Ferch’s Malt Shoppe & Grille

Horrible service. I guess I have my super power of being invisible. Needs stronger management.

Was good lil burger place & ice shop! love the décor! gives you that old school day feel ! Burgers were good, service was good ! Will go back

This was THE spot growing up in Greendale. It used to have a wall filled with cheap candy you could buy and really had that malt shoppe vibe. Since the renovation, Ferch’s has kind of lost its touch and gotten a rep of being «too expensive». I hadn’t eaten here in years but thought I would give it another try for the sake of a Unilocal review. It looks cute on the inside and service is attentive but I still think it is way too pricey for what you get. I remember them having really good chicken fingers but they only come as an appetizer which is $ 7 for 5 and I didn’t want that many. They should make this an entrée item w/​fries.
Ordered a build your own burger w/​pepperjack cheese, bacon, guacamole and jalapeño and added sweet potato fries for $ 1.50. I think it is crazy that lettuce and tomatoes are considered «premium toppings» that you have to pay additional for. The sweet potato fries come with marshmallow cream which i though was a unique idea but when it came to taste the cream was too sweet and overpowered the flavor of the fries which were lacking in flavor. Ranch was better with them. Burger was good but nothing amazing.
Also ordered the green river phosphate which is lime syrup, seltzer and whipped cream. Was rich and creamy and is something you don’t find too many places.
Wish Ferch’s never went through the renovation cuz I have good memories of the old one :/

We had 2 burgers, 2 fries, and 2 soft drinks for $ 25. It took quite a while to get waited on and the burgers were greasy and lacked flavor. The sweet potato fries were good. We walked in the front door and only saw counter seating and 4 booths. I know they have a room for parties and movies, but I don’t know if that is also open for lunch? We didn’t see it… not sure where it was. I’d go elsewhere for a great burger for less $$.

Paid 16 dollars for a chocolate banana malt and a burger. The malt was milk consistency. It was also so cold in there, it felt like we were sitting in an enclosed front porch. Had to get up and find someone to refill the coffee. Will not return

I am giving this a 4 for what it is, a great small time custard shop. The food is decent, nothing special, but the sodas and flavored custard is pretty good. I wouldn’t say it’s as good as Kopps, but better than Culvers. The nice thing is that you can get different flavors on demand and don’t have to wait for flavors of the day. They also mix the flavors in front of you by hand which is a nice touch. Again it’s a great place for what it is, defiantly worth a stop if your in the area.

Stopped in for a quick chocolate malt to go. It seemed a little small (but I could probably drink a gallon of chocolate malt, so take that criticism with a grain of salt) but the taste was incredibly chocolatey. The staff seemed friendly and efficient. What a nice treat!

First time here was a great experience. Excellent service. Food was great. Guacamole burger was excellent. Did not try this shakes but maybe on the next trip as they looked yummy.

Worst Customer Service!!. We went to dine their on a busy evening. Our food took a long time to arrive. While waiting I asked the young waitress how long it would take? She was very rude and said «I really don’t know we are very busy today, you’ll have to wait». She could have said «let me check and get back» or something like «Sorry about the wait it should take a few mins’ or so. I was really pissed. And the food arrived — I asked for Garlic fries and I got the regular ones. They were not even hot. When checked she took it with her and got back in less than 30 secs. She just sprinkled little chopped garlic on top of the fries and called it the garlic fries. It just wasn’t right. Cold fries and garlic on top!!. The worst part is even before we started eating the food the check arrived… I lost it for this place.

Not gonna lie, even though there’s just one dish there I can eat (Veggie Burger), I love Ferch’s. My Fiancé, who doesn’t have any dietary restrictions, is also a huge fan. Any place that has food that we both enjoy gets an automatic 4 stars from me. Also, the fries are delicious and the atmosphere is kitchy but comfortable. The outdoor section is also pretty neat, situated right outside of a park and in the middle of Greendale’s local shopping district.
They also occasionally screen family movies (think more Shrek, and less Casablanca) in a tiny movie theater attached to the restaurant. This is a really neat feature that I haven’t seen before — so if you have kids, or enjoy family movies, be sure to check that out.
I have to echo what others have said about substandard service. All three times I’ve been there, no one has greeted us and it’s taken a little bit of time for a server to come over (even when our group were the only customers in there). It’s definitely not the worse service, and the food tends to come out pretty quickly, but it’s still a little offputting.

Service: 0 stars
Walked in with my boyfriend and we were the only customers at the time. I grew up going here but it’s been at least a couple years so I didn’t know how it worked. Was it order and take a number (saw number cards) or was it a sit down (I saw menus and employees had ordering pads). The employees just sat there and stared at us. We asked to sit outside and they said we couldn’t they weren’t serving outside today? It was 80, sunny and clear blue sky’s. We kinda stood there baffled and after a minute they said if we ordered to go then we would get a number and we could go outside. We ordered and they never gave us our number. We were left sitting there staring at mute employees once again. After several minutes they said just go outside well bring it to you .
So as to answer your question I still don’t know if it’s a sit down place or a order and wait for you food by the counter, or a order and they’ll bring it to you ?
Remember how I said we were the only two there … The food took about 30 — 35 min to be made and brought out. We got chicken tenders and fries .
Besides the awkwardly unfriendly mute unhelpful slow service …
I give the food 4 stars. It is a little pricy (a shake for $ 7) but it’s still worth it. The shake and malt list is huge, with a whole page full of options. The food is cooked well and the side sauces for the chicken tenders were good. I don’t know what it is but they have my favorite chicken tenders of all time. It’s definitely a step up from a typical diner.
The atmosphere has a cute retro style to it. There is tons of seating inside and outside. They also keep water outside with bowls for dogs ! They have long hours and are open later for dinner in the summer. I believe you can rent out the side room as well; it would be cute for kids birthday parties .
All around the service and staff really brought my review rating to two stars. Going through other Unilocal reviews it’s apparent that the service isn’t great and it seems they aren’t doing anything to fix that. Being the only two people in there gives them no excuse to have the food take that long. Also with weather conditions and the time of year, there’s no reason to refuse outside service .
I would maybe recommend going if you have at least an hour or two on your hands. If not call ahead and carry out :) I normally wouldn’t return back for such bad service but the food is worth it and if you have kids they’ll love it.

«Pricey»
While clearly making a go of it in Greendale WI, not an easy feat by any means, this place seems to me at least, to be quite overpriced. Granted, they frequently have coupons… which puts them almost within the range of other places for lunch and dinner!

I really wish I could eat here. The location is perfect. But every time I come in, I can see the kitchen staff isn’t wearing gloves. And the kids working in the fountain area handle cash then handle food without washing hands or putting on gloves. Some of the workers wear sandals (imagine dropping a knife on your foot).
Finally, there is no real organization in their ordering system. The cashiers make the custard treats and you never know if someone is coming back to one of the two cash registers.
It seems the only reason they have any business is because of the fantastic location in the Village of Greendale. If only it was managed properly, this place could be a real asset to Greendale. And could make more money for the Ferchoff family.

Love the old fashion décor. Menu is nice but prices are a little high. The food is tasty. They could use an extra person or two behind the counter for help.
It is a fun family place, even had a family gathering there for my son’s 15^th birthday. All family members enjoyed it.

I been wanting to go here for a long time and was highly disappointed.
First service was slow, very slow.
Second the home made drinks they create are very weak in flavor, for the price you pay they should be flavorful and have at least one free refill or worth the price they charge.
Third the price on the food was high so I thought it would be flavorful and very well made, wrong it was bland and the only thing that saved it was the bun. I had to add Ketchup cause my burger was so dry.
We left with out getting ice cream cause I didn’t want to waste anymore cash in this place.
Red Robin has better burgers for the same price.

Throwback vibe. Cute old fashioned malt shop gets overshadowed by the extremely painful wait times. There is literally one person serving in s huge dining room and in the main room. In addition this poor dude is taking all the orders and making all the drinks and custom ice cream orders. There is one dude in the kitchen. Clearly there’s not enough staff to keep up with the orders. It’s been nearly 25 min for a small turtle Sunday. Boo. I’ve watched three different groups of people walk out and two other groups ask where there order is. It’s a bummer because it’s super cute and close to work.

The food is good here, but service generally sucks! They just recently expanded and lord help you if you’re sitting in the new area — it takes forever to bring your food! By the time the food came, the ice cream was melted. The server explained they couldn’t find us — what?! If you ignore the service, the Asian chicken lettuce wrap is good and the sundaes are yummy. Finally, if it’s busy, the set up isn’t good to accommodate the crowd. You end up snaking into the eating area while you wait to order.

I have never had anything but Frozen Custard here so I can’t give them 5 Stars. That being said, Ferch’s Frozen Custard is my favorite Frozen Custard around. I love all the mix-​ins, but my favorite treat is a simple Chocolate/​Peanut Butter Malt! They are Wheelchair accessible and the staff has always been friendly and helpful!

I’ve been to Ferch’s before, but after my last visit, I’m not sure there will be a return.
Order at the bar when you’ve got a dining room? Well, sure as long as there are people dedicated to working the cash registers to take orders. We waited in line and a gentleman ahead of us was very perturbed that the lady who was taking orders at one register did not return after her last customer, so he was then stuck at the head of a non-​line. I see his point. It seems there is very little organization to how things are run here, leading to long waits, poor execution, and mistakes.
We ordered our burgers, got our ticket with a number for the Pick Up window, and sat down. After a long wait, my number was called and incorrect burgers were presented to me as being mine. After verifying that my burgers did not come with either bacon or avocado the kitchen then started making my correct order. Watching the disorder in the kitchen; this place is like the before version of a Kitchen Nightmares episode. Slow, unorganized, inaccurate.
Got our burgers and there’s no mustard or ketchup on them, and no mustard on any of the tables. There’s no silverware to be seen, (or even plasticware), to cut the burger in half. We ate our burgers and it was a fine burger. Had the Greendale and the sweet relish paired well with the fresh jalapenoes. But Kopp’s is less than 0.5 mi away, and they’re cranking out burgers and custard like nobody’s business! We would’ve gotten custard here, but then there was a long line and why bother with more frustration?
I noticed one comment on Unilocal about the men’s bathroom being filthy and the toilet seat not staying up, and sure enough, he was right, and it had yet to be fixed. I’m sure Ferch’s has its niche of locals who like the restaurant’s theme of a simpler slower time.

Tried going once and they were closed, so once we finally made it there we were really looking forward to it. It didn’t quite live up to that build-​up.
Prices are a little high and the food was just ok. Cheese fries were tasty, but the burger and wrap we had both severely underwhelmed. Sodas were in tiny glasses — they had free refills, but it was a pain to have to have to go ask for them at the counter.
Got a banana dish at the end of the meal and it was Big Bird yellow, which frankly wasn’t very appetizing.
Overall, I wanted it to be so much more than it was. Kopp’s is tastier and much, much cheaper.