Park. People begin congregating at 8 am but the walk doesn't start until 10 am. The kickoff is near the baseball diamonds. Take a nice walk around Frame Park and support a great cause, raising money that stays locally for cancer research. Then after the walk, check out the Farmer's Market.

And if you stay long enough in downtown, the 86th Art Crawl is in downtown Waukesha beginning at 4 pm. In the past, I know that if you had on your Riverwalk for Cancer shirt special promotions were made available. I don't see anything on this, but if you participate in the walk, it might not hurt to keep the shirt on and continue showing your support that evening.


The Waukesha Choral Union presents "The World's A Stage" at 7:30 pm on Saturday at Humphrey Memorial Chapel at Carroll University. 

Other events going on this weekend include:

Thursday - Crush Wine Bar - a tasting with "Mr. Napa" Frank Mirenda

Friday - Sunday - Waukesha Civic Theater - Les Miserable

I hope People's Park's Rooftop dining will be open with the great weather this week. Not to mention all the patio dining in the city. With the influx of people coming for all these great events, we are going to need the extra space this weekend!

And there is some road construction going on, but I'm sure the sidewalks will be available for travel and there are plenty of parking options in and around downtown. Come see all that Waukesha has to offer and stroll around downtown checking out all the new and long-standing businesses.

Spring in Downtown Waukesha

Now that the weather is nice enough for me to take a walk on my lunch hour, I have the opportunity to check out all the new and changing things around downtown.

You have probably heard about the Generations at 5 Points/Smokey O's switchero. Generations still has the shades drawn on the front and Smokey O's has paper on the windows. I hope these businesses open soon.

225 South is coming along nicely. The new dark paint color and sign really make the spot look classy. I can't wait to try the food. I love me some pasta!

Spring City Wine Co. will be opening soon next to the Clarke Hotel. Two wine shops on one street is heaven for me. I'm interested to find out more about the wine machines this shop will have.

Crush Wine Bar is having their Grand Opening this weekend with tastings, music, events and more all weekend long. Be sure to check it out. I'm a big fan of the place already!

Fruit of the Spirits Candles is going to be having their Grand Opening on May 2, the same day at the first Farmer's market of the season, Riverwalk for Breast Cancer and downtown Waukesha Art Crawl. This is a great day to open and get your name out there to the masses.

The former Random Twigs location looks to have some action going on inside. Check out LTE Waukesha for more info. I can't wait to see what that is to become.

Burlap & Lace's Boutique on Broadway is a nice addition to downtown. The clothes are so cute!

Frank's Sewing Center is leaving downtown but staying in the city. I understand their parking lot situation and I wish them good luck in their new location on St. Paul. Now we just need to find some entrepreneurs or established business to fill some holes - Frank's Sewing Center, Horse Emporium and I think there are one or two smaller locations available across the street from these on Main. Let's fill up downtown!

On North Street, I walked by Brew City Salvage and it looks like a great business. I will have to check it out when they are open and see what it's all about.

April 25th is the downtown cleanup from 8 am - noon. If you are available, they would appreciate the help in cleaning up the city. Meet at the Springhouse by Waukesha State Bank and you will be assigned a duty.

May 2nd is a huge weekend in Waukesha - The first Farmer's Market of the season held on the Riverwalk, the Riverwalk for Breast Cancer in Frame Park and the Spring Art Crawl in downtown.

I am probably missing a few things in my report, but I hope to stay up-to-date the best I can and share my downtown Waukesha knowledge with all of you!

Happy Spring Everyone!

Downtown Waukesha Holiday Shopping Success

Sorry for my absence lately folks. Life has gotten busy and it's not even the holidays yet.

I have a few things to tell you, but I'll keep it brief in hopes of getting more posts up soon.

I have been baking like crazy. I am participating in The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap again this year and got my packages out in the mail this week. I have received two so far and their treats are just divine. Not to mention, I love finding new blogs to read! And then I'm also baking for the MKEFoodies Bake Sale this Saturday that benefits the Cookies For Kids Cancer Foundation. The Bake Sale is this Saturday from 1 - 4 pm at the Hudson Business Lounge in the Historic Third Ward of downtown Milwaukee. (I'll share my recipes soon - I was hoping to create some videos, but I had a little issue with the videos being sideways and couldn't get them edited and up soon enough.)

I did a little Black Friday shopping at the Big Box stores with my mom. It was until about the third store that we finally bought something for someone else besides ourselves, but that's how my mom and I do Black Friday. It's a nice day for the two of us to shop together and treat ourselves.

People's Park all decked out for Christmas

Small Business Saturday was an even bigger success for my parents and I. We met up in downtown Waukesha and by the time I met them, they already went to Poppin' on Broadway and stocked up. I'm sure I'll be hitting up the store before Christmas for a few more treats. They also found some nice things at Burlap & Lace. We grabbed a bite at People's Park and received a coupon for showing our sales receipt that will get a Buy One Get One offer for January - March because we shopped local.

GreenBee display

We wandered downtown in and out of shops and took advantage of great sales and offerings. Of course we went into Plowshare at it is my mom's favorite shop. Then down to the other end of Main Street for Restyle Studio and GreenBee (more on this new store soon). Then back to the other end of Main Street to Metropolitan Antiques and I fell in love with a table. I wasn't sure if I really wanted it, so we left and I said I would come back and if it was still there, I would get it. My dad wanted to find The Doors CD and I remembered we had a CD shop downtown called Music Records and Collectibles, so we went there and found a Greatest Hits album.

My new gateleg table

I headed back to Metropolitan Antiques and the table was still there. And because my parents had their truck, I was able to get it home right away. It needs some TLC and because I'm unsure of the age, I have to be careful with the paint removal - could be lead based paints. But I'm hoping to strip the top and just stain it lightly and then paint the bottom a brown espresso color to go with my couch and table.

Gateleg table behind my couch - will need some work but love it already!

This was a very successful trip and I love our downtown and it's local flare. I have already given suggestions of gift baskets from Waukesha to give to out of town friends. Some popcorn, chocolate, oatmeal, tea, coffee and you have a great foodie basket. Or some soaps, lotions, scarves and you have a great basket for a lady in your life. I didn't venture into the Picky Picky or the Mantiques stores on Grand, but I'm sure a great basket for men could be created with sports or beer memorabilia.

I plan to head to downtown Waukesha for the Art Crawl this Saturday. It starts at 4 pm and stores are open until 10 pm. There will be carriage rides as well around town. Hopefully I can find a few more unique gifts that are local as I really hope to spend more locally than big box this year!

Wauk Wednesday: Montecito Lunch

Occasionally on my lunch, I like to get in a little walk around downtown Waukesha and then grab something to take back to the office. I had no idea where to go this past week and just started wandering around.

I saw that Montecito's OPEN sign was lit up and headed over to see what they had for lunch. As you walk in the door, you can't miss the specials written on a chalk board straight ahead. It read "Pasta Bowl, salad or soup and bread for $7" and although there were other specials, I stopped reading as this sounded great.

A server politely greeted me and I asked her what the special was all about. She gladly shared the pasta bowl options were spaghetti and meatballs or chicken Alfredo  After my chilly walk, I knew that the Alfredo would hit the spot and placed my order.

While my lunch was prepared, I took a seat at a table in the lounge and waited while it was prepared fresh for me. The lounge has some new artwork added to the walls since I was last there and I can't wait until summer for the patio to be able to be opened and show off how awesome it is. The lamp posts are a nice touch.

Lounge at Montecito with garage door

About 10 minutes later, my entree was brought out by a member of the kitchen and he explained that my butter was in my salad container so it wouldn't melt and wished me a great day. (Very friendly staff!)

I walked back to work with the smell of garlic wafting around me. It made the walk feel warmer than it was.

I opened everything up when I got back to my desk and was amazed at the nice presentation. The salad had a great selection of greens, sliced radishes, carrot slices and broccoli and the dressing was a nice, creamy (I believe homemade) ranch.

I then started in on the entree and it was definitely a homemade Alfredo sauce. It was really creamy and had great seasoning. I had enough leftover for another meal and this was the lunch special!

The roll was one of my favorite parts. I don't know what they do to the roll to make it so irresistible but I'm glad I saved it for the end. It was warm and flaky and almost tasted like it was quickly deep-fried.

I wanted another dozen rolls after finishing that one, but knew that my waistline wouldn't appreciate it and overall I was stuffed!

I hope to make it back to the Montecito for dinner as I have been there a few times for cocktails and know those are great. The restaurant is currently the host of the Waukesha Winter's Farmers Market and even though I haven't made it to one yet, I have seen photos and it looks like a great selection of local goods. It's open 8 - 12 pm.

NOTE: There is a Waukesha Winter Farmers Market this weekend and an Irish Art Crawl on Saturday. For all the details on that, click here.

I did snap a photo of the current drink specials everyday and they sound pretty good.