Review: The Pfister Hotel 📍Milwaukee, WI
The historic Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee traces its history to 1893 and captures the aura of a bygone era.
When it was built more than a century ago, the Pfister Hotel — which cost $1 million to build at the time —was one of the most lavish accommodations in the country. It was among the first hotels in the U.S. to feature fireproofing, electricity, even individual in-room thermostats. It was designed to be a “Grand Hotel of the West,” and 125 years later it hasn’t lost its grandeur.
Nowadays, the Pfister is a pet-friendly luxury hotel with everything a business or leisure traveler could need, including room service. It’s also an art gallery and an excellent home base for exploring Milwaukee, which may be the most underrated city in the U.S.
Location
The Pfister Hotel is located in the heart of downtown Milwaukee within walking distance of several restaurants, shops, and popular museums. The Milwaukee Art Museum, Discovery World and Betty Brinn Children’s Museum are within walking distance but you may want to head around the corner and hop on the light rail if you’re headed to the Harley-Davidson Museum.
If you travel for the food or art, you’ll appreciate being near the Milwaukee Public Market, a place where you can literally eat your way around the world, and a variety of public sculptures. This hotel is also near the Historic Third Ward, an artsy neighborhood of galleries, studios, and performance venues.
Address: 424 E Wisconsin Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53202
Phone: (414) 273-8222
Website: https://www.thepfisterhotel.com/
Vibe
Walk into this gorgeous hotel’s Romanesque revival lobby and you would be forgiven for thinking you’ve entered a portal to Europe. This elegant hotel blends classy with comfortable and adds a dash of unbridled creativity.
The Pfister Hotel has an extensive collection of Victorian art with more than 80 pieces on its walls. It also works to support local artists through an artist-in-residence program it launched in 2009. Through the residency, artists are able to work from a studio on the hotel’s first floor while giving guests a peek into their creative processes. The hotel art collection includes several pieces from former artists-in-residence.
Rooms
The Pfister Hotel’s rooms are spacious, comfortable and offer great views of downtown Milwaukee and Lake Michigan. If you’re traveling with a dog, there’s plenty of room to set up a crate and for you and your best friend to move around comfortably.
Standard rooms come with a plush comfortable chair near a large bay window, a fluffy bed you’ll want to take home with you, and a spacious desk. There’s also extra seating that doubles as a bench unpacking luggage.
Food & Drink
With three restaurants inside the building and room service, you’re guaranteed not to go hungry here. Breakfast and lunch are served at the casual Cafe Pfister every day. Or take lunch up a notch at the Lobby Lounge. For dinner, head to Mason Street Grill and finish the night with a cocktail at Blu, the hotel’s 23rd-floor martini bar.
Mason Street Grill is a popular local restaurant that just happens to be located inside the historic Pfister Hotel. This upscale restaurant is best known for its steaks, though it also has an extensive menu of seafood, which includes grilled octopus, scallops, Canadian Lobster Tails and the house special — fried clams. Vegetarian options are limited, but there is a very nice barley risotto with squash, zucchini, eggplant and Portobello mushroom on the menu.
Room service is available from 6 a.m. to midnight, and menu prices are surprisingly reasonable. Vegetarian options are limited. We recommend the cheese curds if you’re looking for a late-night snack.
Amenities
The Pfister is a four-diamond, full-service hotel that takes meeting its guests’ every need seriously. The Italian word salve is painted into its frescoes, and its a commitment to service the hotel permeates everything it does.
There’s a bellman to help with your luggage, a concierge to help you find your way around town, even an artist-in-residence should you be looking for a little inspiration. There’s also a gym, spa, club lounge and business center.
This hotel is also pet-friendly. It welcomes dogs in rooms and in common areas and greets best friends with comfy Serta beds and custom gift bags. Bucky Klyde loved his treats and toys and didn’t want to get out of this bed.
The hotel’s club lounge, which requires a $50 nightly upgrade fee, is a work-from hotel dream come true. It offers excellent views of Milwaukee from the hotel’s 23rd floor and serves a breakfast buffet as well as snacks throughout the day.
The Pfister Hotel’s spa is known for its private suites and century-old Turkish baths. If you’re looking to get away from it all without leaving downtown Milwaukee, this is the place for you.
Bottom Line
If you’re looking for a comfortable upscale place to stay with your dog in Milwaukee, it doesn’t get better than The Pfister Hotel. This hotel blends old-world charm, modern-day creature comforts and a commitment to white-glove service with an excellent location in one of the most underrated cities in the U.S. Come for the museums and beer, stay for the hotel art gallery and ask for a late checkout.
Neither you nor your dog is going to want to get out of bed here.
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Creative Director Julian Cordero and Chief Dog Influencer and Brand Ambassador Bucky Klyde take a break in The Pfister Hotel lobby lounge.
