In case you missed it, we’re currently on Day 4 of Milwaukee publications writing about the city’s appearance in Esquire‘s “5 Unexpectedly Awesome Domestic Cities to Fuel Your Wanderlust” list. The list—brought to you by the brand-new United Quest card from Chase!—was published May 5. The Milwaukee Business Journal wrote about it on May 7. TMJ 4 wrote about it on May 7. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote about it on May 9. OnMilwaukee wrote about it today. So did Milwaukee Magazine. How it slipped past our Great Job Milwaukee Bot is anyone’s guess. Maybe it’s still recovering from the great “Vogue thinks Milwaukee is ‘cool and underrated'” fire of 2018.



Anyway, the blurb weighs in at 248 words and 11 sentences. Here are those 11 sentences, ranked:

11. “Alice Cooper said it’s pronounced mill-e-wah-que, which is Algonquin for ‘the good land.'”

10. “What he failed to explain is what exactly makes Milwaukee so good.”

9. “The bartenders have more than 450 drinks in their arsenal but are happy to tailor a tipple to your exacting taste.”

8. “Its collection encompasses more than 31,000 works, with an emphasis on German Expressionism and Haitian folk art.”

7. “Don’t miss the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, dedicated to showcasing 6,500-plus jumbo-headed pop stars, athletes, and politicians.”

6. “Let’s start with shopping: minimalist home decor at Commonplace; cool clothing brands like Naked & Famous and Outerknown at Milworks; and lines out the door on drop days at sneakerhead emporium Clicks Kicks, owned by Jam Master Jay.”

5. “Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge, founded in 1938, is the oldest cocktail bar in MKE, and one of the swankiest.”

4. “Strange Town works the vegan beat so well, you’ll be tempted to renounce steak forever, and the varied selection of natural wines is tops too.”

3. “To stay, reserve a room at Saint Kate, the city’s first immersive arts hotel, with several galleries, a black box theater, and contemporary works by Damian Hirst and Do Ho Suh on display.”

2. “For an even deeper dive into the art world, carve out a few hours to wander the Milwaukee Art Museum.”

1. “Then there’s the food and drink: The small plates menu at Odd Duck is like a round-the-world airline ticket, tempting guests with its lamb shawarma, koji-grilled beets, and Sichuan egg noodles.”

And yes, our #1 pick was totally influenced by our soft-reopening visit to Odd Duck this past weekend and being blown away by just how incredible that place is. (It officially reopens for dine-in service May 11!) And yes, we wholeheartedly love Milwaukee and everything mentioned in the Esquire piece and any good press is good press, so calm down. And yes, here’s a link to The Daily Beast‘s “Why Is Everyone Surprised by How Cool Milwaukee Is?” article from April, which everyone was freaking out about, too.

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Matt Wild weighs between 140 and 145 pounds. He lives on Milwaukee's east side.