Wayward Kitchen Co.

I really like this place. They have very good food, friendly staff and great prices! The space is big, open and always clean.

Had dinner there tonight, there were five of us. The staff was super friendly, we had a drink first then dinner. Between the five of us we had five different things and everyone raved about their food. You have got to try this lace.

Wayward Kitchen serves brunch Saturday and Sunday and is one of only two restaurants I know of that serves a Monday brunch (The Noble being the other).
A few weeks back, I decided to stop in on a Monday with a friend to catch up on a rare Monday off. We arrived right at 11:00 when they opened and sat in the bar area. When I visited the men’s room, I walked through the back dining room and found it to be much warmer, so note that the back dining room heats up faster than the bar area if you visit on a cold winter day.
Your standard brunch cocktails are available. We did not partake.
We ordered the peppered candied bacon as a starter. I’ve had it once before and still like it. I didn’t get much pepper flavor either time, but I enjoy it nonetheless.
My friend ordered the Pull Ham Poutine. I didn’t try it, but she liked it. Note that the online brunch menu lists house cut fries. They have switched to frozen fries, but they looked fine to me and, again, my friend liked them.
I ordered the Corned Beef Cheesy Hash. It wasn’t on the menu, but other items with the same ingredients were, so I asked and chef was more than happy to make it. I was expecting cheesy hash browns (shredded potato style) mixed with the corned beef. What arrived was corned beef mixed with pan fried diced potatoes, all covered with a cheese sauce and topped with poached eggs and served with a side of toasted baguette slices. Everything was cooked well and I liked the flavor. For me, maybe a bit too much cheese sauce, but I was happy to see that sauce keep its consistency and not gel up, as I’ve experienced with cheese sauce at a couple of other places. I don’t think I would order this dish again, but I would be willing to try other brunch items, as there are usually many to use from, varying from sweet to savory.
I also need to get back for dinner some time. I still haven’t tried the Wayward Burger.

Great place! Halfway between the busy Third Ward and Bay View. We we’re looking for a good food & drink place to meet that wasn’t over priced, that had easy parking that would also be somewhere we could hear each other talk! Found it! Cranberry margarita was amazing!!! Poutine– yes please!!! Seoul wings and Nacho Mama nachos were perfect munchies for sit-​and-​talk-​and-​drink time. The staff was charming and very attentive. We’ll be back.

Meh. Unlike Vladimir K, I will go with the two star review. I had a feeling things were going the route of sub standard when my friends and I strolled in during prime brunchy/​lunchy time and we were the only customers.
There was something echoey and sad about this place. The brunch menu and the minimal staff just looked like they were hanging on by a thread. Candied bacon for $ 3? Yes, please. A $ 14 burger that would have been a stretch for $ 8 – 9? No, thank you. Listen, I’m not a pig. I realize that as Americans, we hoss out and expect giant portions. For a $ 14 burger, I hope to have lunch the next day from it, though.
This is the part that really ruined it for me: a very serious sewage odor from the ladies’ room. It was baaad. So they’re charging $ 14 for a burger, you see mops and brooms in the dining area and it smells like a Milorganite factory. I won’t be back.

Love this place. Have visited several times. Great to see a husband and wife team making a go at their dream. Megan is awesome. Super personality. Tyler is very creative with the menu, and he puts out some amazing flavors. Great beer list, as well as tappers which they rotate quite a bit. Fun cocktails. The place is huge, so would be a great place for a party. Love the Ramen Sliders. On our last visit, I had the Peanut Butter & Bananas Foster Sandwich with a side of Smashed Red Potatoes. Would be hard not to order that again, but I am excited to see what Tyler has up his sleeve for my next visit, as I am sure I won’t be disappointed.

Went here for a brunch on Sunday. Bar /​restaurant combination of a place. Solid food, not crowded, games were on. Nice Bloody Mary. Good spot.

Quiet. shh…don’t tell anyone that this place is here and that the food is amazing. If you don’t know the place is wedged by Rockwell you will quickly drive past because there isn’t terrific signage.
The brunch is great because they aren’t horribly crowded. The menu is diverse enough without being too pretentious. They have your staples like eggs and bacon but also unique items like candied bacon and a pimento cheese omelet. Do yourself a favor and immediately order two sides of the candied bacon… you will thank me!
The tacos for dinner and various appetizers again can be traditional like Bavarian pretzels but also have some flair like the asian beef tacos. You can delight in the candied bacon for dinner as well as breakfast. Candied bacon is seriously a gateway drug…
The only downside is that they can be erratic on their schedule. A group went there for Sunday brunch at 11:10am. They should have been open and the place was locked with no sign or notice on FB or the website. Call ahead!

This was such a totally weird experience, that I’m honestly not sure how to rate them.
Wayward has been bookmarked for me for a long time, and that solid 4 stars it’s been boasting has kept them on my mind. Well when a foursome of us was looking for a cool place for a double date on Friday, Wayward was one of the first places that came to mind. The menu looked promising, and they took reservations — so we called ahead and booked our four-​top for 8:00pm last Friday.
We arrived and were shocked that there was actually ample parking in the attached angle lot. We parked and when we got in, we realized why: There was ONE other table there! There were a couple people at the bar, and then a two-​top finishing up outside. We sat outside as well, and the bartender was waiting on us. We ordered a couple of a «special» drink — The Green Dragon had seltzer, dragon fruit vodka and lime juice. It was good. The boys stuck with beer.
We wanted to try a couple appetizers and enjoy our drinks for a bit, so we asked where to go… pretzels are easy to share? He said he’d recommend the chips over the pretzels, so we ordered the appetizer of chips and salsa trio. The chips were great! They were homemade and fresh piping hot out of the fryer with a perfect amount of salt on them. The salsas on the either hand… were not. There was a ramekin of black beans, a ramekin of guac and a ramekin of pico. All three were completely under-​seasoned and tasteless… I liked the chips so much that I honestly just poured hot sauce on my plate and dipped the chips in that and skipped the trio completely. We also ordered the appetizer special of the night which was reuben croquettes. I was stoked by the idea of this, but the execution was just not there. There wasn’t much meat, and there was not a trace of sauerkraut (which leads me to believe there either wasn’t any, or very little because that’s a hard flavor to lose!). There were only three per order, and no one really cared for the smushy interior consistency.
Before dinner I ran to the restroom to wash my hands. I almost lost my appetite by the undeniable stench of sewage that emanated from… somewhere in the bathroom. The boys noted that the same vile smell was clouding their bathroom as well. Look into that, guys.
Entrees came out, and we had ordered a turkey burger, a black bean burger, a Wayward burger (beef patty) and poutine. The burgers were fine, no one complained, but no one raved. The poutine was pretty gross. It had a dark dark, almost black gravy over the top of it. The sauce was congealed upon delivery, and extremely salty. Seemed like gravy had been burned and reduced and served. There was barely any short rib to speak of, and the cheese curds were not of the ‘squeaky’ variety.
Staff was nice, service was good, food was weird and atmosphere was borderline uncomfortbale. For a place with 4 solid stars, a single table on a Friday night is just the beginning of the end.

Tried Wayward for the first time last night! Loved it! Taco Tuesday includes an $ 8 all you can eat special so I jumped on that! My friend ordered fried zucchini and lettuce wraps. Portions were big! The music was all my favorite from Modest Mouse to the Shins! Was there about 4 hours. The bartender gently reminded us how late it had gotten. It was 10:30 and the website says they were open until Midnight. I never like feeling rushed or pushed out of a place… But that aside, I highly recommend wayward!

Descriptive phrase: fresh, classier pub.
Been meaning to stop in to Wayward Kitchen Co. ever since this old Allen-​Bradley factory-​worker bar in Clock Tower Acres cleaned up into a fancier space. The first area is all about the bar, with a space for live music, but there is a raised seating area in back too. We sat at the bar, where I started with their Mango Margarita ($ 7.50). They make the mango extract on-​site, and sure enough it was mango-​taste without the sickly-​sweet you get from the sugar-​packed syrup. Well executed, for sure.
Starting with their house Chips and Salsa ($ 8) was the best choice we made that night. The chips were obviously fresh from the fryer, and were served with three unbelievably-​fresh salsas: mango black bean, pico de gallo, and avocado. Fantastic.
My wife tried the Wayward Burger ($ 14), and their namesake was not a disappointment. Each of the ingredients (Gorgonzola, bacon jam, arugula) was present and meshed well, and the homemade seasoned fries were perfect.
The Beef & Chorizo Fried Rice Burrito ($ 15) was less impressive. It was massive (easily 2 whole meals), but I felt that the ground beef was overpowering and it was missing a few fresher ingredients in it to tie it to the rest of the menu. The chef came in later at the bar and noticed my expression and asked what I thought it could use to improve upon it, which proves how into his craft this guy is. I did love the Mexican corn on the cob it was served with, however.
Wayward Kitchen Co. was as tasty as I expected overall, but I was impressed with the freshness of some of their dishes in such a «bar» environment. Worth checking out, for sure.

Update: Also a good laid back spot to watch the Packers game.
Prior Review: If you’re looking for a lively date spot, I recommend this place. The food is great. The drinks are good. It’s loud but the good drinks make it a fun date or group dinner spot.
I’ve also hosted events for 30 – 50 people here. I’m a big fan of the hummus.

Wayward (def.): adj. «difficult to control or predict because of unusual or perverse behavior»
Taken literally, perhaps that’s not the best word one could use to describe their kitchen. I’d prefer to think of Wayward Kitchen company as a little remote and removed from the throng of restaurants north of the Allen-​Bradley clock tower. Thus, wayward. (Wayward Kitchen Co. is just south of A-​B on 1^st St. It hides in plain view.)
Whatever. This place is serving up some unique and delicious food. On two trips we’ve ordered the Ramen Sliders. If I return ten times. I’ll order the Ramen Sliders ten more times. These little Asian-​influenced sandwiches are wonderful and instantly crave-​inducing. As far as I know, they’re the only ones in town making them.
But sliders aren’t the only reason to dine at Wayward. Everything else I’ve tried has been exceptional too. The braised beef entrée is soul-​satisfying comfort food. And, even though I was famished upon first bite, the portion was so large that I could only eat half. Well, I did spoil my appetite a bit by ordering the appetizer special: steamed clams. These weren’t just any steamed clams, these were clams steamed in a peppery, buttery broth that was so rich I could have made this my full entrée. Truly. You know the common query: What would you eat if it were your last meal on earth? For me, an American Pale Ale, two pounds of steamed clams and some fresh bread just may be my answer. And if it were, I’d want my clams prepared by Chef Tyler Mason, Wayward Kitchen Co.‘s big man in white.
Another thing I like about Wayward, I’ve always had great service. Megan – Tyler’s main squeeze – and her staff have always welcomed us warmly and made sure we left happy. They’ve got a good beer selection too, something you know I can appreciate!
So carry on my Wayward Kitchen. There’ll be peas when you are done!
Sorry. I couldn’t resist. ;)

Wow come here now. I’m drinking a 1 $ pint and eating a chorizo French fry taco– which sounds terrible but isn’t, in moderation if you can. The apps include poutine and Korean fried chicken and they’re half off 4 – 7 I think. Foodies! Come full this place and your stomachs.
Sharon works the bar and knows what’s good!

The place was nearly empty when we wandered in, which always makes you wonder. We were looking for «cheap and cheerful,» (an expression the Chief of Staff picked up from some couple she stayed with in Australia), but this restaurant turned out to be expensive and a little mean-​spirited instead. The space is attractive, they have a good location nearby on First, with their own convenient parking lot, and a neighborhood Milwaukee tavern atmosphere. Nice and roomy, even if it weren’t empty of people, it would be a nice place to have a drink and some bar food. The Chief of Staff got the macaroni and cheese, which they top with bacon, so it’s not really something she should be eating since she doesn’t have her gall bladder anymore, but she thought it was tasty. I had one of the best bean burgers I’ve ever had, the food was good pub food fare, but priced well above what most pub food costs. The entrees were comparable to Chez Jaques, a classy French restaurant down the block.
The real price gouging occurs with the drinks, which is oddly poor strategy given that it looks like a bar that serves food. I got a good beer on tap, with a rye whisky shooter, which didn’t hit me anywhere near as hard as the bill. The draught beer was $ 6, the shot of Bullit rye was $ 8, and they added another dollar hidden up-​charge for serving in a shot-​glass! (No, I didn’t get to keep the shot glass). So, my boilermaker was $ 15, the same price it would cost on a Spirit Airlines flight, their deceptive pricing does seem inspired by the airline industry. The business strategy is found in the airline industry and other places, economic expansion by charging for what used to be free, and if your customers don’t think they have a choice, they will get used to it. However, Spirit Airlines publishes all their incremental new charges, and their base fares are the lowest in the business, so the consumer can know ahead of time of all the extra charges, and can opt out of most of them. The hidden drink up-​charges are more avaricious and deceptive because they’re not on the menu, and there’s no way to opt out even if informed ahead of time (could I have my shot directly into my mouth please?).
The insidious hidden whiskey up-​charges (rocks, neat,) on top of existing up-​charges (premium, top shelf, called drinks) didn’t fly in some cities, you can see that after customer complaints in San Francisco, New York City, Chicago, most restaurants and bars gave up and went back to traditional fair pricing or just raised all drink prices evenly. I hate to think that we’re more tolerant of dishonest price gouging here in the town that beer made famous, but either way, I’m not going to condone it. Even in this neighborhood, most restaurants and bars have more respect for their customers, and I can still therefore vote with my wallet. I may sound old fashioned, but in a friendly bar, the bartender treats any whiskey drinker as a possible return customer with a generous first pour, it’s a way of saying, «have another sometime soon.» On the other hand, if you don’t want to see unwelcome customers come back, you pad the bill in such a way that they get the message, «we don’t need your business.» That’s the message I got.

The place: the parking lot was greatly appreciated, and the restaurant itself, though not tons of curb appeal and rather unassuming is quite large upon entering. The kitchen is open late, which was great because we didn’t make it to dinner until 9:30pm. There were about 10 other people there– made the place seem even larger because it felt to empty. This place could probably seat 100. (That’s just me eyeballing it, I didn’t see a sign anywhere). Service was pretty great, but not sure if it would be different if they were busier.
The taste: we shared the Korean chicken wings which were HUGE and sticky and sweet and delicious. Two of those along with 2 tacos was a perfect amount of food for us. I got the beet tacos— interesting mix of flavors and textures, definitely heavy on the beets, but I expected that going in. I had a bite of the husbands Korean need tacos— he loved them, and I understand why. They packed a lot of flavor into the contents of the soft taco shell.
My face: for a while, it was covered in the stick wing sauce, but they give you a wet nap so I was glad for that. Besides, I think the more that ends up on your face at the end of the meal indicates that you really enjoyed what you ate. I enjoyed what I ate, and the fact that it was only $ 30 for the 2 of us.

My husband & I decided to check this place out because I’ve heard from friends that Wayward Kitchen served good food.
When we walked in, the décor was very simple and it wasn’t busy for a Sunday evening, which was nice.
We sat at the bar and it did take the bartender several minutes before even acknowledging that we were there. I guess she was looking for some alcohol to make a drink that they apparently ran out of but still, at least make eye contact and tell us that you will be right with us.
We asked for the menu and we were given the Brunch Menu (at 5:00 pm — apparently they serve brunch until 6:00 pm — I think this is the first time I’ve heard of a place doing that, which is nice to know). We had to ask for the regular dinner menu because my husband was not in the mood for brunch.
My husband ended up ordering a side of french fries (I can’t remember what kind of cheese was on it) and fish tacos. The french fries were delicious and I couldn’t get enough of them. The fish tacos were so — so, maybe it’s the breading or something but there was something about it that I didn’t really like (I preferred the Iron Horse’s fish tacos).
I ordered a sandwich with egg, pulled ham, arugula and some spicy mayo — it also came with a side of frieds. It was very good and the mayo just added enough kick to the sandwich, which I really liked. The sandwich also came with a side of french fries, which I was very happy about :-)
I would definitely go back and try some other things on the menu.

The tacos come in 3 different meat and 3 different vegetarian varieties and I like those options. 2 tacos per order and the server «should» ask you if you would like corn or flour tortillas. You can share these tapas style.
Mushroom tacos: really excellent, great flavor, my favorite of the night — just a bit too much oil.
Korean beef: my friend liked these best but for me the meat was a bit fatty/​chewy and flavor was alright.
Chorizo rice: love the egg and it was perfectly over easy. The rice was flavored well, but too much oil and too many hard pieces of rice.
Squash salad: I was craving salt. There needed to be more goat cheese and even a few more pepitas would have been nice (salted, please). Very much like Thanksgiving as the focus of the dish is the Chinese five spiced squash. I like the skin on the squash to give the meal some kind of texture. Overall, it’s pretty much just spice/​squash forward. Different. But just ok.
Notorious P I G: as much as I enjoy being reminded of the song «Juicy» this pork was anything but. I was glad for the pickle on the plate and that it was all mine. Each bite of the dried pork really needed that wetness. The flavor was heavy heavy rosemary. It was on the pork. It was also on the fries. And very fresh rosemary at that, which is great. But spices need finesse and respect for the power that they have. This would not be something that I’d order again.
Fries: need their own section. Dark. Soggy. Wet. Again with the oil. I don’t get the fries at all.
Dessert was a chocolate cake, gingerbread, dulce de leche, berries. It was good, decent, ok. Looked pretty.
I plan to give Wayward another shot sometime soon. There are just SOOOO many choices in Walker’s Point that it’s important to impress on everything right from the start. It’s a lot of pressure and I give all of these business owners a lot of credit and appreciation.

I want to just say «bacon jam is all you need to know», and it probably is. But for those of you who can’t take my word for it, here you go…
This place has an open, modern feel to it with a long main bar and a couple of areas for tables. I can see it being full on weekends once word gets out.
The menu is full of lots of great options! Small plates, sandwiches, fish, ribs, chicken and an interesting veggie entrée. They also have 5 – 6 types of tacos, but no one from our group ordered any so I can’t comment on those. I joined in with a group of regular Unilocalers who passed around several of the small plates including the smears, chicken wings and fries.
After looking at the menu and changing my mind several times, I decided it was a burger kinda night and ordered the Wayward Burger. It was a good choice! This is where you have the Bacon Jam. It also comes with arugula and cheese, but really the bacon jam is what makes the burger. And how could it not?
I had started out with a Rhubarb Sonya cocktail which had vodka, rhubarb bitters and cucumber. Very light and refreshing.
I tried the chocolate gingerbread cake for dessert. Good flavors, but not really my cup of tea. I’d probably try the arancini or red velvet ice cream/​blondie dessert next time instead.
Overall, great experience here! I’m excited to get back and try some of the other options as well. Lunch, anyone?

About a decade ago, I spent many a Tuesday night here with a group of friends while one of our friends ran karaōke in the former incarnation that occupied this space … so being here and eating food for a Unilocal supper club on a Tuesday instead of just drinking rum and diets all night whilst awkwardly attempting to duet dancing queen like I used to is sorta surreal…
Anyhow…
The space is now modern and softly lit. Done up in black and cream, the main bar is definitely a focal point.
The menu had a lot to offer and it was difficult to choose! One side of the menu had small plates and salads and the other burgers and main dishes. To complicate matters more, they had some awesome sounding specials.
I had the special of ribs and jalapeño cheddar mashed potatoes, served with Brussels sprouts in a bacon «jam». The star of my plate was definitely the potatoes!
I had a cucumber-​y drink with vodka and a bunch of other ingredients… really nice and refreshing.
For dessert, we tried a chocolate gingerbread cake. Not too sweet and a nice way to end the meal.
A nice modern space with an eclectic menu in this little halfway point between walkers point and Bayview.