Monarch Lounge

Love the atmosphere. Don’t love the service.

When I first heard that this place was in the Hilton, my heart kind of sank a little. Not that there’s anything wrong with the hotel, but I refuse to give up one red cent of my money to a certain «heiress». But, I went anyway, because I wanted to see this place.
Can I just say that everything that woman represents is the antithesis of what this lounge does? Monarch exudes class with it’s beautiful chandeliers and ceiling medallions, under-​lit onyx bar top and mixture of pub tables and lounge seating. The area allowed for group or private conversations as well as space to be solitary, if that’s what a guest wanted.
I attended a Boozin’ and Schmoozin’ event here and was very pleased at the amount of people that turned up. I ran into some friends I had met at other Unilocal events and ended up making 3 more! I liked the Asian theme very much, as I love Asian food. However, I didn’t eat at this event and will have to return for a Maki Monday event some time. I did enjoy two of the featured cocktails, the Shiso Crazy and the Monarch Muse. Both were delicious and served by a friendly and consistently smiling bartender.
I don’t find myself downtown very often, but now I know of a relaxed place to visit for a cocktail or two when I do!
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an old school looking swanky hotel lounge… the way «lounges» were really meant to look. High Windows covered in long gauzy curtains, big cushiony chairs, lots of gold and chandeliers. Its at the top of a big stairway in the Hilton City Centre.
old school lounges are nice and all, but sushi makes just about everything better. They’ve added a «maki monday» happy hour series to take advantage of sushi’s beneficial properties, and have a nice appetizer-​sushi selection. I was very pleased with the spicy roll I got.
I was here for Unilocal’s «boozin and schmoozin’» series, and therefore, (for scientific research, naturally) i tried two of their playfully named cocktails, the monarch muse and oriental affair. Verdict? Don’t abandon the muse to have an affair. They were both good but i personally preferred the midori based «muse» to the (i think) cognac based affair.
Either way a nice addition to westown.

What a hidden gem in the city of Milwaukee! The Monarch Lounge exudes class and sophistication in its elegant art deco area on the second level of the lobby area in the downtown Milwaukee Hilton Hotel. The service and food and drink rise to the occasion.
My office had a holiday party here and it was wonderful. They set up a buffet table and served among other items, bacon-​wrapped scallops. Specialty drinks including the classic Moscow Mule were available. The room was large enough to accommodate a group of 50 people very easily. However, all of us had room to spread out and converse in small groups at tables, grouped seating areas, the bar and the like. The place lends itself to casual conversation.
June’s Unilocal Boozin’ and Schmoozin’ event was held here to kick off Monarch’s Maki Mondays. Yum. Not only are there handcrafted martinis with exotic names like Shiso Crazy and Oriental Romance, there is handmade sushi made to order at a counter right there in the lounge. At special prices. Good deal for a Monday.
My friend ordered the Calamari which was delivered as a huge plate with a heap of crispy fried goodness. She was delighted.
I will go back to the Monarch and partake of Maki Monday again. Delightful!

While I’m not up to date on offerings, as I’m barely traveling to conventions like I once did, I did partake in numerous events for a few years and rank Monarch Lounge really high in convention connected /​hotel bars. Best was in Palm Springs, Cali, Renaissance Marriott I believe. Worse was many a loud, dirty bar tie.
To start the Monarch Lounge is on the second floor which keeps out the rift/​raft. It’s high ceilings and general spaciousness keeps the noise level down. Floor plan is wipe and open enough so you won’t lose track of your people, nor are you forced to be near them. It’s luxurious, some fine architectural accents, yet not over the top to the point they have to charge an arm and leg for drinks/​food.
Seemed easy to reconfigure, had spots for groups of people and comfy chairs for more personable talk. Can add extra service bars, or say a small sushi bar for Maki Mondays with ease. Go on Maki Mondays, get the Asparagus Wasabi roll, and pretend it’s healthy happy hour!

Thanks to Unilocal!we went to Monarch Lounge in the Hilton downtown last night and while we were fairly antisocial (Sorry! But Happy I got to chat with Rachel F. a bit) we had a really chill, good time.
Not only is this hotel, and subsequently it’s Monarch Lounge, gorgeous, the addition of Izumi’s «Maki Mondays» was awesome.
We’ve been to Izumi’s restaurant-​proper once with less than thrilling results (2013).
Since they were serving up sushi here, we decided to give them another shot.
The salmon nigiri was fresh, had great texture, and while not the most flavorful of all salmon nigiris/sashimi’s we’ve tried — it did not disappoint.
For me the star was the Alaskan Roll: Salmon, avocado, masago, cucumber & lettuce — So good!
The salmon and avocado, as usual, were great compliments to each other, and were given in generous proportions! The masago added a fun pop to each bite, and the vegetables were also welcome and refreshing.
To make it even the better, the sushi rice was perfectly cooked, and the seaweed was excellent quality as well.
We might actually give Izumi another shot thanks to this.
Oh, and the house white blend was great, the house merlot was pretty good too — and the bartender (a dark haired girl whose name I didn’t catch) was fantastic, friendly, and professional.
Definitely an event worth visiting!

This month’s Unilocal’s Boozin’ and Schmoozin’ event brought us to the Monarch Lounge on the second level of the lobby area at the Milwaukee Hilton Hotel. It was my third visit to the Monarch Lounge, and I haven’t figured out why this place isn’t packed every night, other than perhaps, people just don’t know it’s there.
We had a Unilocal event last year, I think, to learn about the Wednesday Whiskey tastings that probably could have gone well with some promoting. They don’t do it anymore and none of the staff I talked to even knew it once existed.
The lounge is very classy looking, with high end furnishings, a fireplace and a piano, but the prices are not high end, at least no more than any other downtown lounge.
The food is pretty good, too.
I attended Milwaukee’s first Taste & Toast event a few months back and chose Monarch Lounge from the list of participating businesses.
My friend and I ordered the short rib with gnocchi, the crab cake, truffle fries, and a pear and wagyu salad. All were excellent and perfectly executed dishes!
They recently launched Maki Mondays. Sushi chefs have a counter in the lounge where they make sushi from a limited menu. The rolls ranged from $ 6 to $ 10 and most rolls, if not all, were 6 pieces each.
I ordered the Spicy Tuna ($ 6) and the California Roll ($ 6), since Josh B pointed out that the California Roll here was made with real crab. Both rolls were good and the seafood in each piece was ample. I did not feel cheated, but I also didn’t feel like I was eating some of the best sushi in town, to be honest. However, The flavors were good and I think the value was good, too. I would return for Maki Monday.
The appetizers are 50% during Happy Hour, which runs from 5:00 — 7:00 weeknights, so I also tried the bacon-​wrapped steak and the truffle parmesan fries. The steak came with two dipping sauces, which I belive were a bearnaise and comething closer to a steak sauce. The fries also came with a dipping sauce, but there was so much flavor on the fries, I couldn’t really isolate the flavor of the sauce, other than it tasted good.
Monarch Lounge is one of Milwaukee’s best kept secrets IMHO, and I’m pretty sure they don’t want to be. Take a pass on the Miller Time Tub and venture upstairs to Monarch Lounge to give it a try.

The Monarch Lounge has a wonderful chill vibe. The first time I visited I thought it would be the perfect downtown spot to drink a nice glass of red wine while watching big, fluffy snowflakes flutter down outside.
The atmosphere is very 1920s art deco complete with quality wood paneling, beautiful details, and comfy couches and chairs plus tables where you can sit with a laptop, or you can just sidle up to the bar and throw back a martini.
When the lounge first reopened after renovation they did not serve food, but they have now added a small variety of appetizers including flatbreads.

To borrow Joe P’s formula:
One sentence summation: Upscale + laid-​back event space smack dab in the middle of the Hilton Hotel.
Pray tell, why would a local need to review a hotel «bar?» In fact, what good reason might I have to have ever stepped foot into Monarch Lounge in the first place? This space is a large, lovely, open area on the second floor of the Hilton (with a bar) that seems suitable as a post-​checkout workspace or a happy hour destination post travel to MKE. I live in MKE. Does not compute.
Wait! It’s also beyond suitable as a venue/​event space for work/​personal gatherings.
Exactly. This is a large, open space that’s suitable for events. Hence my being here, ya dinguses. (Steve Brule reference for the uninitiated, check it out!)
Events are a big part of what I do, and I can confidently say that working with the folks at Hilton/​Monarch Lounge was an easy, breezy pleasure. I can also say that due to the size and versatility of the space that it should definitely be on MKE’s short list of venue choices for a medium/​large gathering. It’s fancy — chandeliers, swirly carpet, dark woods, leather chairs, and the piano plays itself (it can be activated from an app on the GM’s smartphone, even!) — but it’s still approachable. It seems as though the literally lofty, open feel of the space lends itself well to versatility, and the accommodating staff is attentive and on point.
Check it out if you’re looking for a big-​ish venue, ya dinguses!

Hotel bar with a nice warm vibe. Comfortable soft couches and quiet background music allow you to sit for a bit, enjoy an adult beverage while you chat with either someone you know or someone you don’t. I like it.

Elegant living room vibe. Music and a fireplace at one end, big screen TV and Internet browsing at the other end, a bar, tables and sofa seating in the middle.
This place is larger than the bar at the Milwaukee Chop House downstairs. More focused on drinks and seeing and being seen. The background music tends toward Jazz.
And families can bring the kids to the TV/​Internet section of this former ballroom, and keep an eye out but have drinks with grownups out of earshot of the kids.
Live music some nights, and the baby grand is a player piano with light jazz standards otherwise.
From this perch you can sit by the fireplace and see who is checking in, but are in an elegant bubble out of the busy-​ness of luggage being handled and bookings being confirmed.