Part two of a multi-part series on clean bathrooms in Milwaukee bars. Click here for part one.
Bar owners spend ridiculous amounts of money advertising silly skirt-related promotions to lure women into bars, yet once we're there, so many don't even provide us with a 50-cent roll of toilet paper. We're not asking for much: Just a few dry squares -- doesn't even have to be the quilty kind.
Low lighting is nice, too. Not only does it reduce electric bills, but also there isn't a woman alive who prefers glaring, fluorescent lighting. After all, who wants to be reminded of whiteheads or wild eyebrows while on a date?
Also, a hygienic hand-drying option shouldn't be a ladies room luxury. Once and for all, those dispensers that render a damp piece of cloth are disgusting. Not only is the material always moist and stained, but there is usually a warning label reminding us that the unit has caused children to accidentally hang themselves and that some people think it's okay to use the cloth on parts of their bodies other than their hands. Drying off with a bulldog's bandana is more appealing. A simple hand dryer would suffice, and means one less thing the bar staff has to stock.
And why oh why do so few establishments have disposable seat covers? To patrons in larger cities, these are as necessary as toilet paper. Ladies, wouldn't it be nice to actually sit down for once, and not have to do "the hover?"
Luckily, there are a number of places in town that take a tremendous amount of pride in their facilities:
County Clare
1234 N. Astor St.
(414) 272-5273
If you walk through the door with the word "Herself" painted on it you'll find an Irish-themed bathroom with deep green walls, pictures of Ireland, good lighting and beautiful floor tiling that's extremely...well, how do you say "clean" in Gaelic? There's even a log on the back of the door keeping track of the exact date and time that the room was last cleaned. Very classy, very Pfister.
Harry's Bar and Grill
3549 N. Oakland Ave.
Shorewood
(414) 964-6800
This little girl's room is nice -- with a framed Chihuly poster, plenty of extra rolls of TP on the back of the toilet and an overall tidy appearance -- but the only interesting aspect is the tiny television positioned in the corner playing The Discovery Channel. (I don't know about you, but it had been years since I made a discovery in there.) Less interesting was the fact that the men's room TV was blaring Sports Center. Hmmmm...
Cempazuchi
1205 E. Brady St.
(414) 241-5233
The bathroom door has a tin plate of a woman's naked torso and past the door you'll find an eclectic collection of Latino women depicted in various art genres, from a kitschy lady-with-birds oil painting to a real photo of a topless woman weaving. (Can you find the man sucking the woman's foot?) Like the restaurant, this pee spot is colorful and fun, with a much-appreciated basket full of TP and hand towels so we don't ever have to drip dry.
Click here to read part one.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
