Beginning today, three of the four locations for Refuge Cafe – a popular fast casual cafe specializing in smoothies, juices and healthy wraps and take-away items – will close.
But according to owner Joshua Janis, the closure is temporary for most of the sites.
Janis says that the Bay View location at 422 E. Lincoln Ave. has closed permanently. However, two locations – the Marquette University cafe at 1102 W. Wells St. and the location inside the Milwaukee Athletic Club at 758 N. Broadway – will likely reopen around May 1.
Janis says the closures are necessary to accommodate a rebranding effort for the cafes.
"The Refuge brand is going to go away," he says. "But the concept behind it will remain. We will continue to supply quick and healthy food to Milwaukee, but we’ll be doing it in a bigger, better way. This is a definitive step toward making improvements to the brand that will bring further purpose to the nutritious dishes we offer."
Meanwhile, according to Janis, the Refuge Cafe at the Bradley Center will remain open throughout the rebranding process.
Watch OnMilwaukee for additional details as they develop.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
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