Suburb of Milwaukee - Grafton is Growing as a place to go to eat
Wow, 10 years ago who would have believed a small community like Grafton would be having such great restaurants coming to their village?
I grew up in Grafton, when there were approximately 5,000-6,000 residents and two sit down style restaurants. One was the down home cooking, “greasy spoon” (a well beloved description, isn’t it?) type of restaurant that people flocked to for their breakfast more than any other meal. The owner was known by all in the area. There was also the restaurant which business people went to for lunch and couples and families typically went there for special occasions or a more pricey meal. Besides the fast food restaurants, that was basically the choices we had for the sleepy village of Grafton.
Not so anymore!! I was excited when Charcoal Grill came to Grafton over 5 years ago. The closest one before that was in West Bend (no longer there). With the revitalization of the downtown area, we now have the Ale House (a “sister” to the Milwaukee Ale House in the Third Ward) and the newest restaurant being Paramount Grill and Bakehouse-(owners of Lucille’s Rockin’ Pianos on Old World St. in Milwaukee) (site not yet complete).
I went to the Paramount Grill and Bakehouse for dinner on August 8, 2009. Though it had been only open for less than 2 weeks, and there are obvious kinks to work out, the food was fabulous! I had the 7oz. tenderloin with garlic mashed potatoes. Both were great. On the menu they state you should use your butter knife to cut the steak, and they were not kidding! There are fabulous restaurants in Milwaukee, who have fabulous steaks at fabulous prices, and I have to say this one was comparable…Yes, I said comparable. Flavor, tenderness, moistness, color–I ordered my Med. Rare and it came out correctly–were all there. The garlic mashed potatoes had a good flavor and if you like lumps in your mashed potatoes, which I do, they had those, too. The entrée was accompanied by yellow and green zucchini, which were cooked el dente (perfect!).
It boasts a bakery (bakehouse) which seems to still be in the “construction” phase. There is a sign that explains this to customers as they wait for a table. I am really looking forward to trying the baked goods when it is completely up and running.
In regards to the wait service, I have to say, it was not yet up to par (learning curve?). I was impressed that the Chef, Brian, came around to the tables to speak with each of the patrons. He seemed sincere in listening to the comments shared by the customers.
As I stated, there are kinks that need to be worked out, it’s new, but I would definitely suggest giving it a try. I will definitely go back again!
Posted by:
Nancy Neylon
