Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun are opening a second restaurant. 8-Twelve will open another Milwaukee location at the Bayfield Town Center.
So does this make Rodgers a restaurant magnate? Who knows, but if it does, it makes him a crappy restaurant magnate. Not living in Milwaukee and never having been to 8-Twelve, we were curious. How do people like this joint?
It turns out, they don’t.
Check out the Yelp page for the flagship 8-Twelve in Brookfield and you’ll see the overall rating for the place is three stars. There are more two-star reviews that anything else, though. That’s not good.
Here are some samples.
My issue was the fact that we ate at 8 pm on a Saturday and the waitress was pushing the Prime Rib Special big time. Two members of our party decided to order it. About 10 minutes went by and the manager came over to the table and said, “we’re out of the Prime Rib, you’ll have to order something else.” No apologies or offer of any sort of “make good” just we’re out and you’ll have to find something else.
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Tell me why a place that totes the laundry list of local purveyors still uses bagged salad? I challenge 8-Twelve to prove otherwise. The chopped salad was massive, even for the “small,” but it was a mix.
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Sad just sad. The cheese curds were good, the rest could have stayed in the kitchen. The staff was something else. The bartender was not happy cause I ordered shirley temples for myself and my pregnant friend (god forbid no booze), the hostess was cold and didn’t or couldn’t speak and the waitress was the same as the bartender if you weren’t laying down money she had no use for you. And so goes the meal. Would never go back. And the whole theme of the restaurant was just confusing and odd.
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The pork chop was…I have no words. It was a barbaric assault on my taste buds. The only flavor that stuck to that piece of pork was a slight char of the grill. Imagine eating a completely unseasoned piece of chicken cooked directing on coal.
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Overall, for the tab being about $70, I would say you can definitely find better food for the money…you are paying for the novelty of being in the Rodgers/Braun restaurant. The barn decor is interesting, not sure it works with all of the sports memorabilia. And the painted portraits of Rodgers and Braun on the wall are creepy and seem egocentric (though i’m sure it probably wasn’t their idea) and this is coming from a fan.
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My table mate ordered the beer cheese soup and a small chopped salad. The soup was brought out during appetizers as the waitress didn’t ask when she wanted those served. Beer cheese soup was overheated and had curdled. Her chopped salad had little dressing and macaroni noodles amongst the wet tomatoes, bacon, and iceberg lettuce. Won’t be going back to 8 12…unless I need some delicious tater tots served with scorn.
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What did we learn? Shitty food, shittier service and some oddball decor.
Of course, if you look at Yelp there are some good reviews, but there are more two- and three-star (out of five) reviews than anything else. Obviously, this isn’t Aaron Rodgers‘ fault.
It’s probably SURG Restaurant Group’s fault. They run the place, staff it, etc.
So, maybe be a little more selective with who you go into business with, Aaron. Unless three stars is good enough.