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Poke The Bear

3.3 (83 reviews)
Open • 11:00 am - 11:00 pm

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POKE THE BEAR ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Trendy
Upscale
Outdoor seating

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Tv
Julian T.

Stopped here after the Green Bay packers shareholders meeting . It is the bar in My hotel . That's another yelp . But fancy . Got a beer and wings . Great service and ambiance . Good tgif .

Venison and Black Bean Chili
Lauren T.

Restaurant at the Northland hotel with a ton of seating and a huge bar! The staff were very friendly and the service was quick. The pricing was very average for the food menu and the wine/beer/alcohol list. The food was good but nothing to write home about. I ordered the chicken club and there was barely any chicken on it. The Venison chili, however, was very good. Probably wouldn't go again but not a bad spot if you're staying at the hotel.

Short Rib
Lynne R.

We ate the Short Rib & the Flank Steak both were delicious. Service was fast & ambiance was great.

Brandy Old Fashion Sweet drinks!

Yes! If you stay at the hotel, this place does not disappoint! Great food, servers, and bartenders!

Devil-Ish Eggs
Chelsea O.

Good spot attached to the beautiful Hotel Northland. Stopped in for a quick bite. The deviled eggs were good but there was a strange spice(?). We couldn't figure it out. Cheese curds we're salty and yummy.

$12 kids cheeseburger and apples. Check out the bun to burger ratio.
Molly M.

I haven't been here since shortly after they opened. I remember it having a fresh menu and attentive staff. Well, not so much any more. Stopped by for lunch and waited at the hostess stand for about 4 minutes before someone said hello and they'd be over. While standing there I noticed the chalk written beer menu behind the bar was kept up-to-date by simply crossing off the options that were out of stock. To me this sort of thing seems lazy and should have tipped me off. We received our drinks shortly after ordering them (pro). The menu was pretty boring... Caesar salad, cheese curds, steak with fries and these flat breads that did not even look enticing on the tablet menu. After ordering, we waited and waited and waited for our meals. Eventually the waiter delivered my clam chowder which was good as it was not thick and goopy but had good chunks of potato and carrots. While there may or may not have been clams in the chowder it was served with some great homemade style crackers. Once the soup dishes were placed on the table, despite being empty, they never left. Again we had to wait and wait for the rest of our meals. I had ordered the Caesar salad with chicken - the chicken was cooked well and was a good size but there wasn't much of a salad and 3 silly cherry tomatoes. My companions each ordered cheeseburgers that were dry, slider sized (please note the bun to burger ratio) definitely not warm, and served with cold fries. We saw the waiter one last time but only after I flagged him down to order another watery drink. Thankfully there was a waitress around (who, unfortunately said a couple times that they were new) but at least she brought ketchup & our check after we had waited and waited for those. Like the soup dishes, our empty glasses were never cleared. Trust me, customers do not enjoy their experience if they are made to sit amongst dirty dishes! I should have read the reviews could have saved us all some time and money.

a view of a bar from the doorway
Steven T.

I stopped here for a drink because it's in the Hotel Northland just for the experience because I was staying at the hotel. The place is a sports bar that served food and is nice looking for a sports bar, a fancy sports bar. They have nice booths, tables and bar with plenty of TVs. About 16 taps were at the padded bar with nice hi chairs. The woman bartender had a hard time making my Gin Rickey because she walked away a couple times while making it, I think they had no lime juice because she eventually came back with a fresh lime and hand squeezed it into my cocktail. The woman bartender didn't go out of her way to talk to anyone even though the place was mostly empty, I like a bartender who goes around talking to people.

Pastrami poutine. Is THIS a cheese curd?
Tucan S.

We checked into hotel where this place is on the ground floor. I called, 3X, got recording that phone had tech difficulties. No big, I go down to order takeout to bring up to room. Very nice bartender answers my menu questions, and I ask about a beer while I wait. He lets me sample what he thinks is a good local IPA-ish beer, I didnt, he gave me sample of a different one and it was great. Nice guy, pleasant bar experience. I ordered "pastrami poutine" (french fries with fried cheese curds and brown gravy...a northern classic I wanted to try up here) and wife had Caesar salad with grilled chicken breast. We were both famished. She liked her salad, even tho it was on dry side, and I liked my poutine. BUT....my dish looked nothing like what is pictured on their website menu: there may have been 2 tablespoons of very finely chopped pastrami, the "fried cheese curds" were nothing more than melted chunks of regular cheese, not breaded, not deep-fried, just plain old cheddar that had been microwaved to partial melting, and there were no sliced green onions on top. It really wasnt a bad meal for a hotel bar but I hate being deceived by descriptions and pictures.

Chopped salad, dressing on the side. It was delish!

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5 months ago

Really good burger and Brussels sprouts here. Surprisingly competent food for a hotel restaurant !

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Jackie A.

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18 days ago

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2 years ago

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1 year ago

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2 years ago

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4 months ago

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3 months ago

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1 year ago

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10 months ago

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2 years ago

It's the lore. The quintessential hotel bar. The class. The dark wood. The lockers. The cheese curds. Plus, they poke the Chicago Bears!

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11 months ago

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1 year ago

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8 months ago

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9 months ago

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2 years ago

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4 years ago

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1 year ago

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4 years ago

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3 years ago

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1 year ago

Food was good. Drinks were stronger than preferred. Service was a tad slow. Great atmosphere for a dinner out with friends

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5 years ago

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2 years ago

Great staff and service. Good collection of bourbons and scotches with decent food selection.

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4 years ago

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7 years ago

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Ask the Community - Poke The Bear

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Cheesesteak Rebellion

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Friends stop in and said it was fun, so I decided to give it a try when I was in town. Love the…read morelocal vibe, definitely mom and pop, not a corporate chain! Ordered the "surf n turf" which the pepper steak with Cajun shrimp added. It seemed "rebellious" to top a cheesesteak w shrimp. The rebellion worked!! It was great. I actually took half home and it was even better after the ride home. We ordered tots to share. Maybe I wasn't paying attention, because when the food arrived I thought the tots looked weird. Then my son showed me that they are "Tetris Tots" (see pic). So fun!!!! Anyway... get out and support local business serving delicious fun at a reasonable price!!! Totally recommend.

Dont let the outside fool you. At first glance, this place looks a little questionable because it's…read moretucked into more of an industrial area, but once you walk inside, the vibe completely changes. The inside almost feels like a house that was renovated into a restaurant in the coolest way possible with a very open layout, stripped-down feel, and a super unique kitchen setup literally right behind the bar. If you're a Star Wars fan, this place is a must. The theme throughout the restaurant was awesome and definitely added to the experience for us since we're huge Star Wars people. The staff overall was really friendly and welcoming too. Special shoutout to the hostess Lea super friendly... wink wink if you know, you know. Our server was chipper and sweet the whole time. She did accidentally get our drinks wrong and forgot the cheese on my burger, but honestly it wasn't a huge deal because she was so nice about everything. The burger itself was decent but a little dry. I did appreciate the extra pickles though because that's exactly how I like it. Now let's talk about the real reason to go here- drumroll... Cheese Whiz cheesesteak. Absolutely incredible. Honestly one of the best cheesesteaks I've had in a long time and 100% worth the drive alone. The cheese curds were also really good and definitely worth ordering for the table. And when I mean drive I mean drive, just a few hours south from Chicago aka Bear land, GO BEARS Overall, not every single item blew us away, but the atmosphere, Star Wars theme, friendly staff, and THAT cheesesteak made this place memorable. We'd absolutely come back just for the Cheese Whiz sandwich.

Photos
Interior
Interior
The Jim (ribeye meat, ribeye patty, brat patty, mushrooms, onions and pepper-jack)
The Jim (ribeye meat, ribeye patty, brat patty, mushrooms, onions and pepper-jack)
Outside

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Outside
Hinterland Brewery

Hinterland Brewery

3.8
(703 reviews)
2.7 mi
•$$

We have been here several times and always have a great time. The beer is exceptional and the…read moreflights are fun to figure out what you like. The last time we went at 2pm on a Thursday during a heat wave in the summer. It was not busy. we had been out running errands and stopped in for a quick beer and appetizer. Wait staff is always so nice and it was exactly what we needed. They have something for everyone and the food always is fresh and doesn't seem frozen or processed. Definitely one of our go to spots on the west side

Attended a corporate function in the private party room (towards back of restaurant). Hinterland is…read morethe type of place where you can be super casual but also enjoy a more elevated dining experience. The main dining room can get very loud on busy nights so I appreciated the more closed off space for a large dinner event. The caveat being we received spotty service - for example, water pitchers were set in the corner and you had to get up to pour your own water. At minimum, it would've been better to just leave pitchers on the table directly for faster access. Food was hit or miss. While we loved the appetizers, half of our table found their main entrees to be MEH. For example, my halibut arrived warm but the curry was room temperature. My colleague said her burger was one of the worst she's had. My other colleague said his steak was mediocre. People who ordered pizza loved it. An unfortunate mixed bag given the lively environment and nice ambiance. I'd come back again to give it another try because the menu rotates enough where I'm sure I'll land on some better food options next time.

Photos
Endless house beers on tap.
Endless house beers on tap.
Beer Battered Cheese Curds
Beer Battered Cheese Curds
Proper old fashioned

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Proper old fashioned

Poke The Bear - newamerican - Updated July 2026

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