Welcome to Food/Drink Week at Milwaukee Record, brought to you by Third Space Brewing. From May 12 through May 19, belly up and enjoy adventurous, odd, and elaborate coverage of all things edible and drinkable in Milwaukee and beyond.
In October 2014, reality-ish show Bar Rescue landed in Milwaukee and transformed East Side dive bar (and occasional music venue) Y-Not III into a ’70s-themed joint called Nick’s House. In May 2015, Nick’s House closed. And in July 2016, the 136-year-old building that had housed Y-Not III / Nick’s House (and other classic Milwaukee places like Frenchy’s) was demolished.
Bar Rescue successfully “rescued” another Milwaukee bar in 2014, and transformed two more in 2024. But Y-Not III / Nick’s House remains the show’s most infamous Milwaukee hatchet job. In less than two years, a beloved (if struggling) neighborhood watering hole went from “re-branded and re-imagined” to “knocked down and pulverized.”
Here was the site, 1854 E. Kenilworth Pl., in 2014:
Here it was in 2016:
And here it is today:
Yes, for the past nine years, the site of the former Y-Not III / Nick’s House has been an empty lot. We’re pretty sure it was grass at some point, but now it’s just rocks. Nice rocks, but rocks. And a big fence. And all the Beans & Barley employees taking their smoke breaks just to the left, next to the dumpsters.
Back in 2016, ahead of the demolition, the building was sold to real estate investment firm Spectrum Holdings. (Spectrum also owns the building to the east, which houses the James May Gallery, Yo Factory, and a funky little art/jewelry shop. A private alley and a carriage house complete the surrounding area.) There was talk of turning the site into a sculpture garden, but nothing ever came of it. So, fenced-in empty lot covered in nice rocks it is.
Busybody urbanists may look at this site and cry foul. This is a prime “infill” opportunity, they might say, a chunk of juicy East Side real estate that could be occupied by a market-rate apartment complex with a name like “Aura” or something. Thanks, Bar Rescue, for making this possible!
Us? We like to think the site is a nice breather from the constant “fill” of urban life. Does every space need to be occupied by something? Can’t there just be nothing every now and then? Sure, this particular example would be a lot nicer if it was open green space, but at least it’s neat and tidy. Thanks, Bar Rescue, for making this possible!
The empty lot where Y-Not III / Nick’s House used to be, the Milwaukee Record Re…
Oh hell, who are we kidding? We miss Y-Not III. What a glorious dump! What a glorious second-floor venue! We wish it was still around. We wish everything that isn’t around anymore was still around. Maybe we should visit Y-Not II more often. That’s still around. We should visit the places that are still around so they stay still around. Yes, we should do that. Let’s do that. Right now. Always.
The empty lot where Y-Not III / Nick’s House used to be, the Milwaukee Record Review: 6/10 fenced-in empty lots covered in nice rocks
Want more Milwaukee Record? Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter and/or support us on Patreon.
RELATED ARTICLES
• Food/Drink Roundup: Yep, ‘Bar Rescue’ is back in Milwaukee
• Looks like ‘Bar Rescue’ is sniffing around Milwaukee again
• R.I.P. Campbell’s Irish Pub, the last of Milwaukee’s ‘Bar Rescue’ bars
• Bar Rescue’s own Campbell’s Irish Pub is for sale
• Nick’s House / Y-Not III has been demolished
• Nick’s House is having a going-out-of-business “yard sale”
• Bar Rescue seemed to actually work for Campbell’s Irish Pub
• Bar Rescue can’t rescue Nick’s House from Bar Rescue
• Tracklist: 10 final Bar Rescue takeaways
• Tracklist: 12 Bar Rescue takeaways
• Watch two ridiculous clips from Bar Rescue’s Y-Not III/Nick’s House episode
• Bar Rescue’s Y-Not III/Nick’s House episode will air next week
• Bar Rescue opens latest Milwaukee project, Campbell’s Irish Pub
• Bar Rescue is rescuing another bar, Packy’s Pub
• Bar Rescue turned Y-Not III into a ’70s-themed bar called Nick’s House