By Rick Rodriguez Special to OnMilwaukee.com Published Sep 04, 2013 at 11:33 AM

At the east end of the Lincoln Avenue Pizza Strip (I just made that up. You like?), sits Happy Tap, 6801 W. Beloit Rd. I’ve driven past it dozens of times, curious about the signs on the building advertising "original thin crust pizza."

A few times, I’d even heard that it served pretty good pizza. A visit was inevitable.

The Happy Tap was purchased last November by Kim Caze from Alan Bunzel, whose family owned and operated the business since 1959. Since Caze works full-time as a manager for the post office, she relies on the help she receives from her fiancé and the other staff members, one of whom has worked there for over 30 years.

It’s nice to have that type of continuity with the staff to continue building relationships with the existing customer base.

When I visited, I noticed a group of customers conversing and joking around like you’d see on an episode of "Cheers." Yet I didn’t feel uncomfortable walking in alone. I was greeted immediately by a very friendly bartender and not once did I catch anyone whispering or eying me up. Then again, I look friendly and harmless enough, so why would they?

I also noticed how clean and well-kept the place was. I’m used to older neighborhood watering holes having a bit of an unpleasant scent to them with a dingy appearance. That was not the case at Happy Tap.

The walls were adorned with Miller, NASCAR and Packers signage and memorabilia. Electronic games, such as darts and video poker, were stationed on opposite ends of the floor, and plenty of high-definition TVs circled the venue to allow for easy viewing of the big game.

In fact, I could see myself going back to watch a game and enjoy one of the drink specials they offer.

Caze told me that the pizza was one of the reasons she agreed to buy the business when Bunzel was looking for a buyer. Bunzel started serving pizza 12 years ago, and the same recipes were given to Caze as part of the package.

The menu is small, keeping overhead low, but Caze has been exploring ways to expand the small kitchen and enhance the menu. Appetizers include garlic bread, cheese bread and pizza bread, ranging from $4 to $7.

Pizzas come in 12- and 16-inch crust sizes, with cheese pizzas costing $8 and $11, respectively. Additional toppings are $1.50 and $2 and include sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, green olives, black olives, green peppers, jalapenos and kalamata olives which is a rare find for pizza toppings.

I kept it simple on this visit and stuck with my "go-to" sausage and pepperoni pie. The crust was perfectly crisp throughout, and I was actually pretty impressed. Caze told me that the crust wasn’t hand-made there and was instead provided by a distributor, which is only the second time I’ve encountered a venue using a pre-made crust. However, she also told me that the Italian sausage is made by a local butcher and delivered one to two times per week, which I appreciated.

The sausage chunks were very large and provided a nice flavor with subtle spicy undertones. The same can be said of the pepperoni slices which were generously applied to the pizza, as was the sausage. I did not get cheated on toppings here.

I thought the sauce also had a mild flavor to it. However, I noticed that while no one component of the pie jumped out with distinct flavors, all components worked together to create a nice flavor profile which was enhanced by the light sprinkle of Italian seasoning applied over the delicious cheese.

Caze suggested I come back to try the garlic bread, as well. I think I will. In fact, I think Happy Tap may be a good place for me to watch a football game this season, since it’s located close to my house. Maybe I’ll bring a friend next time or maybe I’ll just try to buddy up with the regulars.

Besides, we’re all friends as long as we’re cheering for the Packers or Badgers – and as long as we’re imbibing.

Rick Rodriguez Special to OnMilwaukee.com
I was born and raised in Milwaukee, and I plan to stay in Milwaukee forever. I'm the oldest of three children and grew up in the Riverwest neighborhood. My family still lives in the same Riverwest house since 1971.

I graduated from Rufus King High School and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a business degree.

My true passion for Milwaukee probably started after I joined the Young Professionals of Milwaukee (now called FUEL Milwaukee) which just celebrated its one year anniversary at the time. The events that I attended, and sometimes organized, really opened my eyes to what Milwaukee had to offer, as well as its potential for the future. So for the past, present, and future FUEL Milwaukee corporate sponsors out there, that organization does produce results (editorial)!

I love all of the Milwaukee Sports teams, professional and amateur. I love the Milwaukee arts scene and all of the festivals. I love that you can find a free concert in the summer just about every day of the week. I love the various neighborhoods around the Milwaukee area and the unique characteristics that they offer. I love the people who take the time to tell us about those unique characteristics. I have to hold my breath and count to ten when someone tells me that there is nothing to do in Milwaukee. Then I prove them wrong.

Most of all, I love the Milwaukee dining scene. I love how it continues to evolve with modern dishes and new trends while the classic restaurants continue to remind us that great food doesn't have to be "fancy schmancy." However, I also love the chefs that create the "fancy schmancy" dishes and continue to challenge themselves and Milwaukee diners with dishes we've never seen before.

Our media provides attention to the new restaurants, which is great, but I don't like seeing the older great restaurants close their doors (Don Quijote, African Hut) because they've been forgotten, so I try to do my part to let Milwaukeeans know that they're still out there, too. I do that through social media, online reviews, and a dinner club I run for my friends, where we visit restaurants they haven't heard of before or try ethnic cuisine they haven't had before.

My dream is that one day I can mention a great experience in Milwaukee and not have someone respond with "have you been to Chicago?" I don't like those people very much.