October is the fourth-annual Dining Month on OnMilwaukee.com. All month, we're stuffed with restaurant reviews, delicious features, chef profiles, unique articles on everything food, as well as the winners of our "Best of Dining 2010."
As a passionate Marquette University graduate, it's a sad day. Angelo's Pizza Restaurant and Bar,1601 W. Wells St., will soon close.
According to Marquette's main Twitter account, "Angelo's owner (is) retiring and asked MU to purchase. Gyros (located in same building at 1607 W. Wells St.) will continue to lease. MU (is) working on (securing an) operator for pizza business."
I don't have firm closing date yet as calls and e-mails to Angelo's haven't been returned. As of Sunday night (Oct. 10) the restaurant and bar was still open, yet I stopped by on Monday (Oct. 11) at 8 p.m. and it was dark.
Mary Pat Pfeil, senior director of university communication at Marquette, provided me with a bit more detail via e-mail.
"The university was recently approached about the purchase of Angelo's due to the owner's plan to retire, and there is an accepted offer to purchase the property. The property, which includes Marquette Gyros, is the only property on the south side of Wells Street between 16th and 17th not currently owned by the university. The Office of Administration is in conversations with various parties regarding the operation of the business. The operator of Marquette Gyros will continue to lease that space. Because the closing on the real estate transaction has not occurred, no other details are available at this time."
A fabric of Marquette's campus life since 1956, the small, family-owned and operated pizza joint has a great retro feel that's real and full of charm. Its pizza, although its' been years since I was last ate there, is super cheesy and pairs perfectly with beer -- at least that's how this MU grad remembers it.
Another Marquette icon, Hegarty's Pub, an Irish bar at 1120 W. Wells St., closed in April. Anyway, Marquette says it's looking for a replacement for Angelo's so stay tuned and stay hungry.
In the meantime, feel free to share your Angelo's memories using the talkbacks and I'll update this blog with an official closing date when I get it.
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
