Eat at Sobelman's.

Sobelman's was not on the bucket list but it is Milwaukee institution. When trying to decide on a place for lunch (that was open) on Memorial Day, Stacy's husband suggestion Sobelman's. It claims to be the home of the best burger in Milwaukee. Best Burger had me sold.

Little did we know, Sobelman's was a place to hang out before a Brewer's game and the place was packed. We didn't have any set time table for the Forest Home Cemetery so we didn't mind waiting, besides we didn't really have another option. 

Besides being home to Milwaukee's Best Burger, it is also home to incredible Bloody Marys. They are a meal in themselves. If you have 30 minutes to wait, you could order a pitcher complete with a whole roasted chicken on a stick in it. Stacy had one with bacon wrapped Jalapeno Poppers. I stuck with beer. I am not a fan of tomato juice and didn't want to waste my money on something I wasn't going to like. I should have sampled Stacy's though.

I'm not sure about the competition in Milwaukee but I have to disagree with the fact that they claim to be the best burger in Milwaukee. I think Kopp's are better. My issue started when they didn't ask how I wanted my burger. If you are going to be the best burger, you better give me the option of ordering it medium, medium-rare. Second there was no such thing as a just a Bacon Cheeseburger. I could get a Cheeseburger or a Sobelman which was a bacon cheeseburger with fried onions and diced jalapenos. Despite not liking fried onions or jalapenos, I ordered the Sobelman. I brushed off most of the onions and jalapenos. It wasn't bad but it wasn't out of this world. My burger wasn't juicy. It really didn't have a distinct flavor. I guess in a Food Wars episode AJ Bombers beat Sobelman's for the title of best burger. I've not been to AJ Bombers but based on my burger, I could see how that was possible. 

Maybe I just got a bad burger. Maybe I have grown to love butter burgers. Maybe I am just a burger snob. Whatever it is, it is not enough for me to stop going back but next time I will stick with the plain cheeseburger and maybe even try a Bloody Mary.

#3973 See the Forest Home Cemetery Reenactment

At cookie baking Stacy mentioned that Forest Home Cemetery does Reenactments of Milwaukee citizens during Memorial Day and she always wanted to check it. I added it to the list. It worked perfect that Chocolate Fest is always Memorial Day Weekend so we could do a weekend around Chocolate Fest ending at Forest Home Cemetery. 

Forest Home Cemetery puts a nice program on Memorial Day. It starts with a Memorial Service in the Chapel and Veteran's Garden of Honor, then the Re-enactors tell their stories around their graves, and the day ends with a walking tour of History of Milwaukee around the cemetery. You could also buy lunch.

The rain stopped and we were able to see the re-enactors outside. There were 8 Milwaukee Citizens featured all with a part in the Civil War. The ones we heard didn't seem to see much of the battle. We only caught three or four of them because honestly they weren't very exciting. The best one was the woman who told the story of Quentus Brown, who was her neighbor and actually never lived in Milwaukee. He just happened to die in a boarding house fire in Milwaukee after the war. 

After we listened to a couple of re-enactors we set out on our own walking tour to find the Beer Barons. As Stacy said, those are probably the most exciting tombs.  As we meandered our way through the cemetery, I decided I need to become important so I can have a big obelisk tomb. Stacy said I just need to be wealthy. I said when I become important I will be wealthy so that will work. 

We did eventually find the Beer Barons. And just like every good town in Wisconsin that has a bar on every corner, the four beer barons of Milwaukee are on the four corners on the same intersecting paths of the cemetery (or close enough).

Forest Home does do other guided tours throughout the year and some of them would be interesting to take, especially if I was closer. They also have pamphlets for self-guided tours. If you like green space and you don't mind walking among dead people, Forest Home Cemetery has over 400 acres to explore. It is shady enough that it won't be too hot on a summer day. 

Go to Purple Door Ice Cream Shop

Purple Door isn't on the bucket list but probably should have been as it was one of the 13 best ice cream shops in Wisconsin according to Only in Your State.

This isn't your typical ice cream shop per se. Yes it serves ice cream made fresh. It has flavors of the day. You can get cones and dishes. You can even get sorbet. But that's where the similarities stop.

At Purple Door, they carry 31 different flavors a day like Baskin Robbins but theirs are more unique. And if you can't decide between Whiskey Sour and Brandy Old Fashion (yes, those are real flavors), you can always get a flight of ice cream. A flight of ice cream is 4 scoops of any flavors you choose. The flight is great if you are with a group of people and want to try different flavors.

We got a flight. It cost Stacy and I $3 each. Totally worth it for 4 scoops of ice cream. Stacy said I could pick since she will eat anything. I decided not to go with anything I could normally get such as chunky peanut butter or dark chocolate. After a few sample tastes, I decided on Cinnamon Roll, Brandy Old Fashion, Grame Marsal (or something like that), and Lemon Cardamon.

Our favorite was Brandy Old Fashion which if you didn't know you were eating ice cream, one could swear they had one in their hand. A close second was Cinnamon Roll which tasted just like a cinnamon roll right out of the oven complete with the icing. Lemon Cardamon wasn't bad. We both could take or leave Grame Marsal. It was good but the Whiskey Sour probably would have been better.

If I'm ever downtown Milwaukee again, I believe another trip to Purple Door is in order.

# 3959 See the Fonz Statue in Milwaukee

Sunday, Monday, Happy Days,
Tuesday, Wednesday, Happy Days,
Thursday, Friday, Happy Days,
The weekend comes, my cycle hums
Ready to race to you

Happy Days was set in Milwaukee. To honor Happy Days and the main character and to bring more tourism and business to Milwaukee, the tourism group raised money to have a Bronze Fonz created and erected in the Riverwalk area.

It was a quick stop. I hopped out of the car, snapped a few pictures, including a selfie, and was ready to go hop back in the car by the time Stacy circled the block. Next time I will enjoy the riverwalk but we had more ice cream to eat.

Song Lyrics from: Happy Days - Happy Days Theme Song Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

#4048 Go to Organ Piper Pizza

After Stacy and I explored American Science and Surplus, took a boat tour around Lake Geneva, and ate some chocolate at Chocolate Fest, we met up with her husband, son, and in-laws for dinner at Organ Piper Pizza. We decided on Organ Piper because it was another suggestion I had when asked what else I wanted to do. I heard it was a must do place in Milwaukee and it was pizza. Who doesn't love pizza?

It is a unique experience. First you place your order at the counter and then watch for your number to appear on the board, like bingo, to go pick up your order.

While you are waiting for your pizza and eating, the organist entertains your on the ginormous pipe organ. It has several series of pipes, other percussion instruments that he can control, lights, and even the American Flag. He takes requests so you can listen to your favorites played on the organ or embarrass someone on their birthday. 

If organ music isn't your thing, you can always go check out the game room and lose quarters playing pinball or other arcade games.

The pizza wasn't bad. It has a crispy crust, not entirely thin but not thick either. It is thicker than Joe's Fox Hut's pizza but I won't call it thick crust either. The pizza wasn't overly saucy. I don't like saucy pizza. So this was a plus. It was loaded with toppings. We got the Milwaukee Special which was Sausage, Mushrooms, and Onions. I brushed off most of the onions and mushrooms but still had a few. They didn't kill me. 

Good pizza. Good music. Fun atmosphere. However, I'm not entirely sure the hubby would like the place because it is more than pizza and he's not an atmosphere kinda guy. If you take the organ show out of the place (which will NEVER happen since that's the namesake), the hubby probably would be more likely to go. He's weird. I enjoyed everything especially the organ show. Definitely would come back.

# 4028 Go to American Science and Surplus

One day, I clicked on one of those links on Facebook that tells you about places you MUST visit in a city. American Science and Surplus was on of those places. It sounded cool. I added it to the list. When Stacy asked about things to do besides Chocolate Fest, I looked over my Milwaukee/Milwaukee County list and decided American Science and Surplus was possibility.  Initially Stacy figured we could hit it on Memorial Day until she discovered it was closed. Since plans changed so much for Sunday, we took advantage of not really having any plans and stopped on our way to Lake Geneva.

It was not what I was expecting. I think I missed the word "Science". I was thinking Army surplus. Even with my misunderstanding of what kind of place it is, American Science and Surplus is definitely my kind of place. Completely random and not sure what you're going to find when you walk in the door. It is full of complete randomness. You want to excavate a mermaid, they have a kit for you. Need a random gear? I'm sure they have the size you need. From military to science equipment to toys and accessories, you just might find that perfect gift for the hard to buy for relative or a funky Halloween costume.

It was fun just browsing and if I'm ever in the area, I probably would stop just to see what new and random things they have.

Just a few of the random things I found

#321 Go to Chocolate Fest

I was told that Chocolate Fest in Burlington was a waste of time and money, that I should remove this from the bucket list and replace it something more worth while. Despite the warnings, I wanted to check it out myself and form my own opinion.

Chocolate Fest lived up to it's warnings...it's not THAT exciting. Maybe if it wasn't pouring rain and there were actual shows going on MAYBE it would have been slightly more entertaining. I have ridden enough carnival rides that I didn't have a desire to blow my entire budget on rides that I can ride at Bay Beach for a fraction of the cost. Even with not going on the rides, it was still a pricey afternoon. $8 ($7 in advance online) just to get on to the grounds and then another $8 to sample the chocolate in the Chocolate Experience Tent. That's $16 dollars a person for a sub-par festival... Not to mention the $5 to park in the dump.

The Chocolate Experience Tent wasn't all that bad. For $8 we got 12 samples of chocolates from different booths. It actually comes out to $0.75 a sample but to charge me for a sample seems a bit ridiculous. Most of the samples were sizes that actually made the $0.75 worth it. There was at least 1 piece that was not much much bigger than a nickle. We did get some good gelato, a mini chocolate covered pretzel rod, a chocolate covered marshmallow, and some really tasty fudge. You could get a Nestle Tollhouse Cookie for free but you were limited to only one as they stamped your hand.

Besides chocolate samples and chocolate shopping, there were several demonstration areas. We caught the end of a cooking demonstration where there was cinnamon on pork. Earlier in the day, I believe there was chocolate demonstrations. There also were chocolate carvings including a Star Wars one. If you had kids, they could try to find treasure in chocolate. That one looked like fun. Kids were given chisels and nails to try to break open chocolate to find treasure. Many of the kids we saw weren't too successful. We got there in time to see the start of the chocolate eating contest. Just what every parent wants...their toddler to eat 5 mini candy bars.

We did wander into the vendor tent and sampled some dips. Other than that there wasn't much happening. There were some interesting activities it appeared in the family area like a lumberjack show and a puppet show. Maybe this is more a family event but at the price, I'm thinking the county fair is cheaper.

Chocolate Fest is now officially off the bucket list. I have no desire to go back unless someone gives me free tickets and Pat McCurdy is playing. It's one of those been there, done that, don't need to go back experiences.

#894 Go to Lake Geneva

. When we initially decided to go to Chocolate Fest in Burlington, I google-mapped Burlington and discovered that Lake Geneva was only about a half hour from Burlington. I figured that was doable and when Stacy asked what else I wanted to do, I said Lake Geneva among other things.

The plans for Lake Geneva evolved from a 2 hour boat tour to walking the Lake Path due to scheduling conflicts. Lake Geneva is a summer haven for millionaires and billionaires and has been since the late 1800s. It is a resort town and thrives on the tourists that come to gawk at the mansions along the shore of Lake Geneva. One can actually walk the around the lake all 20.1 or so miles due to an old law on the books that require the city keep up the Lake Path which literally winds through the backyards of these mansions. Stacy and I planned on walking part of this path but we actually were able to take a boat tour instead.

Lake Geneva Cruise Lines offer a variety of cruises of varying lengths around the lake. We initially were going to take the Full Lake Tour. Other tours we tossed around were the Black Point Estate Tour and the Expanded Bay Tour. There is also a mail boat tour where mail is deliver to the mansions around the lake by a mail person jumping off the front of the boat onto to the dock, delivering the mail, and jumping back on the back of the boat. My parents and cousins took this tour last year and really enjoyed it. We wanted to do this but it doesn't start until Mid-June. Later I discovered that they was a special mail boat tour on Sunday. Stacy and I ended up taking the Ice Cream Social Tour.

As we cruised around the bay and learned about some of the more famous mansions, we enjoyed a sundae for lunch. Personally I was a bit disappointed in my sundae.

This is what the picture online promised me:

This is what I got

Hershey syrup, whipped cream, a cookie, nuts if you wanted, and 1 scoop of vanilla ice cream. The website says "be served a sumptuous Breyer's ice cream sundae prepared just the way you like it." That is not how I like my sundae. I like both hot fudge and caramel, chocolate ice cream, sprinkles, whipped cream, and a cherry. Despite not being "just the way I like it", it was still good and made a very good lunch.

After our boat tour, it was still raining. We decided to save the 3 or so block downtown shopping district for another trip and continue on with our day since we had agreed to meet Stacy's husband and in-laws for dinner at 6.

 It is a nice like tourist area but they do have a parking problem. If it wasn't raining we probably would have had to walk a lot farther than we did. It is all metered parking but they do have pay boxes instead of having to feed meters. Mainly it is street parking. I only saw 1 small parking lot near the boat docks. Even Fish Creek has more parking. 

I can now say I have been to Lake Geneva. There are still a few things I'd like to do in the area and probably will make another trip down that way. If you haven't been to Lake Geneva, I would suggest to take a trip there even if it is just to gawk at the mansions.

Just some of the mansions. I was on the wrong side of the boat.

#457 -- Have a tea party

Back in September at my Pampered Chef Party, somehow we got on the topic of things I have't done. I brought out my original bucket list and niece was looking through it. In that perfect eleven year old voice, she was like "You never had a tea party?". I think it shocked her that her nearly 35 aunt never had a tea party, even with my dolls. I grew up with brothers. Tea parties weren't high on the list of priorities..Lego building and matchbox car racing were a different story.

The next day I mentioned the idea of having a tea party to Danielle, who readily agreed and the party was born. We wanted it on the front porch, with cucumber sandwiches and scones. After talking to Janis about the tea party, fancy clothes and big hats were added. Now we just needed a date. And so today was the day that we came up with.

I am not a tea drinker, which probably another reason having a tea party wasn't high on the priority list but was willing to find a tea I might like. Everyone brought their favorite tea. I went to Wal-Mart and picked up a variety pack of fruit teas after consulting with my cousin about teas for non-tea drinkers. In the Fruit Tea Sampler by Celestail Seasonings I discovered 2 teas I liked: The Raspberry Zinger and The Black Cherry Berry. That's right I had not 1 but 2 cups of tea and if I wasn't so full I probably would have tried the Country Peach Passion.

What's a tea party without cucumber sandwiches and crumpets? Danielle made these fabulous cucumber sandwiches and ham roll ups. Shannon brought Mickey Mouse Scones. Erin was instructed to make Cheesecake. Janis made these broccoli cheese quiches with coconut flour that were actually quite tasty (and I don't like quiche) and a pineapple upside down cake.

I decided to bring crumpets. I found a recipe awhile back in the Betty Crocker International Cookbook and decided it would be perfect for the tea party. On Friday afternoon, I figured I better look at the recipe to determine if I needed eggs or not (on Friday it said I didn't need eggs, on Saturday it did.). While reading through the recipe it said to grease flan rings or tuna cans and pour 2 tsps of batter in the rings on a griddle. I don't own flan rings.  I don't eat tuna. After a panicked post in the Facebook event and some searching on Pinterest, I was told I could use cookie cutters or biscuit cutters. Not sure if I didn't let my crumpets rise long enough, used too much batter, or what but they didn't quite have the look of an English Muffin but more of a pancake look. It really didn't matter, they were scrumptious.

It was a fabulous little affair that is probably going to turn into a yearly event. I guess I will have to go out and buy my own big hat. It was fun to get all dressed up and have a tea party once in a while. It's one of those things that if it wasn't on the bucket list, I probably would never have thought to do but now that I have done it, I would like to do it again preferably without the random sunburn