Brunch at Cafe Benelux

This morning, we slept in a bit and then got ready to head to the Third Ward in Milwaukee for brunch at Cafe Benelux.



It just opened about a month ago and I wanted to dine out on the upstairs patio, so that's what we did today.



We both started with water and then I got an iced coffee. It's not on the menu, so the waitress was nice enough to pour hot coffee over ice. She was later even more sweet to take the iced coffee off of our bill because "she took too long to get it to me." I totally didn't think that at all, nor did I complain about the wait, so that was really nice of her.







We had a nice view of downtown Milwaukee and this apartment or condo building.









Check out how the windows and building are crooked (look next to the Cream City Brick building).



We sat next to each other and found a shady spot compared to the table originally assigned to us.



We thoroughly enjoyed sitting in the shade on the patio.





Craig picked out a belgian waffle with berries.



I chose a pannenkoeken, which is a "lowland" crepe/pancake that is HUGE and I got berries, granola, and yogurt on top. There were lots of other choices, but I went with what I love.





Check out the size--I purposely took this shot a bit further away to show you all the massiveness of the pannenkoechen.



I ate all of the middle up and then took the ends home for breakfast tomorrow.



The downstairs area has a Benelux market that will soon feature sandwiches, etc. to go.





I liked the bike on the women's bathroom door. :)



I was bored while waiting for Craig in the bathroom, so took these scenery shots.



Jennifer, this made me think of you and how your husband is half Dutch ancestrally.



Overall, we both liked Cafe Benelux a lot. I wasn't sure what to expect after some terrible reviews on yelp. I usually ignore such reviews and just decide on my own anyway. We had great service (thanks Jennie), good food, a wonderful atmosphere, didn't have to wait to get a table, and I would definitely go back here for lunch or dinner. Maybe it's just one of those hot new restaurants that if you hit it at the wrong time, you have to wait to get a table and your food.

After brunch, we walked off our meal by going to the market for a very brief visit.



Then we went over to Artasia, which is Craig's favorite store.





This mannequin freaked me out when we walked out of Artasia. Somehow, I hadn't seen him before we went in!



And to conclude our morning in downtown Milwaukee, Craig requested we go to Grand Avenue mall.



This statue of Plankinton reminds me of being a curious (and history nerd) little girl. I used to ask my mom who he was and what he did to deserve a statue in Grand Avenue.



Too bad there aren't a lot of great stores left at Grand Avenue like there were when I was a kid. They do have a nice YMCA on the top floor of the building and I keep wanting to go there after work sometime. And I did look around the TJ Maxx, which had a pretty good selection.

I've just been relaxing the rest of the day and I have energy to burn, so I better be off to the YMCA now.

Hope you are enjoying your Saturday and it's as relaxing as mine as been!