It was my birthday. What better way to celebrate but to chow down a burger. Where to go? I've got some favorites I might default to but why not try something different? My wife suggested we check the interweb for ideas. She mentions that the Swinging Door has one of the top rated burgers. I've heard this before. It seems that every week a new list of best burgers in Milwaukee is released. Well, the Swinging Door seems to be a repeat offender on these lists. It was definitely off my radar. My recall of the Swinging Door takes me back to when I was in my late teens and working nights in downtown Milwaukee. Just two blocks from my job, it was a place you could take your "lunch" break at. (aka, liquid lunch) If I did eat there, it was probably appetizers.
The Swinging Door hasn't changed much since those days. (see photo) It's a small venue tucked away in the lower level of The Grain Exchange building. From the outside, you would think much of it. Even once you are inside it might still not impress you that this it's a great place for dinner. Definitely a great bar to hang out at.
Enough about all the nostalgic stuff... let's talk burgers! The bar was set pretty high with all the online chatter about how good it was. I'm going to say, it wasn't wrong. I ordered the 1/2 lb with bacon, cheddar, raw onions and no condiment of any kind. The burger includes fries or chips. I went with fries. The burger was cooked nearly perfect. The overall flavor gave me a bit of a meatloaf vibe but worked. Juicy, seasoned nicely and fresh raw onion made it delicious. The fries were so flavorful, I found it hard to use ketchup. The bacon add on was $2.50, a bit pricey since the plain burger starts at $12.50. Don't get me wrong, it's all good.
Rate it: 4 out of 5. It's more like a 4.25 but not quite a 4.5. The whole package including the throwback scene really made it a great experience. I'd suggest a person might go there for a burger.
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