The Perfect Replacement

When we took over Bryant's Cocktail Lounge, some of the most iconic Bryant's decor and accessories were missing.  For example, there used to be a clock on the pillar in the downstairs lounge.  Also missing were the glasses for the blue devil and the skull glasses that used to hold the Navy Grog.  Most noticeably, there used to be a picture in the velvet lounge of a mysterious woman.  She was very memorable due to her exceptionally long hands and the mysterious look in her eye.  

Many of the past customers and employees believed the painting to be haunted.  We don't know if this is true or not, but we do know that a lot of strange stories exist about the Velvet Lounge. 

Whether or not the painting had super natural powers, we were very disappointed when it disappeared.  You just can't find paintings like this any more.  We searched and searched for a suitable replacement.  She had to be beautiful, but mysterious.  The painting had to be dark and unique enough to call the Velvet Lounge home.

We recently came across a painting that we feel fits right in.  She is mysterious, beautiful, and a little dark.  Best of all, her hands are behind her back, so we're not sure how big her hand are. We will assume they are abnormally large.

Visit the Velvet Lounge soon and take a look at the newest old addition to Bryant's. We think you will be quite pleased.

See you soon!

 

Thanks for Stopping by Jimmy Fallon

Last weekend we had the honor of serving Jimmy Fallon a cocktail. He and two friends stopped by and headed up to the Velvet Lounge where Jimmy enjoyed a hand crafted Frank's Drink, which consists of Old Oberholt Rye Whiskey, Chartreuse, Sweet Vermouth, and orange bitters.

He loved the cocktail and even gave us a Twitter shout-out. Whatever the heck that means.

We contemplated renaming the drink Jimmy's Drink, but our dear friend Frank wouldn't have it.  

Thanks for stopping by, Jimmy.  It was an honor serving you a delicious cocktail.

Featured Cocktail: the old Silk Stockings

A delicious bourbon cocktail with a sorted past. 

For those of you who have ever searched your local bar or liquor store for a spirit you read about in a magazine, you know that finding specialty products is not always easy.  This is especially true in Southeast Wisconsin, where many specialty spirits are not even brought in to the area.

Over the years, some of the ingredients used in our cocktails would become unavailable.  During these times, we would either change the recipe or retire the recipe.  With the resurgence of classic cocktails, we are finding that specialty spirits are once again becoming available.  This is great news for us!

We had a recent success story with one of our depression era cocktails, the Silk Stockings.  Sometime in the past, one of the primary ingredients became unavailable.  The liquor, called Mandarine Napoleon, is a mandarine based liquor that has a mellow, almost herbal taste.  When this spirit became unavailable, the mixologists at Bryant's substituted a mellon based liquor. While this may seem odd, both offered a sweet, warm taste that kept the Silk Stockings cocktail balanced with its other ingredients, including bourbon.

After some searching, we found that Mandarine is once again easily available.  We acquired a bottle and eagerly mixed a silk stockings the old fashioned way.  It was delicious.   The mandarine melds seamlessly with the bourbon, creating a very unique and drinkable cocktail.  

We now have the pleasure of offering both Silk Stockings cocktails.  The old silk stockings, made with mandarine for a smooth, mandarine taste and the new silk stockings, made with melon liquor for slightly sweeter taste.  

The best part?  Both cocktails are half priced during our Old Fashion Cocktail Hour, from 5-9 PM, Tuesday through Friday.  

Defrongue

There are some cocktails at Bryant's that are more than just a simple, balanced mixture of alcohol and mixer ingredients.  The Defrongue is one of these drinks.  

We are not sure of the exact history of this potent specialty drink, but we do know it has been served at Bryant's Cocktail Lounge since at least the 1950's, but probably before.  The cocktail is Southern Comfort based, but the actual recipe remains a long held secret.  In fact, we believe that only four people know the exact makeup of the secret ingredient that makes the Defrongue so tasty. 

What makes the Defrongue unique is its reputation as an aphrodisiac.  While some would joke that alcohol itself is an aphrodisiac, we believe there is something more to this drink.  Maybe it is the heady, sweet flavor or the mystery of not knowing the secret ingredients that make this drink a potent partner to the woo.  Regardless, this drink is so highly regarded that, during the 1950's, it inspired a poet to create on ode to the Defrongue cocktail.  This poem was printed in a mini poem book and given to the customer lucky enough to be enjoying a Defrongue cocktail.

After many years, we re-released this amazing cocktail on Valentine's Day of 2009.  You have the choice of enjoying this cocktail up or on the rocks (personally, I suggest enjoying it up, which was the traditional way of enjoying the Defrongue) and you even get a copy of the coveted poem book to take home.    

Peanut Butter Scare

Our creamy peanut butter ice cream drink, the ET, is made with real peanut butter.  Naturally, we were shocked to hear about the Salmonella found in peanut butter around the nation.

We did some investigation and found that our customers are not at risk if they consumed an ET at Bryant's Cocktail Lounge.

We only use Reese's peanut butter in our ice cream drinks.  We have found that Reese's makes the best peanut butter, which gives the ET a special taste.  According to Hershey's, who makes the Reese's peanut butter, there are no peanuts from the Peanut Corporation of America used in and Reese's product.  Hershey's processes all their own peanuts in their own plants. 

Therefore, there is no risk of Salmonella in our peanut butter products.     

If you would like to read the full press release, visit the Hershey's website.

Our Website is Live!

Our website for Bryant's Cocktail Lounge is now live.  Our site features lots of information about Bryant's, including cocktail and history pages.  Look for lots of future updates, including featured drinks and special events.

To visit our website, go to:

www.BryantsCocktailLounge.com

The old, old Bryant's

Before Bryant's was a cocktail lounge, it was opened as a beer bar.  Story has it that Bryant Sharp opened Bryant's in 1938 in its current location as a beer hall.  Sometime around 1941, he decided to give up beer and in order to serve only cocktails.  In addition, he took out his jukebox and replaced it with a record player on which he only played only classical music.  This was the birth of the first cocktail lounge in Milwaukee and, the story goes, the first cocktail lounge in Wisconsin.  From here, Bryant's grew in to the swanky lounge it is today.    

There are many stories that back up the timing of the establishment of Bryant's as a cocktail lounge.  One of our purveyors who custom mixes some of our cocktail ingredients claims that we are their oldest customer, dating back to "around the 1930's".  In addition, several people have told me their grandparents frequented Bryant's the cocktail lounge in the early 1940's.  I am unsure of when Bryant's was remodeled in to a cushy lounge, but some old timers have told me they remember the swanky Bryant's in the mid 1940's.  

We have two photos of Bryant's before it became a cocktail lounge.  An educated guess dates these photos sometime in the late 30's or early 40's, probably during World War II.  In the bottom photo, there is a recruiting poster on the wall that reads "Enlist Now!".  Dating this photo in the late 30's or early 40's is also consistent with the stories of Bryant's being a beer bar between 1938-1941; three of the four years were during WWII.  In addition, there is a posted notice in the lower photo from Wisconsin State Treasurer John Smith; an email to the current Wisconsin Treasurer's Office revealed that John Smith was in office from 1939 to 1947.  

  

Both of these historic photographs reveal a lot about the early Bryant's.  It appears that the lower photo is some sort of promotion of Miller Hi Life.  In addition, these photos reveal that Bryant was likely a fan of baseball (note the trophies on top of the bar and the baseball photo above the restroom doors).  This is consistent with stories past customers have told about taking the Bryant's shuttle between Bryant's and Milwaukee Braves games in the early 1950's.  These photos also reveal that Bryant's served food prior to becoming a cocktail lounge.  There is a sign above the bar that says "If your wife can't cook, eat here and keep her as a pet".  I think keeping someone as a pet in the early 30's had a much different connotation than it does today.

These photos also bring up a lot of questions.  If anyone knew the old, old Bryant's and has any information, stories, or the like, please email us .  Looking at these photos, I wonder:

• Who are the gentlemen in the photo?  Someone told me that Bryant Sharp was one of the men with his feet up at the stove, but we don't know exactly which one is Bryant.  Looking at the photos, it almost appears that Bryant is the bartender, which would also make sense. 
• When exactly was this photo taken and why was it taken?
• Was this photo taken at 2:13 in the afternoon?
• What is the significance of the the wing above the door to the ladies room?
• Where was the old Bryant's bar?  What was the configuration of the space?

These questions may never be answered, but it is definitely fun to speculate.  One thing is for sure, Bryant Sharp had a vision that would lead to the establishment of one of the greatest cocktail lounges in America.