Meraki

I’ll keep this short. Holy damn! Amazing food. Had two small plates the veggie pancake –incredible, and the pork belly with sweet potatoes. Both perfectly cooked and delicious. Watched the cooks prepare the whole meal without the bluster or noise of some open kitchens, Louisa’s I’m looking at you! The tasty little cucumber cocktail was also tasty. Thank you Meraki for a lovely evening.

Dined on a Tuesday night, and we were the only table. Service was attentive and came around enough since we were a larger party who was talking a lot. However, how can you be out of an item (cauliflower appetizer) on a Tuesday night when nobody else is there. That seems like poor planning. Other than that, here is the low down. Décor is nice with ecclectic music. Drinks are very good, wine list is adequate. Ordered hot bread (relish), three cheeses (it’s WI, u can’t mess that up), and 3 good entrees (Cod, burdock, and steak). Would have liked to have seen the fiddleheads in their shape with the cod entrée.

My wife and I ate here on a Friday night. Made reservations by Open Table from the Meraki website. I usually don’t care for small plate places because I end up buying so many plates. Not here. They had appetizer size small plates and small entrée size plates. We bought two of each and the portion sizes were good. The food was very creative and good.
The service was very good despite our waitress covering many tables. What she might have lacked in knowledge she made up in personality and attentiveness. We liked the ambiance and did not feel crowded as one reviewer mentioned. We will return.

Family came here for birthday celebrations. Our waitress was great! The appetizers were pretty good. Wine list isn’t that big but the wine we did get was nice. I had the brisket which was really good. However, the reason I’m giving this place 3 stars is because the portion sizes are so small and waaaaay over priced! Half of my family did not care for their meal. The place is really cute. I hope this place survives!

Despite the mixed reviews here I am still recommending Meraki with 4 stars. I have been here for dining week and full dinner and both times I was impressed with the creativity and flavors of their dishes.
Last night we started with the pork belly which was perfectly seared and seasoned accompanied by small nuggets of crispy sweet potatoes. Enough to share.
For entrée I chose the prawns which came with two very large pieces atop popcorn polenta, kale, caramelized onions and shavings of Parmesan cheese. One word — outstanding. Complex flavors with a bit of heat to make it zippy and enticing to have another bite.
These entrees are shareable but volume depends on which ones you order. My husband ordered the brisket which was a much larger portion and by the way also a uniquely prepared dish. Mole negro with black rice made it artistic and delicious.
Ambience here is quite nice. I opted not to sit in front of kitchen which is a cool feature but I prefer to sit across from people at dinner.
I also opted out of dessert but the concept of an ice cream flight was a good one. Creative desserts called the birds and the bees is clever especially once you know what it includes. I won’t spoil the fun. Try it for yourself!

So it’s our second visit and now I am getting around to the review. Don’t understand the recent negative reviews that are here on Unilocal.From my perspective it’s as good as the first time we came during restaurant week.
Very nice space with options to sit at the cozy bar up front, at a bar overlooking the kitchen, at some private booths or at tables.
I was impressed the first time with the spices they use and the favors. This time they didn’t disappoint either. We had the pork belly which was cooked perfectly and was taste T.
We shared two main courses. Jumbo prawns (looked more like a lobster tail) and the brisket in a mole style sauce coated in coffee and served with black rice. Both were outstanding in terms of taste, presentation and flavor.
I know there are so many great restaurants nearby on 2^nd ave to choose from but in my book, Meraki is staying in my rotation.

I had hoped that Meraki continued honing in on the right combinations to get that price/​value proposition accurate. But the price/​value proposition is still off, after several visits. The place is often empty. I am worried for them.
They say the food here is meant for sharing, and this is an example of where I don’t think the whole sharing/​small plates «fad» works. It is confusing why they say it. If the food portions and presentations do not lend themselves to being hacked in half (or more) to share, it’s not meant for sharing. It feels like some desperate or greedy attempt to get people to order more and spend more.
On a recent trip, the wine pour had to be about 2 tiny ounces (for $ 12 a glass!!!). My pasta entrée was not only flavorless but was so small (for $ 19!). Both were a let-​down.
Maybe happy hour is best here: 4 – 6:30pm, $ 7 wine glass pours (all brands), $ 3 taps, $ 4 rails and a specially priced appetizer menu for $ 3 — $ 5.

This review is way overdue but stopped here on a food crawl and got to sample a couple things. Beet root salad was very fresh, tandoori lamp chops were very juicy and flavorful, and, surprisingly, the donuts were just OK. Want to come back and check this place out.

I came here for Valentine’s dinner with high expectations and the food did not disappoint.
Food was 5 + stars
We started with the cauliflower, house made kimchee with rice crackers and the hot bread. Dinner entrees, we ordered the prawns and the sturgeon. All were executed beautifully. The high of the meal was dessert. They are serving up some unique desserts and we chose the Pear and Pecorino. You would not think this combination would work, but the pecorino added that saltiness and the pear and honey gave it sweetness; combined together was well balanced. I really liked the fact the pastry chef came out and presented the dessert and explained what all the components were.
What made the meal not a higher rating was the atmosphere and the odd interactions with our server. First our server greeted us and asked if we had been to Meraki before and we both responded «No.» She went into her spiel about how they don’t have heat lamps and everything is made to order and their food does not sit around. Um, I would hope this place makes their food to order and this is what we heard her say to all her tables. Then when asked about the Veal Sweetbreads. I asked if they were «minerally» and she responded, «No, they are flakier, kind of like croissants.» I just didn’t know what to say to that… I don’t think she has any idea what Sweetbreads are or didn’t hear me correctly.
This is a beautiful space and I like how the bar area is separated from the dining area. My gripe is and I have this with many restaurants is that they shove so many people into the space and the tables are on top of each other. I get that you want to maximize the space, but I hate the fact that I am pretty much sitting in the laps of the neighboring table and makes it really hard to enjoy a nice meal especially when you can hear everything your neighbor is saying even when they are talking at a normal decibel. I think maybe one less table would allow for the tables to be spread out a bit more; in turn leading to a more enjoyable dining experience. Also, they had the dance music blasting. I didn’t realize I had entered a club.
I know some of the reviewers mentioned the price of the food and leaving hungry. We were pretty stuffed and while some of the items I felt were a bit overpriced and tiny portions (such as the appetizers), it is pretty standard for this area. For 2 glasses of wine, 3 apps, 2 dinner entrees and one dessert it was a little over $ 100.00. I didn’t think it was too bad for everything we ordered, but agree with many if we hadn’t ordered the appetizers and dessert and just had the entrées, we would have probably been hungry. This is a place I probably would frequent for a special occasion or celebration.

Came here for New Years but did not eat off the special menu. I had the goat which came recommended and my girlfriend had the sturgeon. The goat came quite cold, and I felt as though I had to ask for a hotter plate. The service was prompt and pleasant, but not intrusive. Overall nice flavors and favorable portions. Drinks were a little disappointing; a little too strong and a little overpriced.
We will be back! Order your own cocktail not listed on the menu, they’re $ 6 as opposed to the $ 10-​$ 14 drinks on their menu.

Came here for the first time for New Years Eve dinner. The food was fresh and delicious, with an interesting enough menu to separate itself from other Walker’s Point establishments. The menu changes constantly so I won’t get into the details of what we ordered other then that we all enjoyed our meals.
Where the restaurant needs some polishing is in the service department. Our waiter was a little less assertive than I would have liked — we had a party of 6 and asked if 1 or 2 of an appetizer would be better to split, and he just kind of went around with «Well if it were me I would order two, but it’s really up to how you feel…» Just provide a clear answer please. I also had a drink made incorrectly, and had to ask again for the replacement. The bartender seemed new and needed some assistance from additional staff for a couple of the house cocktails, which did end up being very good once we received. Overall I would consider the issues we had as minor, and we all had an enjoyable experience.
I plan on returning for dinner, and would gladly recommend Meraki if asked.

Higher class food, fantastic owner! I went to the speakeasy party. For $ 30 I had two glasses of punch and unlimited h’ors d’oeuvres. I wish that drinks would have been included, but the food was fantastic. Small appetizers were filling, but not overly satisfying.
Live jazz band was a great touch and all the staff was friendly and helpful!
I would definitely go back for a dinner.

Meraki has taken the restaurant design concept up another notch.
The interior is sleek and sexy. Colors of black and yellow, a mix of contemporary and vintage.
An example is the mix of Victorian style chairs and china combined with a modern vibe.
The menu claims to be globally inspired. One item that is a hit are the «Cheese It» style crackers. Gone are the electric orange food coloring and processed ingredients, this a a homemade style version. Large flakey crackers that you just can stop eating.
Our table also shared the Asian style pancake. I liked it, my friend didn’t.
One of my dining companions ordered the scallops which he claims was very good.
The other entrée ordered was the pork chop. I thought it was just ok, as did my other friend. While the seasonings were a good mix, the meat was overcooked and very dry.
We skipped dessert for another location.
This would be a great place for a date. They have a low counter lining the open kitchen that would no doubt make for great conversation while taking in a few cocktails.
Meraki is another fine example of an exploding dining scene in Walker’s Point.

We had a great dining experience at Meraki. Started out with half price bottle of wine (Monday’s & Tuesday’s). Moved to the Polenta, the squash ravioli (awesome), then onto the Goat 45 and lastly our favorite of the night, Swordfish over friend plantains and Puerto Rican rice. Melt in your mouth gooood! The ambiance is great. Service was wonderful.

My husband took me here last night for my birthday and I really enjoyed our meal. I personally really liked the décor– I love high booths (which they had plenty of), nice dim lighting, cool chandaliers– basically really nice ambiance.
Our waitress was fine, we sat at the chef’s table which… I don’t know what I was expecting but it wasn’t as exciting as I was anticipating. Next time I’d probably sit at a table.
The food was really good– we ordered one of the cheese options– which I must say– everytime my husband and I go out we get suckered into the cheeseboard and it was really nice that you could order just cheeses ala carte and not spend 15 bucks on a cheeseboard and realize that you literally could have gone to the store and bought the cheeses yourself.
We also ordered the okonamiyaki with eel on top– really delicious. I think maybe a little too much mayo, but the umami flavors were spot on.
As one of the snacks we ordered the «man eating kimchi» which was a really nice inexpensive way to start the meal– the kimchi was delicious and could have eaten 2 of these.
The last plate we ordered was the potato gnocchi which was good. The pesto was delicious and the manchego cheese added nice saltiness– I think I determined I am generally not a fan of gnocchi as it just feels dense and I’d rather either eat a piece of pasta or a potato.
I would say the only real downside of this restaurant that on a Friday night it was little quiet which I found surprising since Walkers point is a hotspot for lots of new fabulous restaurants and Meraki fits in that mold very well. I really want them to succeed so I’m hoping that this is a small fluke and more people come here soon– I’d hate to lose such a lovely new restaurant. Go try this place!

Finally got out to have a dinner at Meraki last night with a good friend. It was a Friday night and getting a table at a restaurant in Walkers Point or Bayview can be tough. We arrived for our 7:45pm reservation and to our surprise, the place was «dead» for a Friday night. Red flag? Was this a sign of what was to come?
Hell no, why does no one know about this place!!!
Our server, Carrie, was spot on. And long story short, my friend and I enjoyed a wonderful and reasonably priced bottle of wine plus a wide selection of small plates and cheese and homemade bread. The atmosphere was lovely, food was excellent, so many interesting combinations of flavors and creative and unique options to choose from.
I would absolutely go back.
This place is a hidden gem.
Get your butts over to this restaurant if you’re looking for a new place to try.

Oh Meraki, I really wanted to like you. Since we were all dressed up for an event and we needed dinner, we decided to stop out at Meraki since we had never been before. At 7:30 PM on a Tuesday, the place had only 6 other diners in the restaurant. This is not out of the ordinary at any place on a Tuesday, so that wasn’t a sign of anything obvious. Anyway, we had the pick of seats pretty much, so we chose to sit at the «Chef’s Table». That was probably a mistake, because we were down near the heat source side of the kitchen. In a suit, it was a bit warm for me. I started off with the Corpse Reviver #3. It seemed to be a bit heavy on lemon, as that was the dominant flavor. As per the aroma, it smelled of bergamot… perhaps a blend of Lillet Blanc and lemon creates just that. It was OK, but not balanced or exciting enough for $ 10. Between the two of us, we tried the Poached Egg, the Tandoori Lambchops, and a Fried Fluke. I’d tell you exactly what we had, but Meraki’s website menu hasn’t been maintained in 2 months. From what I can recall about an ingredient list, the Poached Egg was served with a creamy loose polenta, cheese, and a duck glaze. It was pretty good, and their polenta was tasty. As per the Tandori Lambchops, there were two chops, one of which was over-​cooked slightly. It was served on a bed of diced vegetables and everything had a cumin-​rich Indian inspired sauce. Finally, the deep fried fluke… it was served with fava beans and a really sweet sauce. The fish was perfectly cooked, but the dish lacked balance. More salt/​umami/​sour would have greatly balanced out the really sweet sauce that doused the vegetables.
So, it is the little things that I can nit-​pick on… and I will mention what we experienced.
1) It was a Tuesday with only a few diners in the place. Every dish should have full attention and be spot-​on-​perfect. Instead, preparation peeling five pounds of garlic ensued. That didn’t bother me, it was the lack of attention when there was attention to be given on the details.
1a) When the bill was brought, it was quickly snatched back from us so the vinyl cover could be cleaned. This was a put-​off moreso than the menu being dirty. A lot of time was available to clean it before it arrived at the table…
2) The kitchen, while it being nice and open, it is also a downfall. The fry-​o-​later and heat sources should be behind some sort of hidden area as to keep the fryer grease aromas from wafting throughout the restaurant. Also, it would help to keep the heat down.
3) The seats were too low to the ground at the «Chef’s Table». I also had to crank my feet back because there was too little room to put them in front of me due to a wall being there. This made my legs hurt. I’m 6’0″ tall, but my shorter wife also noticed this as a problem.
4) Ordering of the meal was awkwardly asked of us. I get it, you serve «family-​style» platings here. As a diner, it should just be brought out in an order that makes sense given the dishes ordered. You as the restaurant should know what that ordering should be. Just do what works, and don’t ask.
All in all, I think there are a great deal of restaurants that do me better. Fix the small details, Meraki, you’re SOOOO close. I’m rating against the experience to value to details.

I had my first visit last night. There were so many great looking items in the Small Plate section, we just ordered four of those, along with two Snacks, and left satisfied.
We started with the Snack specials of the night, homemade tator tots ($ 5) and Rabbit Terrine ($ 5). Both were easily worth the $ 5. The tots were like deep fried mashed potato bites with a soft center and crisp shell. They were also appropriately seasoned with salt. The rabbit terrine was soft and topped with mustard seeds while sitting on a molasses garnish.
Next we ordered the Poached Egg and the Tandoori Lamb Chops, both dishes were $ 10 each. The Poached Egg was served over polenta and a garnish of greens, which was supposed to be arugula but they were out. The polenta wasn’t as creamy as it should have been and the arugula would have added the peppery bitterness that would have balanced the dish nicely. The greens they used served no purpose.
The lamb chops had a good flavor, but one had too much fat and very little meat.
Finally, we ended with the Celery Root ($ 10) and the Okonomiyaki Pancake ($ 8). The Celery Root dish included roasted and pickled celery root, a deep fried egg yolk sitting atop celery root mousse, and watercress, wild greens, and a parmesan chip all mixed with a caramelized celery vinaigrette. It was our favorite dish of the night.
The Okonomiyaki Pancake was a savory pancake made with squash, onions, and cabbage and topped with kewpie mayo, tonkatsu sauce and nori powder. The pancake itself needed something to add savory flavor. The combination of toppings would benefit from less mayo and more tonkatsu sauce. The pancake was our lest favorite dish of the night.
Nothing was really great, but everything was good, including our service. Our server had fun exchanges with us once she realized we were fun people and there to enjoy a great experience.
Sitting at the chef’s counter adds to the fun experience, and I recommend it.
Four small plates and two snacks split among the two of us for $ 24 each plus tax and tip was very reasonable. We had no room for dessert.
I noticed the prices of the entrees were lower than menu prices I saw online earlier this year. It would seem they are trying to address the pricing complaints.
I felt that we experienced a great value last night, and I certainly would go back again. If you haven’t been and are up for something different, give Meraki a chance.

Meraki. My first instinct is to pronounce it like Milwaukee. I mean, it’s got three syllables, starts with and ‘M’ and ends with a vowel, but no. It’s not pronounced like Milwaukee at all.
It’s more May-​RAH-​kee. Or something like that.
However one wishes to pronounce it, it may be easier to call it that really cool, quirky place on 2^nd Street in the parking lot of 201 W. Walker.
How do I know that address so specifically? Because I worked at 201 W. Walker for nine years. Since leaving that premises in August 2014, Meraki has moved in.
Never did I think that this bland, unlovely building that once housed the offices of the Allen-​Bradley union staff could be turned into a contemporary restaurant. I figured it was destined for a wrecking ball, front-​end loader and dump trucks before it could be turned into an attractive, usable space again.
I’m glad I was wrong. I love what they’ve done with the place. It’s become one of the more unique dining spaces in the 414!
I particularly like the large and long chef’s table. We often prefer counter dining to table dining, and at Meraki, this allows a full-​view opportunity to see what’s going on in the kitchen. I will admit, however, that we’re in the minority and peering into the kitchen may not always be a good thing. It can be a little like looking up while Michelangelo paints the Sistine Chapel and noticing his butt crack instead of his masterpiece.
«Hey, Mike! You know a belt wouldn’t be a bad idea every now and again. Sheesh. Was your dad a plumber!»
But while you chortle, Michelangelo continues to create art.
That’s a bit similar to dinner at Meraki, only they’re creating edible art.
Adhering to the shared plates concept – one that I love – Meraki offers a wide variety of unique sounding dishes that are hard to find. I find it to be a pretty good value too. We dined on the pickled vegetables plate (only $ 3!), onion compote and elk spedini. I indulged in two drinks and my wife only one and we settled with a bill just under fifty bucks. Not bad. Not bad at all.
Plus it was more than we could comfortably eat. The spedini was served in rolls of three and one of those rolls came home with us.
Everything was great. Good service, excellent drinks (try the Kentucky Ginger) and wonderful food. About the only complaint I had was aural – I could hear music from the dishwasher’s space clashing with the dining area music. Neither was very loud, but combined, that produces a cacophony that unsettles me. It wasn’t horrible and it should be noted that this is the price of chef’s table dining. Had we dined in the table area, I doubtfully would have noticed it.
Thanks for proving me wrong, Meraki, about that building and providing a new, unique dining venue in Walker’s Point. It’s too bad you weren’t there when I worked in the building next door – you would’ve regularly had really regular regular!

Ugh. I want this place to work!
Positives:
Waitstaff-​professional, helpful, friendly
Hostess-​same, professional, helpful, friendly
Bread – actually really delicious.
Negatives:
Atmosphere – it seemed like we were in a former retail store. It felt a bit disjointed and cold. The dance music on a bad sound system didn’t help either.
Prices – yikes. I felt ripped off here. Portion sizes were tiny yet prices were high. I was hungry leaving here and I spent $ 40 on my food with multiple courses.
Food – I wasn’t impressed. I ordered a sausage dish and it was very salty. My companion ordered something else that I cannot remember and it was just really small. The only thing that stood out was the bread. My companion and I agreed.
Unfortunately I wouldn’t return.