Lucky Joe’s Tiki Room

I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS PLACE CLOSED! I was going to write an amazing review that this place made me love Milwaukee while I was there for a night on a 2 month stint on the Vans Warped Tour.
I still have my tiki skull mug from it! That sucks! :(

Nestled in a unassuming area of Walkers Point you’ll find Lucky Joe’s.
It’s dark inside and has dried out hanging spikey fish. I went most recently to use a couple of free drink tickets but have been multiple times all together.
The place takes on a different kind of approach to customer service. An approach where you should feel lucky to be there versus them feeling lucky to have you choose to come there as a customer. I don’t love that feeling, but my friends had a good time and I do happen to care about other people enjoying themselves.
The ice has a strange flavor, best described as stale. I think it’s just the machine, not any fault of the bar, but I always notice it.
There are strong similarities and the «other» Milwaukee tiki bar that’s been around called Foundation which is on the east side.

Let me start off by saying Foundations used to be my place. For a few years I lived a couple doors and then a few blocks down. But then Foundations changed the menu, and the new menu stinks. And it’s always so freakin’ packed, and you have to wade through the sea of smokers that like to camp out on the stairs (gross).
So back to the review of Lucky Joe’s. Thursday is lady’s night, meaning a free tiki drink to start… awesome! They have a plethora of tiki drinks, some with fire, others in the vessel that you can take come. The bar is a nice size, it goes back further than I originally thought. The bar tender was super friendly and engaging. I would love to go back!

This is really a great place to go, and is a nice addition to that side of town. The décor inside is great, and really plays to the Tiki theme. They have a very nice selection of specialty cocktails, and the ones that I have taste wonderful. They also have souvenir glasses that you can have your drinks served in as well. The place is a bit dark, so I do have a hard time reading the menu. But if that is my only complaint than not a bad one! Lee does a great job, and as a bartender I have no problem saying that I think this place has some of the best bartenders in Milwaukee. They work well when it is crowded, making drinks that are time consuming to create. And they know their alcohol and how to create flavors. If you get a chance to stop in there, do, you won’t be disappointed.

This is an awesome lounge experience.
The drinks are pricey — but the ambiance makes up for it!
Definitely worth a visit if you’re in Milwaukee & looking for something unique to experience.

Went to this place right after Summerfest, visiting from Vegas, and it was pretty cool.
The décor wasn’t overly tiki-​themed, which I can appreciate. Noticed they collected exclusive tiki mugs from other establishments. The size of the bar was also nice — seemed bigger than the Vegas tiki bar I’m used to going to. Chill atmosphere.
Service was awesome, especially coming from our server. Boyfriend asked our server to have the bartender sign our mugs when we were done, but since they were too busy to, she was cool enough to write witty stuff on them for us. Hahaha… She actually paid attention to our stories. She was also attentive — not just checking on how well we were doing from time to time, but also making small chat.
As for the drinks, they were extremely yummy! When I say yummy, I mean loaded with a good amount of alcohol and sweetly flavored! Whew… It would’ve been one of those situations where it’d be dangerous to drink here. LOL. The drinks are so sweet, you’re likely to keep ordering and not realize that you’re getting drunk.
I’m hoping to hit this regularly whenever the boyfriend and I get to visit Milwaukee.

I came in on a Thursday night during SummerFest. They were actually quite busy and the bartender was very busy the whole time. He kept his cool and stayed upbeat the whole time we interacted with him. He knew that we were going to be waiting a while for our drinks because EVERYONE was ordering cocktails. He gave us free beer while we waited. They were slightly understaffed but I can not give high enough praise to the bar tender for dealing with the lack of staffing.

Definite upgrade. We’ve been coming here pretty regularly for after-​dinner libations and having consistently great experiences. The key for me is getting here early (like by 7ish on weekends) or coming on a weeknight. Like other popular cocktail places (Bryant’s, Boone & Crockett) I have a better time when it’s fairly quiet and I’m not getting jostled by bachelorette parties.
First — the bartenders are awesome. Lee and Chad are great, creative guys who are super passionate about what they do. If you feel like getting adventurous ask Chad to make you his special old fashioned — it’s his recipe, it’s completely amazing and garnished with a real maraschino cherry.
Second, the drinks are really good. If you like something fruity and sweet they have you covered. If you want a boozy delight, try the Zombie Joe. Whatever you do — be safe and have a DD or Über ready because they pack a punch!
Finally, the interior is fun. I like the surfboard tables, raised booths and the fact that they’ve got a back bar for crowded times.
There’s going to be inevitable comparisons to Foundation — I don’t know that I have a «favorite» as they’re definitely different (and great) experiences. I can tell you that I really do love Lucky Joes though!
Also — they’re opening a cocktail lounge in Tosa soon (not tiki themed) so I’m super, super excited to have a version of one of my favorite places close to home!

At first, walking into this bar I thought I would possibly get murdered, but only because it was super dark in the main bar area and there are semi-​creepy statues at the front to greet you.
Great job sticking with the theme throughout the bar. The bartender was friendly, but service was a little slow on an early Saturday afternoon.
The drinks were tasty, not overly sweet. We ordered the But Dad it’s Shark Week and La Diabla, made of different alcohols but they tasted very similar.
Overall, a different experience in Milwaukee. Maybe worth a visit if you’re in the Walker’s Point area, but I wouldn’t go out of my way just to check it out.

If your looking for unique fun fruity drinks with a quirky atmosphere this is the place.
Smells muggy when you first walk in other then that drinks are great, strong, and full of rum.
Bartenders are always friendly and personable! One of them gave us a free shots!

We fell into this establishment after a night of watching some hoops on the hardwood at the Bradley center.
Dimly light and delightfully tropical. The drinks were were flavorful and packed quite the punch. Would return in a heartbeat for a much needed dose of the tropic.

My experience here was fantastic. My drink tasted like fruit punch (which was what I was going for). The bartenders were friendly and chill. The place was pretty empty for a Saturday (I think) night. There were a few larger louder groups right up front but my darling and I had the back room basically to ourselves. I’d go back, it was a good time had by all.

I’d have to say this place was just «OK».
Obviously, the place has a theme, and you go to enjoy that theme, so it is what it is.
We each wanted to order a drink in a collectible glass (for $ 5 more) but they were out of the glass that the drink two of us ordered typically came in. We opted to have it served in a different one. No biggie.
The other two asked to have their drinks served in collectible glasses as well but were told by the waitress that the bartender «couldn’t do that». Um, what? It says right on the menu you can have any drink served in any of the collectible glasses for $ 5 more. We kind of pushed the waitress a bit on that one and she eventually said, «Well, I’ll see if they can do it, but they probably won’t.» And then later brought our drinks to the table in the glasses as we’d ordered them. ??
The drinks were VERY strong, leading us to stay for only one. When we asked what the deal was with the slot machine in back, the same waitress told us that typically you get a coin to play in the machine when you order a drink but they weren’t doing it that night because it was Saturday. Wth? She did bring us coins later to play (didn’t win anything, oh well…) but why wouldn’t everyone get to play?
Maybe the waitress was new, I don’t know. The company I was with was good, too, and good company + a goofy themed drink = fun, even if we had to push the waitress a bit to get the full experience. I’d probably go back if it was for a friend’s birthday or something, but otherwise probably not. It was basically cool as a one-​time thing.

A Tiki bar in a city better known for beer? Where am I? thought I, as my friend took me to a Tiki bar in the Historic 5^th ward in Walkers Point.
While the front entrance looks a little dicey, push past it and you will find yourself in Lucky Joe’s…a fun space that serves some great drinks by bartenders who want you to love their place!
While you sip your frothy concoction, look around at the tiki gods and puffer fish that provide the décor for this fun space! Try drinks called «painkiller» or «planters punch» and soon you’ll be wobbling off your bar stool singing Don Ho songs to yourself!
A Tiki bar in Milwaukee? You betcha. Some of the most fun I’ve had in awhile! Now if only the weather in Milwaukee was tiki worthy. .. .. .

Ever since I first watched the Brady Bunch vacation in Hawaii, I was infatuated with all things Tiki. Just one sip of a Mai Tai, and I am transported to a white-​sand beach on some remote Polynesian island. If I can’t have the sand between my toes, I’ll take an umbrella in my drink. Give me a dark cocktail lounge, give me Dick Dale on the stereo or give me The Exotics on the stage, and I am a happy man. The more ridiculous sounding the drink, the better: Dirty Diane’s Monkey Grog, the Bobby Headhunter, or Honey I Caught the Colada. You can’t go wrong with the classics: Mai Tai, Fogcutter, Suffern Bastard, or the local favorite, The Zombie Joe.
It’s a great place to come with a group, but since it’s relatively small, don’t expect that your entire bachelorette party will all get to sit together at 11:00 PM on a Saturday night. They do a good job of slinging drinks even when to place is packed. My wife and I like to come here off hours and sit at the bar and chat with the bartenders. On our last visit, we talked with Lee, the owner for quite a while. A real cool cat, I love his philosophy on life, on business, and on booze.
I really wish we had a place just like this in my neighborhood!

I love tiki bars. I love retro, I love kitsch, I love tacky twinkly lights and fruity drinks and I REALLY love collecting things, so it’s probably no surprise that I love Lucky Joe’s.
It’s bigger inside than you’d expect and dark as a tiki room must be. It can make reading their menu difficult, but if I wanted to drink in the bright light of day I’d go to brunch. This is a place with light-​up pufferfish hanging from the ceiling, tiki god statues with color-​changing lights and a rockabilly version of Tainted Love playing.
I’ve been several times, and my go-​to drink is the Southside Sling. A little fruity, but tangy & fresh instead of cloying. I’m also a fan of the Bobby Headhunter (think chocolate shake with a kick). The specialty drinks themed to the mugs are fun, but they’ll also put whatever concoction you prefer into the mug of your choice — on the last visit, the waitress let me know that my drink wouldn’t fit in the mug I’d selected and got me my mug «to-​go.»
For me, the mugs are almost as big of a draw as the drinks, which brings me to one of my favorite things about Lucky Joe’s: in addition to the four evergreen mugs on their menu, they also feature a limited edition «mug of the month.» Is this the perfect excuse to head to a little slice of island paradise in Walker’s Point at least once a month? It is for me.

So I finally made it to the tiki bar! I’ve meant to go only about 5 – 6 times (no joke) in the past but there’s always something holding us back («aren’t tiki drinks for summer? Its snowing out» «I have to be up for work early.» «It looks small inside.» «I think they’re closed today.»)
So I loved the tiki bar! And what’s crazy about this bit is that although the rest of the city seems infatuated with the tiki drinks and concept (see «foundation»), I’m always sort of «eh» about the proposition of drinking some sort of rum concoction out of a pineapple a la Gilligan’s island.
It was bigger inside than I envisioned (not huge but not super divey cramped either.) Dark with puffer fish lights and the requisite Polynesian décor.
An issue others have mentioned (not having ingredients listed on the menu) has been resolved. They even go so far to say things like «this has almond extract; if you are allergic to almonds do not drink,“etc.
Many drinks are served in collectible cups. For example, whale, shark, clam shell, & several more I’m forgetting. I sprung for everyone’s favorite cat cup and our bartender gladly accommodated the request of putting the «monkey grog» in the «cat cup». The drinks ranged in price from $ 8 to maybe $ 12ish with the collectable cup (which isn’t bad considering what they charge for a collectible lucky cat on its own in San Francisco’s Chinatown.)
Also appreciated the fact that although we did have to wait for a minute, our bartender stopped on the way to serve other customers to warn us the wait to get our order taken would be about 5 minutes. This was greatly appreciated because it alleviates the annoyance of sitting there, wondering if the bartender has noticed you and wondering if you should risk being «that guy/​girl» who waves there hands in front of the bartender.
So I liked the tiki bar. This whole review could really be condensed into two short words though:
Cat cup!

I went to Lucky Joe’s to get a drink in a kitty mug.
It was my birthday, and if someone will spend 12 dollars on a drink for me, I will take it!
The drink inside said kitty mug was a daiquiri type drink, and was quite good, but by George there was hardly any drink in it! I had MAYBE six sips and it was gone!
I ordered a second drink, the Southside Slinger, and it too was quite good but the glass was ¾’s ice and very little liquid.
All the specialty drinks sounded awesome, but for 4 drinks (including 1 in a collectible cup) it was almost 35 dollars! This is somewhere I could not afford to go on a regular occasion, just as a treat every now and then.
Drinks take a bit of time to be made, so I can imagine on the weekend you could be waiting quite a while for a drink.
I dig this place, but I just can’t afford it in the end!
At least I have my kitty mug to remind me of the good times…

I came here on my birthday and it totally lived up to the hype! I LOVED the tiki décor; the fish lights are so ridiculously cool!!! And the drinks — they have a menu of specialty drinks, and yes they are on the more expensive end ($ 7-​$ 12 if you wish to keep the awesome souvenir cup, which come in such forms as cats and sharks and hula girls) but this is a place to come get a drink and hang out, not get smashed. However, how much you consume is totally up to you! ;)
This place is definitely larger than it looks. When I arrived on a Saturday evening around 9pm it was not very busy and we were able to get drinks quickly. However, it quickly filled up and there was much need for a 3^rd, maybe a 4^th bartender. It took much longer than average for us to get another drink and close tabs.
I will definitely be returning, however it will likely be earlier in the evening to avoid the crowds.

FACT: The people… they love their speciality drinks.
The proof is in the pudding: Foundation’s been carrying the tiki torch in MKE and doing it right for years now. Bryant’s is one of the most highly-​rated businesses on Unilocal in Milwaukee (folks from out of town rave, as do Milwaukeeans proper.) Distil downtown boasts curated near-​perfection. Even At Random, with its old-​school vibe, trappings, and well, service… it manages to keep on keepin’ on.
So when a new spot slangin’ the specialty opens up, you better believe the Milwaukeeans will flock. (Apparently, if last Saturday night was any indication, they definitely do.)
Lucky Joe’s: a super-​fun tiki-​tastic addition to the Third/​Fifth Ward. I feel like this spot is technically Fifth Ward; it feels Fifth Ward, but it’s right on that line in the sand on 2^nd St. (Further evidence that 2^nd St. and the Fifth Ward is where it’s at when it comes to what’s poppin’ with food + booze these days…)
The space is larger than expected, and the décor is definitely tiki-​core. (Did I just coin a new term?)
L and I were lucky enough to snag spots at the bar (I generally prefer this). After perusing the menu and after waiting a bit — they were crazy busy, and let’s be real here, people… when it comes to spots that boast the specialty, patience on the part of the customer is not just a virtue, it’s required — we settled on the Southside Sling (for me) and the *Zombie Joe (for him).
Southside Sling: a delightful little take on the Singapore Sling. Since I know about the boozes just a little bit, I knew to expect a fruity, gin-​based concoction. I really liked it! Delightful, and I’d definitely order it again. Eight bucks, I think.
*Zombie Joe: a booze-​laden party in a glass… so booze laden, in fact, the establishment will only serve a patron one per visit. No idea what was going on with it, but I do know this… it got L pretty solidly buzzed up. I tried it, and while idk if it’s for me, I can see the appeal. Dangerous, and you can only kind of tell. Dang. (Twelve bucks, I think.)
LOVE: the crushed ice. In drinks such as these, it’s perfect.
Patrons: a total mix. Young/​old/​hipster/​hippe/​goth/​mainstream/​whatever. The appeal of the specialty draws all. When the tiki calls, everyone answers.
They’re new and still settling in, so I do have a few suggestions from the other side of the bar…
1. The menu: Perhaps they’re planning on having a rotating selection, but I think it’d be helpful to have a bit more in the way of actual description of the drinks. Of the 8 or so drinks on the menu, none of the summations were terribly descriptive. You’ll alleviate confusion if patrons know what to expect insofar as base spirit (s)/flavor profile of the beverage itself. (I understand they may not want to do this for the «Zombie Joe,» since that one’s the house specialty/​booze party in a glass, but for the others? I think a menu that gives just a bit more in the way of specifics may be helpful.)
2. A host on the weekends: I have a sneaking suspicion that this spot’s got the whole weekend warrior thing going on, which is understandable given the themed nature of the place. That said, I think should that trend continue, a host at the front door may help to alleviate issues of flow and back-​up at the bar, and help both the bartenders and servers accomodate the rush and the wait times that drinks such as these necessitate.
I waffled between a three and a four for this one, but am rounding up for a couple of reasons:
–I think this place has serious potential and will be a go-​to with a few little tweaks.
–Subsequently, I could see myself being a somewhat regular at Lucky Joe’s.
–I’m glad there are more spots like this cropping up and rounding out the MKE drinking/​dining scene.
Fin, y’all.