When visiting Kenosha, Wisconsin, you’ll be spoilt for choice when it comes to choosing a place to eat! There are restaurants and cafes to suit all budgets including some fun and unique options! Here is my guide to just a few of the possibilities! Where would YOU go?
Disclosure: Thank you to Visit Kenosha for hosting my stay (including meals). However, as always opinions are 100% my own.
Downtown Kenosha Restaurants
For Family Fun
Choo Choo Charlie’s $
5414 13th Ave, Kenosha, WI 53140 (next to the train station)
Choo Choo Charlie’s is very much aimed at the younger audience. However, after visiting Vytopna Railway Restaurant in Prague and discovering Kenosha had something similar, I knew I had to visit! Who wouldn’t want their food being delivered by miniature railway!? When sitting at the bar, the train goes by right in front of you. The other ‘line’ comes to a stop in the centre of the restaurant where the servers then deliver the food from that point.
The food is good value for money and offers a typical ‘fast food’ menu. I had chicken strips, fries, a fruit cup and a free refill lemonade (large size only)!
Mike’s Chicken and Donuts $
701 56th St, Kenosha, WI 53140
Chicken AND donuts…what a great combination!!! This place is so much fun! I visited on a Monday evening and I struggled to get a table. They were playing FREE bingo during the whole time I was there with the prize being…you guessed it, donuts! (I may be under 30 but I do have a soft spot for bingo!) The choices as standard on the menu are amazing: grilled or fried, breast or thigh, bun or biscuit, regular fries or waffle fries!
I had the ‘Before and After’ sandwich which was chicken, a fried egg and bacon (although I’m not sure what bacon has to do with chicken but either way bacon is always good!). Their milkshake menu is awesome, I chose a ‘spiked’ milkshake which was Limoncello, lemonade and vanilla ice cream…VERY tasty. To top it off, of course I had a donut…the one with a gummy worm, crushed oreos and chocolate pudding in the middle so it looked like the worm was coming out of mud!

Waterfront Warehouse $-$$
3322 Sheridan Rd, Kenosha, WI 53140
The Waterfront Warehouse is a fairly new restaurant in Kenosha, offering burgers, sandwiches, flatbreads, pastas, salads and a whole range of ‘topped’ fries! The warehouse styled decor is really cool, I loved all the wood, brickwork and exposed lightbulbs!
I had a B.L.T.A…a regular BLT but with the addition of avocado! BLTs are never going to be good enough again now I’ve had one with avocado, AMAZING!

For the Larger Budget
Wine Knot $$
5611 6th Ave, Kenosha, WI 53140
The wine knot is predominantly a wine bar, serving over 50 types of wine by the glass! Ironically, I actually had a cocktail, the Blood Orange Martini is very nice! The food menu is very fancy, serving mainly seafood or steaks. I had a ‘full’ steak and spinach salad with hard boiled egg, crispy onion straws and beets (minus the cheese *shock horror, visiting Wisconsin when I don’t actually eat cheese!!*) which I thoroughly enjoyed! The meal also came with warm bread and iced water. The staff were brilliant, very attentive and always making sure the water was filled!
I loved their outside seating area. The outside of the building is covered in ivy and there’s lots of flowers. A nice place to watch the world go by!
To Enjoy the Coffee Culture
Harborside Common Grounds $
5159 6th Ave, Kenosha, WI 53140

I found the Harborside Common Grounds to be a perfect place for a coffee break half way through my 10,000 Step Self Guided Walking Tour of Kenosha! It’s located right on the harbour and has a lovely outside patio area to watch the boats coming and going! If you visit before 9.45am, they have a great bacon and egg breakfast sandwich where you can choose your bread, cheese (argh!) and any extras that you want.
During my stay, the iced coffees and smoothies seemed to be a very popular choice, it was busy all day! I recommend the Spring Cherry Green Tea, very nice!
The Buzz Cafe $
5621 6th Ave, Kenosha, WI 53140
A cafe by day and a wine bar by night! The menu at The Buzz Cafe contains a lot of organic, locally sourced products and fair-trade coffee. An item on the menu that surprised me the most was the Pineapple Detox smoothie which was AMAZING. But why was it surprising? Because along with pineapple chunks, coconut milk and agave syrup…it actually has charcoal in it! I couldn’t really taste it (I’m not even sure what it tastes like saying that!) but it did give the smoothie a slight grey colour!
Along with my charcoal smoothie, my breakfast consisted of: a matcha green tea (I like having a hot and cold drink at breakfast!), a sausage, egg and syrup toasted bagel and a handful of french macarons that I saved for later! Veryyyy tasty!
For the Sweet Tooth
Myrtle Mae’s Sugar Emporium $
5819 6th Ave, Kenosha, WI 53140

Myrtle Mae’s Sugar Emporium is the sister shop of Elsie Mae’s Canning (which is right next door!). I first discovered Elsie Mae’s back in April when I was given a mini cookie dough pie during my first visit! Their pies are all homemade and the fruits inside them are sourced locally and from Farmers Markets! The Sugar Emporium will eventually serve as the concession stand from the Orpheum Theater! They sell sweets, ice cream, homemade chocolates and of course their pies!
I pigged out and went for their ‘Pie Shake’! You pick a flavour of pie (I went for cherry…with the cherries coming from a farm in Michigan!) and then a flavour of ice cream and then they are blended together in yummy goodness! It’s then served with a garnish of pie, a big thick straw and a spoon…for any extra large pie chunks!
(The blending of the pie!!)

We visited Kenosha about 5 years ago and had a really good time. There was no shortage of good meals but I’m excited to see so many new places! (Well, new to me.) I really want to check out Mike’s Chicken & Donuts!
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Mike’s Chicken & Donuts is awesome! Very popular!
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Choo Choo Charlie’s is so much fun! Very unique restaurant, and fun for anyone!
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I agree! It brings a whole new level of excitement to food being brought out!!
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I’m a Kenosha resident and glad you enjoyed your stay! I frequent these places often! Great write up!
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Thanks Megan! Yes, there are so many great places to eat! Do you have a favourite?
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Oh man. There’s so many good ones. My favs:
Mexican: Tacos El Norte
Breakfast: Coffee Pot
Wine: Wine Knot
Friendly neighborhood bar: Bull n Bear
Pizza: Luigi’s
Coffee: Common Grounds or The Buzz (I’ll go to Common Grounds more in the summer and The Buzz more when it’s colder. The box also had some pretty good paninis)
Burgers: Captain Mike’s
Johnny’Z Pour House is a bar with some of the best chicken and waffles I’ve ever had.
P.S. I love food. ❤️
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Hahah nothing wrong with loving food! Sounds like I need to get back and try some more!
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