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Village Supper Club, located at 725 S. Shore Dr. in Delavan, is among the longest continuously operating supper clubs in Wisconsin.
Today, it’s also among the most visually impressive, boasting a mid-century modern A-frame structure and a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that look out upon the shore of Delavan Lake. Even better, every seat in the house has a view of the lake, thanks to cleverly implemented amphitheater-style seating.
The property’s history goes back to the 1880’s when it was the dining lodge for Hall’s Park Resort, which attracted tourists from Chicago to travel by train and enjoy summers on the lake. As the years progressed, the building housed a variety of eateries and underwent numerous additions and renovations. But its storied history was nearly laid to rest in 2021 when the Marsicano family, who had operated it as The Village Supper Club since 1968, decided to retire.
Fortunately, local residents Loretta and Allan Kaplan saw its potential and purchased the business, saving the historic property from being razed.
“We live in the vicinity and we’d been customers of the supper club for years,” says Allen Kaplan. “It was a place we’d taken our children and made memories. It was also the last existing supper club in the immediate area.”
Kaplan says they also knew that it was likely to be purchased by a developer and turned into condos if someone didn’t take action.
“When we put in our offer, we were very clear that we intended to preserve the supper club, including the name,” he recalls. “The Marsicanos were fabulous to deal with. They gave us all of their recipes and offered themselves up as consultants if we needed them.”
From there, the Kaplans began planning the renovations. “We knew we wanted to create an upscale spot that was still comfortable and affordable. We also saw some ways to step up the game a bit, so we brought in DMAC Architecture and Interiors who had particular experience in renovating restaurants.”
Reimagining history
“It’s like a love letter to Lake Delavan,” says Dwayne MacEwen of DMAC Architecture & Interiors. “Among the goals for the project was creating a restaurant that took advantage of its location on Lake Delavan. We wanted to situate things so there wasn’t a bad seat in the house. We also wanted to ensure that The Village Supper Club would endure for future generations.”
The experience begins as you approach the restaurant. Fieldstone, cedar and a semi-obscured entrance evoke Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin. An outdoor fireplace takes the chill out of the autumnal air. And, as the guests enter the vestibule, they’re greeted by the original Village Supper Club Sign which hung on a crooked pole outside the restaurant for years.
“We designed the entrance so that you don’t immediately see inside the restaurant,” says MacEwen. “Instead, you come into a vestibule and it’s not until you open the doors inside that you experience the beautiful interior and the breathtaking view of the lake. It’s very much meant to be a dramatic moment.”
Once inside the restaurant, guests are greeted by hand-crafted bookcases, shelves holding memorabilia that tells the history of the building and supper clubs. A lounge area with a fireplace flanks the magnificent horseshoe bar designed by Diane Hendricks of Corporate Contractors Inc. with its eye-catching bronze bottle rack suspended overhead.
From there, guests can look out over the dining room, which slopes subtly toward the vista of the lake. Repurposed wood from the former building has become wainscoting for the walls and a modern state-of-the-art sound system and exceptional sound-proofing were added to ensure that the atmosphere is both impressively open, yet devoid of unwanted noise. The area contains a combination of custom booths that easily accommodate six diners and two and four tops on the ground floor closest to the windows.
Outside the windows, the supper club boasts a spacious outdoor deck with Adirondack chairs and three firepits facing the lake. There, a dock with 10 boat slips welcomes guests to meander up the beautiful walkway to the restaurant.
An outdoor pergola with a fireplace provides additional seating where guests can gather for drinks and appetizers. The high-tech sensors on the roof of the pergola sense both rain and wind, so they automatically adjust to maintain ideal outdoor conditions for guests.
“There’s so much pride in Wisconsin supper clubs, so we took inspiration from that,” says MacEwen. “But we didn’t choose to fill the building with kitsch. Instead, we combined modern design with items that are authentic to the space. Everything in the restaurant has a story.”
That includes the parting gift delivered with each guest's bill at the end of the night: a handful of classic Andes Candies, manufactured right down the road in Delavan.
Dinner on the lake
Chef Zach Miller heads up the kitchen which serves a fairly wide-ranging menu of dishes from soups, salads and sandwiches to a combination of both classic and modern entrees, all of which are served with soup or salad, vegetables and a potato (rather than a la carte).
That includes weekly specials like Friday fish fry (fried or citrus butter baked cod or fried blue gill served with applesauce, coleslaw, potato pancakes and sweet corn fritters, $22 or $26) and Saturday prime rib (choice of 12 or 16-ounce portion served with soup or salad, mashed or baked potato, vegetable of the day, au jus and creamy horseradish sauce, $38 or $44).
For all guests, dinner begins with a complimentary bread service featuring parmesan-topped rolls and whipped butter.
Guests can add accouterments, including a relish try for just $5 or enjoy throw-back appetizers like Shrimp de Jonghe, a mini version of the casserole made famous in Chicago featuring shrimp, creamy Danish brie, hot honey garlic butter and a topping of crispy garlic and herb-flecked panko and toasted almonds ($18, served with toasted demi-baguette).
Entrees included baby back ribs ($28/$36); 16-ounce boneless ribeye, New York Strip or filet ($40-$45) and woodfired half chicken with honey, orange and tarragon glaze, rice pilaf and glazed carrots ($34) and the restaurant’s best selling Almond Crusted Walleye served with boursin whipped potatoes, honey butter green beans and brown butter cream sauce ($36).
Grilled Prime Pork Ribeye served with boursin whipped potatoes, glazed carrots and finished with cognac, cracked peppercorn and mushroom demi-glace ($34).
Half of an oven-roasted duck is served over lemongrass-scented purple rice with roasted baby carrots and grilled orange and ginger gastrique ($46).
Additional options include Braised Pork Shank served over whipped potatoes with carrots and brandy jus ($48); pesto pasta ($30) or woodfired tomato risotto ($26).
Desserts include scoops of Chocolate Shoppe ice cream, chocolate cake and cheesecake from a local bakery and seasonal specials from the Supper Club’s Pastry Chef Marge.
We forewent the evening’s offerings of key lime pavlova and pumpkin cake in favor of a Brandy Alexander, the supper club’s signature ice cream drink, which we enjoyed on the deck next to the warm fire.
The Village Supper Club is open Wednesday and Thursday from 4 to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 4 to 9 p.m.
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 each and every dish. She’s had the privilege of chronicling these tales via numerous media, including OnMilwaukee and in her book “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 recording the FoodCrush podcast, 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.
