Firefly Urban Bar & Grill

We were there tonight and even though there was a big wedding reception going on in the lounge area, the service in the rest of the restaurant was fantastic. Had the crunch salad and loved it. Had the Chocolate bomb for dessert — it was delicious !!!

Had a wonderful double date here tonight. The cocktails were fantastic as were the appetizers. The ahi tuna was the best I’ve had in Milwaukee! Our bill was not cheap but didn’t intend it to be. We also had excellent service and an overall amazing time. Nothing but a 5 star experience!

Made reservations for a much needed date night with my husband. Our server, Monique, was awful. She barely spoke two words to us. She threw our appetizer on the table (bread crumbs flew everywhere) and walked away so fast, we couldn’t ask her for anything else. Our wait for our drinks was long, she knew nothing about the menu, and didn’t check to see if we needed anything during our time there. When we asked for the check, there was no «thank you for dining with us» or anything. Terrible experience and we won’t be back. What an unfortunate way to spend our long awaited date night.

It’d been awhile since I visited Firefly. I’d give it 3.5 stars if possible. I think this is a great place for a larger group. The food is always good, just not unbelieveable. If I come here it’s more for the location and atmosphere.
It’s fun place, located in downtown Tosa, so there are a ton of younger folks residents that I assume are all med students or residents because of MCW/Froedtert/Children’s.
Last time I was there we had the Soy Glazed Yellow Fin Tuna — which was actually our favorite. The pesto pasta — which I’m not too sure where the pesto was. Our friends tried the Fish and chips and said it was fine, but nothing special.
In general — good for atmosphere, ok for food.

Will never return. It took nearly an hour for us to get our food, which was a cheeseburger, a kids mac & cheese, and an order of the Crab Stack appetizer, which was just awful (and all for a price of $ 16 for lump crab meat!). Waitress was extremely indifferent and actually a little hostile when we complained about our wait time, by saying that there were other big tables in the dining room that slowed things down. Never mind that one of these «big tables» was already done eating and the other «big table» ordered from her AFTER we ordered, yet they received their food before we did.
I like the atmosphere and décor of this place but have had way too many bad experiences to even consider ever coming back again. I’m guessing other people feel the same way based on the number of negative reviews and the largely empty dining room most times I’ve been here.

It’s probably time for me to update Firefly — I’d probably give them 3.5 stars if I could.
My original statements still hold — I just can’t see actually using their dining room. There’s still never anyone in there while the bar is always crowded, for good reason. I’ve done a few «ladies nights» here, mostly because it’s centrally located and Firefly is a great place to grab a drink and some snacks with friends. The crowd seems to trend a bit toward «active seniors» with lots of Chicos wearing ladies and retired-​exec-​white hair dudes in «slacks» having libations.
They’ve done some menu updating so there are more small plates available (again — drinks and snacks is what they are good at). I sampled their hummus (very tasty) their cheese fondue (yes, please — so good), their garlic fries, a cheese plate and their flatbreads. Not all at once of course. Anyway, I’m a big fan of the artichoke spinach flatbread — it’s big enough to share or make a solo meal out of. Prices are pretty reasonable too.
They do have entrees but I really never see anyone ordering them. If it matters to you, there is an AYCE fish fry on Fridays (more elegantly referred to on the menu as the «endless fish fry»).
Drinks are a strong suit — they have a nice list of craft cocktails, they house infuse some spirits and they offer absinthe fountains which I’ve not seen at too many other places. The wine list offers good choices at decent prices and they’ve got a-​ok happy hour specials most days. Service can be hit or miss depending on what’s going on but if you are lucky enough to get Carrie as a bartender, you’re going to have a good time because she is pretty great and the reason for 4 stars and not 3.
There’s no private lot for parking but there are two very large city lots within ½ block so it shouldn’t be a huge issue. Good for date night, drinks with the ladies and active seniors looking to mingle.

We came here on a double date this past weekend and really enjoyed our time. We sat at a high top table right next to the bar. The music was playing, lights were dim. The atmosphere was just perfect. It was truly relaxing. Our waiter was very nice and accommodating. I would give 5 stars to the atmosphere and the waiter for sure. However, I had to knock off a star for the food. The prices are too high in my opinion for just ok tasting food.

Our first time there, we came in on a busy Friday night around 7:15. We were seated at a high table in the lounge area in back, which I would highly recommend. The ambience is amazing! I love the décor, and the music was great.
I would give this place a 4 or 5 star, but the food was only okay. Like another reviewer has said– the ambiance makes this place. In my opinion, the food/​menu could use some work– there was nothing overly memorable. I thought the food was a little heavy– there were several fried food options.
Next time I’m thinking I will just come for drinks and sit at the lovely bar in the lounge and enjoy the music.

You guys have horrible customer service! Make a reservation for New Years only to have us seated in the dining area at 9:45? Who eats dinner at 9:45? When asked about sitting in the bar they stated that these are reserved… Uh yeah I had a reservation, guess I didn’t specify? I specifically wrote in a booth by the bar when reserving through open table. No wonder why you have horrible reviews! Never again! Up and left!

Very disappointing. The black bean soup, did not come with avocado salsa as promised. The salad was too spicy to enjoy and the short ribs were bland. Our server was not attentive and overall, it was a complete waste of money.

Oh, Firefly you get it. New menu with many more options for those of us limiting carbs and wanting more veg. Love this place. We have started visiting more often and the food is top notch each time. Three cheers for Firefly!
Current fave: cucumber ribbon salad over arugula with an amazing vinaigrette, micro burgers (bunless, but the buns are delish!), and the Warm Chocolate Bomb with Purple Door’s salted caramel ice cream. Heavenly!!!

I love this place. I’m not sure why it only averages 3 stars. I’ve been here a couple of times, several times for a girl’s night and once on Valentine’s Day with my fiancé. The service was slightly slow on Valentine’s Day but that is expected on one of the busiest date nights of the year. Our server was so nice that we really didn’t care, especially since we were in no rush.
The atmosphere is trendy, romantic, and the perfect intimate setting for a date night. The last time I was there I came with a big group of girls and we reserved the FIreplace Room and it was perfect for us. The food is amazing, drinks are delicious, and service has always been on point. Parking isn’t the best but I just moved here from Chicago where parking is impossible, so that’s not a big deal to me.
The bacon wrapped dates are to die for and the smores dessert is messy but sooo good and such a cute idea.
I’ll definitely continue to come to Firefly!

We had. Rotaract social event here. Overall I would say this place is a strong 3 stars.
Parking is difficult and the food was average.
The interior design is pretty awesome and the chairs are very comfy. Every drink on the menu was delicious. The draft beer although VERY LIMITED was also good. I had some sort of gingerbread one.

Last night was my first time at Firefly. Our waitress was attentive, pleasant, and accommodating.
We sat in the front, not in the bar, and I found the ambiance to be warm and comfortable.
I had the tuna. Although it is a little pricey at $ 27, the portion was HUGE. (and I am a big eater). Make sure you specify if you want it very rare. I easily got two meals out of it. The slaw that comes with it was perfectly dressed, not swimming in oil. I’d definitely get it again.
My husband had the burger and ate the whole thing in about 3 minutes because it was so delicious. it too was very large. Firefly hand-​cuts their fries. I stole a couple off his plate and wished I had ordered a side of them to have all to myself. They are thin and crispy.
They have great happy hour specials too on drinks and apps. We split the chicken lettuce wraps. They were very tasty, but a little wonky to eat. (DO NOT ORDER THEM ON A FIRST DATE!). Tap beer selection could use some help, but they have a lengthy bottled beer selection.
I noticed some bad reviews on Unilocal for this place. It seems to me that Firefly really made an effort of address any problems prior guests may have had.
See ya there!

Walking into firefly I knew I would like the place. The atmosphere and décor is welcoming yet trendy and unlike other restaurants I’ve seen. The wood work gives it a cozy feel and the chandeliers make you feel like you’re in a really nice place.
The food was the best part of the experience. It was hard deciding between the menu and the specials because everything sounded delicious. We started with the risotto lollipops. Super cute little risotto meatballs on a toothpick. small in size but not in flavor. It was a great way to be able to share an otherwise unshareable meal option. Next we split the pear and chèvre salad. Delicious. There was an awesome amount of the yummy parts in ratio with the lettuce. Making it easy to split and still enjoy every bite. For the entrée we tried the duck special. The meat was cooked perfectly, the Brussel sprouts roasted to perfection and he mushroom cornbread stuffing was the perfect crunch addition to the whole plate. We devoured every last bite and somehow still made room for dessert. I mean how could we pass on table side s’mores! Chocolate covered graham crackers, marshmallows on a stick, and a small fire to create the perfect s’more to everyone’s liking. It was super fun to do roast the mallows and made it even more delicious when it melted in your mouth.
The only reason firefly is receiving 4 stars instead of 5 is the service. Our waitress, although nice, wasn’t the most attentive. It took a long time to get refills on water and to get her attention to make sure our salad came out first. The one thing we really didn’t like is when we got our dessert she yelled across the room to us while cleaning another table to ask us how we were enjoying it. It seemed very out of place at an intimate restaurant like this.
Overall our experience was superb and we will definitely be back to try everything on the menu! Yumm!

The best part about this place is the ambiance in the bar. It is chic and sexy and beautiful. But given that it was such a beautiful night last night, we ate outside. There is potential for the patio, but they need to add some plants or lights or something. Now it just seems like someone thought, «we could throw some chairs out on that slab of concrete and call it a patio.»
The restaurant is close enough to the center of the village to make parking impossible, but far enough away to make it seem like you’re missing out on the fun of the village. There were only 2 other tables there last night but when we walked down to Café Hollander for after dinner drinks, that place was packed (nicer patio? better location? who knows.)
My salad (the Crunch salad) was just okay. I was immediately put off by an errant piece of chicken (I don’t eat chicken and the salad wasn’t supposed to come with chicken) but after making sure there wasn’t anymore hiding anywhere I got over it. But the salad itself was really boring. Would definitely not get it again.
Even though I wasn’t terribly impressed, I guess I’d still come back here b/​c their food menu is more appealing to me than the pub grub offered nearby at Cafes Hollander and Bavaria. Plus I’d like to have a martini in the bar in the middle of winter.

Started off with small plates of crab cakes and chicken lettuce wraps. Very good. The crab cakes had orange slices which added a great sweet flavor at the end that we all enjoyed. Also had the mushroom balls. Then moved onto grilled flat iron which was very good as well. The hullabaloo zin was a good match with the flat iron. Very good service as well.

Ashley and I decided to have a Milwaukee getaway weekend and found Firefly on OpenTable. I am sure glad we did! After leaving the Milwaukee Bucks home opener early because our car was parked in a 2hr street spot, we drove out to Wauwatosa and had dinner in the bar. Our first impression of Firefly: chic, hip, awesome, starving.
The dining room in the front seems very elegant, and the bar in the back has a really cool laid back atmosphere. There is a private room with a fireplace if you have a few friends with you, and tons of seating at and around the bar.
I ordered the hamburger. I know I’ve said this so many times in my reviews, but this might have been the best burger I’ve ever had. It had pepperjack cheese, jalapeños, fried onion strings, chipotle mayo, and one of the best beef patties I’ve ever eaten.
Ashley ordered the Cobb salad. It was huge, fresh, and delicious. There was nothing about this place we didn’t like. They were totally accommodating even when we walked in at 9:45pm. I wish Firefly was in Illinois, we would be there often!

Mike and I thought it would be nice to have a weekend away, leave work, and life behind. So we made reservations at the Hyatt West in Milwaukee and at Firefly Urban Bar & Grill for Saturday night. Mike said we would get dressed up and have a nice night on the town. Now being pregnant, I knew that my experience in Milwaukee would differ from the days of sitting at Wolski’s «closing down the bar». But still, Milwaukee will always hold a special place in my heart, so I was ecstatic to get up der.
We left on Saturday, late morning and decided we’d head start to Milwaukee Public Market for lunch. I am so glad we did! It was awesome. We got a couple panini’s and for the first time ever, I had McDonald’s fries, not from McDonald’s. There was a little Greek place that was selling fries for pretty cheap, so we got an order and I’m not kidding, this place has McDonald’s secret. the fries and the ketchup were identical… it was pretty mind blowing.
We got checked into our hotel, but not before Mike, my wonderfully sweet, romantic, brilliant, and best intention-​ed husband realized he forgot his dress clothes at home. Anyways, we pretty much knew that it was not going to be a fancy night on the town at that point. So we went up to the room, took a nap and woke up at about 6:15. Mike decided he needed to redeem himself after «spoiling» our awesome night he had planned. So he jumped on Craigslist and found some tickets for the Bucks home opener. Contacted the seller and within an hour we were sitting at the Bradley Center in our sneakers and our free Buck’s shirts (much more our style anyway). We had an absolute blast, it was awesome.
When we left, we decided we still wanted to check this Firefly place out, so we drove to Wauwatosa and went in, much to my reluctance. I was thinking that it was a nice place, a place you needed to have something other than Buck’s t-​shirts on for… I was wrong. This place was awesome, the staff was incredibly nice, even though we walked in 20 minutes before the kitchen closed and the atmosphere was perfect. They have a nice big bar area, and we were seated at a little table, with intimate lighting. It doesn’t matter what you’re wearing, it matters where you are and who you’re with. (I know my husband’s going to read this)
Mike ordered the burger, go figure, and I ordered the cobb salad. Both meals were seriously incredible. The burger was (straight of out Mike’s mouth)“One of the best burgers I’ve ever had”…if you keep up with Mike’s reviews… this.is.a.big.step.
We were saying after we left that we wished there was a place like this by us, but now… I’m thankful there’s not, because we will be able to go back to this adorable place, maybe next time we’ll look a little classier, and enjoy this amazing food. If you’re in the Wauwatosa are, please don’t pass this place by, it’s a real gem!

I’ve heard a lot of great things about Firefly, so I was pretty excited to try it out for myself last night. They were running a special where if you wore your I VOTED sticker in, you got a free drink, so it was a great time to give it a shot.
Parking was a little difficult, but what ar eyou going to do. When I walked in I was blown away by the atmosphere. It was spot on. The ambience was great, and the decorations were very trendy. We opted for bar seating, and I really liked the look of the bar area.
I started with my free drink — it was a Cranberry Crush, with muddled cranberries, mint etc. It was awesome. I followed that up with the White Cosmo. They were both really good, but very lacking in the booze department. Especially for an $ 11 cocktail.
For food, I started with the cheese fondue. It comes with toasted sourdough bread and sliced granny smith apples. I was very happy to see it was only $ 8, but when I saw the size, I understood why. VERY small — however, very good.
Then I ordered the special, it was pumpkin ravioli, which supposedly had a sage butter, sauteed sage, toasted walnuts and fresh parmesan cheese. As they say, you eat with your eyes first, and my eyes were unimpressed with this one. They put probably eight flat little raviolis on a plate, and covered it with what looked and tasted like warm olive oil. They thew some whole nuts on the top. There was not a lick of sage in the dish, nor parmesan. Also, the filling tasted like it was pumpkin out of a can. Very very disappointed.
My date got the sliders. There were three, one with tomato — basil — and mozzerella. One with mango salsa — goat cheese, and one with cheddar — bacon. He wanted them rare and they were well done, no pink. The combo of the mango salsa and goat cheese was strange to me, but he seemed to like it. We got garlic fries with those, and to me, those were the kicker. They cooked the fries perfectly and then actually pressed fresh REAL garlic over them, so that when you got a chunk in your mouth it almost sizzled. I love garlic, and I loved these.
On top of the mediocre food, the service was just bad. I had an empty drink for way too long sitting at a bar with 5 others on a Tuesday. The server asked if I wanted a refill, when I told her what I wanted she left. Returned 15 minutes later and asked if I’d like another drink. I reminded her what I ordered, and she simply turned around, no apology. When we were ready to go, I asked for the check, and she turned, printed one, and gave it to the gentleman next to us. Then continued chatting with other servers. She asked us ten minutes later if we’d like our check, we said yes again, she printed ours, and carried it over to continue talking to them. When we finally got it, we waited almost 10 minutes to have the card swiped. By the time we left the service had left a sour taste in our mouths.
Maybe a good place for cocktails, but the apps are strange and the service was bad. I would be scared to pay over $ 20 for their entrees when the others were so bad.