After a week of closings and acquisitions in the Milwaukee-area craft brewing scene, it appears that a long-closed brewery and restaurant is slated to reopen.
According to a Facebook post on Sunday, Shallece Saleen and Dheren Stewart plan to reopen the 7,200-square-foot St. Francis Brewery, 3825 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., which closed in 2019, after 10 years in business.
Under a header that declared, "2025 IS THE YEAR FOR DREAMS TO COME TRUE," Saleen wrote:
"We are beyond thrilled to share that a lifelong dream is becoming a reality: we are bringing the iconic St. Francis Brewery back to life under our ownership!
"This journey has been 27 years in the making for Dheren. After nearly three decades in the restaurant industry – and 10 incredible years with Texas Roadhouse, where he honed his skills in high-volume operations, hospitality, and leadership – he’s taking the bold leap into ownership. His love for food, creativity, and community has led to this exciting next step.
"A bit of history: St. Francis Brewery was a beloved cornerstone of the community for over a decade, closing its doors in 2019. Since then, it has been waiting for someone with the passion, experience, and vision to bring it back to life. Together, we bring all of that and more – a fresh, creative menu, a love of hospitality, and the expertise to make the brewery a vibrant hub for the community again.
"I couldn’t be more excited to be on this journey with Dheren. With my own 17 years of restaurant experience, entrepreneurship, and a passion for live music, I’m ready to get creative behind the bar, help lead the front of house, and most importantly, work side-by-side with him. One of the things I’m most excited about is creating the MOOD Concert Series – an immersive experience pairing live music + specialty food (MUSIC + FOOD) designed to match the vibe of the evening. It’s all about bringing people together through incredible flavors and unforgettable sounds, creating moments that leave a lasting impression.
"Opening early spring 2025 – exact dates coming soon!
"We can’t wait to breathe new life into this community treasure and make it shine brighter than ever before. Follow along for updates, sneak peeks, and all the exciting plans at @st.francis.brewery.
"Here’s to big dreams, bold steps, and bringing people together through great food, drinks, music, and hospitality."
Saleen says that she plans to a social media post about hiring for the new venue on Monday.
"We’re incredibly excited about this next chapter," she says. "We’ll be hiring a full-time brewmaster to take charge of the brewery and help us grow and expand its potential."
Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.
In the past week, Enlightened Brewing and City Lights Brewing closed, The Explorium announced it is buying Good City and Gathering Place announced that it has purchased Sahale Ale Works.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
