Cooler By The Lake

Pretty decent little airport restaurant. Had a bit of a wait for our flight back to Houston, so my coworkers and I stopped here to do a bit of work and grab a bite to eat and a couple of beers. Typical beer selection for an airport bar, and the food was fine. Nothing special, but nowhere near the worst food option in an airport.

Cooler By The Lake is a restaurant and bar — located inside of General Mitchell International Airport — on Concourse E — past the TSA security checkpoint.
This is the ONLY place to sit down and eat, drink, and get coffee — past the TSA security checkpoint (there is also one convenience store to buy bottled water, sodas, snacks, etc.).
I decided to try them out — rather than exit the Concourse back into the Main Terminal. I sat at the bar and I ordered their breakfast burrito: eggs, Brats, and cheese — and a side of bacon. The order comes with their breakfast potatoes. I took a couple of bites of the burrito and then dosed it with Cholulu sauce. I then disassembled the burrito so that I could get rid of some of the carbs (the flour tortilla). I tasted the the breakfast potatoes — they were bland and overcooked — and they desperately needed seasoning. So I set those aside and did not eat them.
As far as the rest of the food goes — the contents of the Burrito were tasty, as was the bacon.
Service was good.

Very nice watering hole to have on the E terminal in MKE airport. Stopped here for a drink but ended up ordering a fabulous Wedge Salad. I was very impressed with the quality of the salad and the chicken was freshly grilled, hot and juicy. My compliments!

Was very impressed with the food. The bartender was very attentive. The atmosphere is quiet and relaxing and clean.

Waitress was very impatient and unfriendly. Mixed up everyone’s orders of wine. Food came in different way than requested. Eat before coming to the airport.

Sleepy little place in the terminal. Can’t expect great food at a place like this but it wasn’t horrible.
I had the Cheese Curds (don’t think they are fresh) and the butter burger. The burger was a bit on the dry side but alright for an airport.
Bartender was very nice. I might try something outside the terminal next time.

My morning started very early today, as I am making my way home back to the 808!
Upon getting back to the Milwaukee airport this morning at around 6 AM, I was sooooooooo haaaangry!!!
I had to find something to soak up all that beer I drank, from last night at the Crawfish Junction, and Bismarck Main Street Bar & Grill.
If there was one thing I’ve learned from all my years of traveling all over the U.S. for work… is to never go hungry while on the road, because you will never know when you’re next meal will be, if things don’t go smoothly (for some reason) on your trip.
Upon leaving Watertown this morning at 5 AM, I get back to Milwaukee at a little after 6 AM. First thing I do after checking in for my flight is to look for a place to eat.
Upon walking around the airport, I find this place called — «Cooler by the Lake». It’s an airport bar/restaurant…and you know how airport food is, just average to below average. And of course, the food is expensive! But what cha’ gonna do… the airport vendors have to pay very high taxes, therefore the prices are passed onto the consumer.
Upon getting seated, I ordered a ham & egg burrito. The burrito was topped with some kind of salsa & cheese inside of the burrito, and it came with some potato wedges on the side. I also ordered a cup of coffee, as I just need my cup of joe in the morning.
What can I say about the grub… well, I knew what I was gonna get, so there were no expectations about the food. Overall the food was just average, to below average… service was a bit slow, but I wasn’t in a rush, as I had plenty time in the airport. I do admit the coffee was excellent! Who doesn’t like a good cup of coffee in the morning?

General Mitchell is slowly, but surely, upping its game… much like Milwaukee on the whole.
That said, Cooler by Lake is not game changer nor is it a game upper. It’s a relatively sorry filler in Concourse E, a terminal that’s not exactly replete w/​food + bev options.
I only ever rock to-​go options from here in the form of water, healthy-​ish snacks/​prepped stuff like sandwiches, but seriously. Options on the menu lack, and even the to-​go selection is lackluster.
Other concourses rock stellar pizza, great coffee, and lots more in the way of worth it. If you’re flying out of E at General Mitchell, snag something before your TSA rubdown. Trust.

Been here many times when going through terminal E. Prices are expensive because it’s an airport; Kathleen isn’t thrilled to see you because she’s been working at this same location for 28 years — but if you take the time to get to know her, she’s a party.
It is about what I would expect from a minor restaurant next to the gate at the Milwaukee airport.

Waiting for my flight at Terminal E and starving since had back to back meetings that we skipped lunch. Ordered the salmon entrée ($ 15.99) that had a honey/​lemon and Montréal seasoning which the friendly staff highly recommended. It was delicious! Probably one of the better meals I’ve had at an airport and I travel a lot for work. Also can try some local beers from the bar if you don’t have time to visit a local brewery.

To the crotchety old woman that works the bar: if you are that miserable (every time I see you) then just quit. I hate your presence.
To the manager of the Cooler: fire the old nasty woman behind the bar. She clearly hates your restaurant, the people who go in there, her life and most likely you too.
To the people of the E Terminal: this is your only choice for drinks and food once you pass the TSA. If you find yourself here… I’m sorry. At least you can have a stiff drink accompanied with bitter attitude.

This is the only place to get a drink and food after you pass through security — the drinks were okay but the food was terrible — I over heard the waiter telling someone about the rib eye steak sandwich with carmelized onions — it sounded good so I ordered it — big mistake — it was very salty, the onions were overdone and the rib eye steak looked more like a cube steak and had lots of fat/​gristle in it — ate the meat and some of the bun but was not impressed with it at all — had 2 Mile High Bloody Mary’s — at $ 11.99 they were not cheap — did they use a top end vodka — I don;t know and the waiter did not ask me what brand I wanted — since I travel thru Milwaukee I will stop for a drink but will get my food at Hudson News instead

2.4 stars… I cannot round up. I’ve eaten here on several occasions as I tend to fly United when traveling from MKE to EWR. Cooler by the Lake is the only bar/​restaurant once you pass security on this side of the airport.
Food is not «bad» but it’s by no means great either. I’ve had the salmon entrée a couple times now and would recommend it if you are looking for a healthier options than some of the other items offered. I have to warn you about the spinach & artichoke dip that I tried for the first time today though: it was the worst I ever had. Just avoid it. Perhaps it was frozen then defrosted, I dunno, but it was soupy. Not enough cheese in it to bind it together likes good spinach dip. Plus, they served it with lightly toasted bread, not tortilla chips, so with absolutely no crunch, it just taste like a soggy spinach sandwich. Ilk. Thank goodness for all the margaritas I had to make me forget & forgive it! The waitresses and staff are really sweet, too.

Service slow for airport Restaurant and a simple order. Most customers seemed to beg for their check. Friendly staff. Open to adding vegetable to my salad to replace chicken

more like 1.5÷5 stars.
Stay far away from this place. Make sure you get food at the other restaurants before getting stuck here. I think this is the only food place in and around the delta gate. I am seriously dissapointed that this was the only place to eat around delta. =/​
prices are a bit higher than the other restaurants but i guess they are allowed to charge whatever they want since its a monopoly here.
I ended up getting the Wisconsin burger.
I did not like it at all. The bun was hard and dry. The patty was not not juicy. Also i have a strong inclination that the veggies were not fresh… everything was 2 thumbs down about this place… The chips also tasted stale.
the service was horrible… but granted it was only 1 person working… i kinda understand. it took forever to place the order and it took another forever to get the check. meh.
so why give it a 2 stars and not 1? well, the food was at least edible… lol

The food tastes like you microwaved leftovers at home, and the prices are not kind. i had the seafood bisque (the consistency was weird — like someone left it in the fridge and forgot to mix it) and the salmon. Don’t be fooled by the description. Nothing is so artfully «drizzled» and nothing tastes «fresh.»
Saving grace? Great location! The airport is admittedly quite small, but this restaurant is right smack dab in the middle of a bunch of gates.

I have to agree with everyone else here. The prices are high, the food is mediocre, and service is slow. It’s a real shame too since this is the only place in the Delta hub after passing through security to grab some food and drinks. Usually the place is packed, but that is because people don’t have another choice. You would think that with Delta being such a major airline that they would have a decent place with enough room for everyone in their terminal.

High airport prices, mediocre, yet edible, food, slooooooooow service. People have planes to catch, people.

Very high prices even for airport and the food wasn’t worth half the price.

Typical food selection. I ordered a Miller Lite…$ 6.49!!! I can by a whole 6 pk for that! If you are going to rob people on drink prices, at least have a better bartender, something nice to look at, not some old lady who was terrible and very unfriendly. Never again!