Branded

When Outkast was in Milwaukee during Summerfest my friend and I stopped here during inclement weather for a bite to eat after the show and we ran into Andre 3000. He graciously allowed us to take pictures with him and chat him up for a bit before we went back to our food and conversation while he hung out at the bar. I love the lobby entrance and leather couches. We sat for a few hours that evening waiting for a storm to pass before heading to Madison. The bartender gave us a free basket of homemade chips and ketchup while we lounged in the comfy, classy lobby and pulled up the local weather report for updates on the tornado warnings west of us.
I would definitely recommend you stay at the Iron Horse hotel when in town. Branded has some great food offerings along with a downright cool atmosphere, an eclectic mix of patrons, laid back and accommodating staff — and interesting décor.

Nice upscale bar with excellent service. I feel I must point out that «Iron Horse» was a Wild West era reference to steam engine locomotive trains. The hotel was built next to an historic railway and named with this in mind. «Steel horse,» is a mid– twentieth century nickname motorcycle enthusiasts gave to their domestically manufactured vehicles of choice, as Bön Jovi immortalized in the overplayed «Dead or Alive.» A couple of drunks nearby confounded the two very loudly over a period of at least an hour, but I noticed that possibly some other Unilocalers are also a little confused. Still, this hotel bar is an outstanding choice if you just toured the Harley Davidson Museum, and they have dedicated motorcycle parking in front.
This is one of my top choices for drinks and conversation with out-​of-​town guests as I can count on the service being impeccable and unobtrusive, with impressive and interesting décor. Unlike many trendy taverns, the noise level permits conversation here, and the artwork can spur talk by itself. Of course the whole hotel has fascinating character, but this bar itself is fully worth a visit. The bartenders are skilled, something one can’t count on nowadays I’m afraid to note, and I’ve never been gouged with upcharges, The prices are high, but not at all unreasonable given the ambiance, location and service. Looking for a classy place to have a drink? Put Branded at the top of your list.

Fun, trendy place to meet up with friends. Check their site to see what specials they are running. They had 5 cents tappers for their Prohibition Party. It’s great people watching. Try to figure out who is a tourist and who is a local. That will keep you busy for a while. The cocktail menu has a lot of great options but bear in mind this won’t be cheap. I seem to always end up ordering their chips and dip. It’s simple but oh-​so-​good. I had the pulled pork sandwhich and it was very tasty. Service has always been solid.

Here for Repeal Prohibition where you get full pint taps for a nickel. Fantastic event, dressing up in vintage costume… flappers, gangsters, newsies, g-​men, burlesque.

The bar inside of the Iron Horse Hotel and it rocks, I love hanging out at Branded. I need to hang out there more. The food is great and the drinks are overall really good although I haven’t gotten fancy cocktails there but I am sure they are wonderful.
The vibe is also pretty spectacular, but I really love the overall feel of Iron Horse so it;s no surprise the bar is great. There is also a gorgeous pool table in the main area.

A low key «trendy» bar in the lobby of the Iron Horse hotel.
Some craft cocktails and an OK beer selection headline. The enviornment here was good for a meeting of friends, easy to have a conversation and relax. There’s free pool on the far end near the door and some ample seating near the bar in the back. Prices are typical for the area.
I can’t speak to the food/​snacks available as we didn’t have any, but it was a great meeting place before dinner or if you’re already in the hotel.

Stopped at Branded for happy hour. They had $ 5 mix drinks & $ 3 beers. There is no lot parking only street parking unless you valet.
I ordered the Wisconsin «hot brown». This was a take on the hot brown from Louisville’s Brown Hotel dish which I had a few months ago. Unfortunately this tasty dish was very very small especially for the price. I would of thought the Wisconsin version would be more considering Wisconsin’s stereotype appetite.

Branded is a chill place attached to the Iron Horse Hotel to have some over priced cocktails and conversation. The crowd angles more dressed up and refined than your normal place (think Smart Causal). They also have some small bites and apps, for which I can attest that the poutine was good. Easily one of the best hotel bars in the city.

I have been here numerous times and it never lets me down. Their food menu and drink menu changes depending on the season. They always have some sort of sangria on their drink menu, my favorite has been their winter sangria. It’s the best I’ve ever had. I’ve had other drinks off their menu as well and they are all just as good. For food, over the years I’ve tried nachos, cheese curds, chips and dip, popcorn, bone marrow, tacos and more. I cannot pick a favorite. Anything you get off their menu you will love. This is one place I’ll drive to from Chicago just to eat and drive back home.

My favorite bartender was Tomek, he made delightful drinks and was very accommodating. He made the best cocktail I’ve ever had!

Love this place. Drinks all delicious, and the $ 3 beer on tap deal was awesome.
Every time I go out, I always order Mac & Cheese. I have to say this was in the top 3, if not at the top of all the Mac I’ve ever had. Absolutely perfect! Fish tacos were also delicious, as was the salad. Service was great, our waiter was absolutely adorable! Would definitely go back again!

Had a delicious late dinner of soup and salad. Both items were unique and had all elements made in-​house, like their delicious croutons. Even better than the food and wine was my bartender/​food server. He was so polite and kind, a breath of fresh air for a weary business traveler. Even more so than the food, it’s great individuals like this server that make a restaurant memorable and worth giving repeat business. I will definitely visit Branded again.

PORK BELLY REUBEN BOYEEEEEEEE.
Man that thing was GOOD. So were the fish tacos. I noticed a $ 3 fish taco night on Fridays. Like I needed another reason to love Friday.
An important side note: these are the best fries in the universe. I never got excited for fries… until here. Take note, tell your parents.

This sweet little gem is located inside the Iron Horse Hotel. Seated and greeted immediately & we were settled for a little snack. I had the Tokyo mule & the hubs and I shared the cheese board. Both were delicious & we enjoyed our short but memorable visit! Next time, we will try more of their food.

This and another bar/​restaurant called «Smyth» are part of the Iron Horse Hotel. We came only for drinks, and started off at Smyth. They closed at 10, so we closed our tab and walked over to Branded to continue the evening. As far as I could tell, the cocktail menus at both Smyth and Branded are identical. It looks like Smyth is more food oriented, though, and Branded is more bar-​oriented. I wish we’d come in summer, because the outdoor patio area looked really nice.
Among the drinks we had, between Smyth and Branded:
— Hop Happy
— Warre’s Rage
— Cream City Spice
— Original Smyth
All were good. We also had the poutine, which was awesome.

So nice nice bar in the iron horse (Harley-​Davidson) hotel. Once I got past the name it was cozy inside. The crowd is sort of well heeled in a «non-​Wisconsin-​milwaukee but still in the Midwest sort of way» if that makes any sense at all.
The décor is stylish and masculine, prices are about what you’d expect. We tried several drinks and they were all delicious. We didn’t wait more than a few minutes either. Best thing about this place, though was the service. We weren’t hotel guests but I felt all the staff really wanted to make sure we were taken care of. (Note this is also «secret service servers wearing earpieces» sort of place, too.)
I’m deducting one star only because I am not a non-​Milwaukee guest and felt there could’ve been more cheese on the poutine.

Love this place. Not only is it a really great atmosphere, the service, drink and food are all wonderful as well. We popped in last night for some pre dinner drinks and had a great time. Their new fall/​winter cocktail menu came out and there were some great selections. Try the Old Fashioned or the Roundabout Sling– great cocktails. Our server was especially great; he was very friendly and knowledgable with some great suggestions.

WHY: Was trying to dine at the Iron Horse Hotel restaurant Smyth but they aren’t open on Sundays (You lied Unilocal.You lied.)
ORDERED: Pretzilla — little pretzel balls with Spotted Cow and Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve FONDUE $ 12, Summer Manhattan cocktail $ 12
TASTED: The fondue was awesome! Loved the Wisconsin fondue ingredients paired with salty pretzel balls. If you run out of pretzels balls but have more cheese, you can purchase more for $ 2. These were a huge hit with my wife and I. My Manhattan was expertly crafted with an exact sliver of lemon garnish floating in it. So good in fact I walked up to the bar and complimented the bartender, who seemed really flattered.
POST: Trendy industrial feel. Spacious. Cool comic book inspired large paintings on the walls. Hipster dad soundtrack providing the mood music. Friendly service. Easy free parking. Great appetizers, well made cocktails.
CHANCE OF RETURN: ¹⁰⁄₁₀

I came here to watch the Breeder’s Cup Classic. Calling ahead to make sure they’d show it, I figured being in the Iron Horse Hotel was a good place to watch a horse race.
The servers didn’t know about the race but happily turned it on for me when I asked. They even asked whether or not I wanted the subtitles on.
The menu is limited but unique. The beer on tap is good and the bottle selection is good as well. We got the cheese churds. Usually when you order cheese curds you scrap through them and then are disappointed that there’s not more. We could not finish (not even close) the order between two people. $ 13, but it’s appropriate for how much food you get. They also offer a really cool menu item — Russian Roulette Pigs In a Blanket — one of them is laced with Habeneros peppers!
The drink prices weren’t cheap but weren’t overly expensive. The atmosphere is dark and treny but not loud. A cool place overall. I’d go back.

Stylish bar, with decent cocktail offerings and a fairly good menu, although the DLT that I’d ordered had a bone in it that had to be coughed out. Not good, people. Not good.
Aside from that one experience, the bar is huge and gets a randomly stylish clientele based upon whatever happens to be going on that day. You’ll get bikers (lots of money with nice HD’s, not the Sons of Anarchy), the trendy, updressed fashionista types, business-​class from the city and the hotel guests themselves. It makes for a pretty good variation, mostly present in the warmer months.
And I will say, the menu is pretty good, as they share a kitchen with Smythe. Just watch out for the occasional duck bone.