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Milwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of GraniteHistoryMilwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of GraniteThe building, now over a century old, is a city landmark. By John GurdaKatie Leinenkugel is Ready for Her New Role with the Family BusinessBrew CityKatie Leinenkugel is Ready for Her New Role with the Family BusinessThe 36-year-old is the latest in a long line of family members to take the helm at the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. By Dan MurphyThe New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean CuisineDining & DrinkThe New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean CuisineBut is its high style matched by culinary substance? By Ann Christenson

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[H3] Milwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of Granite
[H3] Milwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of Granite
By John GurdaThe building, now over a century old, is a city landmark.
[IMG: A woman in a black jacket sits outdoors holding a glass of beer, framed by large vintage-style Leinenkugel’s beer can graphics featuring labels for Leinenkugel’s Light and Chippewa Pride Light Premium Beer.]
[H3] Katie Leinenkugel is Ready for Her New Role with the Family Business
[H3] Katie Leinenkugel is Ready for Her New Role with the Family Business
By Dan MurphyThe 36-year-old is the latest in a long line of family members to take the helm at the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co.
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
By Ann ChristensonBut is its high style matched by culinary substance?
[H3] How I Fell in Love With Y2K Milwaukee
[H3] How I Fell in Love With Y2K Milwaukee
By Amanda UhleMy bold decision at 21 to move to Milwaukee taught me who I wanted to be.
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[IMG: People gather at picnic tables in an outdoor beer garden at dusk, with string lights overhead, a pavilion and food trucks in the background, and families and groups socializing on the lawn.]
A Guide to Milwaukee-Area Beer Gardens for the Summer of 2026 by Dan Murphy
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Here Are All the Candidates Running for Wisconsin Governor in 2026 by Larry Sandler
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A Guide to Milwaukee-Area Beer Gardens for the Summer of 2026 by Dan Murphy A New Local Pizza, a Love Letter to Chilaquiles and More Dining Tidbits by Ann Christenson Here Are All the Candidates Running for Wisconsin Governor in 2026 by Larry Sandler 9 of Wisconsin’s ‘World’s Largest’ Attractions by Tea Krulos
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
By Ann Christenson
[H3] Katie Leinenkugel is Ready for Her New Role with the Family Business
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
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[H3] A New Local Pizza, a Love Letter to Chilaquiles and More Dining Tidbits
[H3] A New Local Pizza, a Love Letter to Chilaquiles and More Dining Tidbits
By Ann ChristensonPlus, new restaurants on Mitchell Street, a steakhouse closing, an Italian-themed food truck at Zócalo and other bite-sized news.

[H3] Summer Guide
[H3] Your Guide to Free Summer Concerts Around Milwaukee
[H3] Your Guide to Free Summer Concerts Around Milwaukee
By Wyatt R Voelker
[IMG: People gather at picnic tables in an outdoor beer garden at dusk, with string lights overhead, a pavilion and food trucks in the background, and families and groups socializing on the lawn.]
[H3] A Guide to Milwaukee-Area Beer Gardens for the Summer of 2026
[H3] A Guide to Milwaukee-Area Beer Gardens for the Summer of 2026
By Dan Murphy
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[H3] Your Guide to Milwaukee Farmers Markets
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[H3] 16 Things to Do in Milwaukee This Weekend: May 28-31
[H3] 16 Things to Do in Milwaukee This Weekend: May 28-31
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[H3] Milwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of Granite
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[H3] From the Magazine
[H3] Milwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of Granite
[H3] Milwaukee’s Federal Building Is a Feat of Granite
By John Gurda
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
[H3] The New Āya Offers a High-End Take on Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine
By Ann Christenson
[H3] How I Fell in Love With Y2K Milwaukee
[H3] How I Fell in Love With Y2K Milwaukee
By Amanda Uhle
[H3] Your Guide to Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point Neighborhood
[H3] Your Guide to Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point Neighborhood
By Brianna Schubert
[H3] 3 New Things Coming to Milwaukee This May
[H3] 3 New Things Coming to Milwaukee This May
By Evan Musil
[H3] Q&A: Susie Starlet Runs a Showcase for Emerging Local Drag Queens
[H3] Your Guide to Free Summer Concerts Around Milwaukee
[H3] Your Guide to the Ultimate Lake Michigan Road Trip
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[H3] Your Guide to Free Summer Concerts Around Milwaukee
[H3] Your Guide to Free Summer Concerts Around Milwaukee
By Wyatt R VoelkerMake the most of the summer at these free concert series.

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The age of showpiece restaurants anchoring sleek Downtown high-rises is fully upon us. Āya – which since February has been drawing well-heeled audiences to the Ascent MKE building for its lofty take on Middle Eastern cuisine – came on the heels of the Third Ward’s gallant French bistro Cassis in another skyscraper, 333 Water. The two biggest openings so far this year, these new arrivals embody a Milwaukee campaign-ready for the national stage.
RELATED READS: A NEW MEDITERRANEAN RESTAURANT IS OPENING IN MILWAUKEE THIS MONTH
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Through its 8-foot front door, Āya makes a dramatic entrance. The 120-seat, L-shaped room is warm, elegant and glitzy, from its polished concrete floors and glowing glass chandeliers down to its whole char-grilled branzino and Ossetra caviar service.
When Fatima and Hanish Kumar opened Saffron restaurant in the Third Ward, they sought to take Indian dining to an elevated, unexpected and creative place. With their second effort, Āya, they aimed even higher. The owners have said they wanted to transport diners to the shores of the Mediterranean. Their vision is sophisticated and dramatic. Nothing is pedestrian – not the veined Italian porcelain panels behind the bar, not the serving dishes and flatware, not the exuberant plating.
Dining in the first few weeks of a restaurant’s life requires some concessions. The sizable, sharply dressed front-of-house staff did not seem experienced, but they scored points for trying. Both of my dinners were flawed in the service flow (the pace was too fast, glitchy) – very understandable in the first weeks.
I liked some of the dishes, but the prices of almost everything, even by today’s standards, seemed high. I didn’t order the $180 Australian Wagyu strip steak because there’s no way I could justify spending that on any dish. But the cost of that actually didn’t bother me as much as the prices for simple, classic Middle Eastern fare – the skewers ($18-$32), hummus ($16-$23), falafel ($16) and other mezze – whose only apparent elevated attribute was to look attractive on the plate.
The first two thirds of the menu include salads and those mezze and skewers, which are all shareable size, the servers told me. The most interesting was the fattoush smash ($18), which arrived as a crisp pillow puff. The server tapped it sharply with a spoon and it shattered open, revealing the salad inside the pita shell.
Photo by Kevin J. Miyazaki
Clever, and the sumac dressing is good, but there was so little of the best parts of this salad – the cucumber, romaine, tomatoes and candied pecans – and too many kalamata olives. I liked the tender harissa-seasoned chicken skewer ($21) – it reminded me of a spicier tandoori chicken – but not the single minced lamb shish kebab ($23) and its mushy, not fully cooked center. The falafel with pickled vegetables and tahini ($16) tasted homemade, and it had a spicy bite that built up over time. (The carafe of water on the table was very necessary.)
Served over a layer of bright-red shatta sauce (made from a fermented Palestinian chile paste), the grilled oyster mushrooms ($18) carried both the heat of that sauce and the assertive smokiness of the char-grill. I’m happy I’d ordered both plain pita – which is airy, puffy and chewy ($5) – and the Manakeesh za’atar pita ($6), because I needed something to soften the intensity of that sauce, of which there was an amount disproportionate to the six mushrooms on the skewer.
Photo by Kevin J. Miyazaki
Hummus – the now omnipresent American chickpea dip – is slightly dressed up at Āya. The dajaj hummus ($18), with sumac-marinated roasted chicken, tasted good, but I expected more nuance and sophistication.
In the end, the two best dishes were entrées, though it was really only one that I’d order again, chicken kabsa tagine ($36). This slow-cooked meat and vegetable dish is a spectacular Moroccan specialty cooked in a traditional clay pot with a conical lid. The flavors are characteristically warm cinnamon-cumin with bright preserved lemon and sweet, chewy dried fruit. The Āya version intrigued me because of its crossover with biryani.
Toasted nuts and golden raisins popped through the rice – glossy grains steamed and infused with spice – the seasoned half-chicken laid on top. The meat fell off the bone in the best way and contributed greatly to this casserole of multiple delectable influences. I’m not sure how to talk about the branzino ($48) without it paling by comparison.
Photo by Kevin J. Miyazaki
Though served as a whole fish with the head, the filet had been deboned and skinned so it was just the milky-white flesh, stained red from the sumac. It was delicious – herby and lemony, too – but I wished for a vegetable or starch to accompany it.
I haven’t sampled the desserts yet but saw elegant slices of pistachio tiramisu and Biscoff cheesecake ($14-$16) making their way to other diners’ tables.
I’m giving Aya time to settle in before venturing back. From a visual standpoint, this stunning restaurant has accomplished what it set out to achieve. The cuisine attempts to tell a refined story, too. It’s layered and at times sophisticated. I hope at some point to say it’s also great. 
Āya 700 E. Kilbourn Ave., 414-231-9995 Hours: D Sun-Thurs 5-9:30 p.m.; Fri-Sat 5-10 p.m. (lunch, cocktail hour pending at press time) Prices: Raw bar $22-$32; caviar, seafood tower $130-$150; salads, skewers, mezze $16-$32; entrées $24-$52; steaks $60-$200Service: Attentive, courteous Reservations: Recommended
[H4] This story is part of Milwaukee Magazine’s May 2026 issue.
[H4] Find it on newsstands or buy a copy at milwaukeemag.com/shop.
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Ann Christenson
Ann Christenson has covered dining for Milwaukee Magazine since 1997. She was raised on a diet of casseroles that started with a pound of ground beef and a can of Campbell's soup. Feel free to share any casserole recipes with her.

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Even in an age when splendor was expected in America’s public architecture, Milwaukee’s Federal Building stood out. The Wisconsin Avenue landmark is an artfully composed ensemble of granite arches, turrets and gables massed around a tower worthy of a medieval castle. The Romanesque edifice fills an entire city block, but its bulk is relieved by the delicacy of its decoration. The stone arches crowning the main entrance are as intricately carved as the oak woodwork that graces the courtrooms inside.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!

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For all its grandeur, the Federal Building had a utilitarian beginning. Milwaukee’s population swelled by nearly 80% in the 1880s, taxing public services on all levels. Milwaukee built a new city hall in 1895 and lobbied hard for a facility that would centralize all federal functions. Congress made its first appropriation in 1889, construction began three years later, and the $1.4 million Federal Building was dedicated in 1899.
Most Milwaukeeans knew it as the “new post office.” All of the city’s mail was sorted on the floor of the soaring central atrium, with illumination provided by a glass skylight in those pre-electric days. The upper floors were a honeycomb of courtrooms and offices whose occupants regulated everything from locomotives to lighthouses to oleomargarine.
A plainer addition opened to the south in 1932, not long before this picture was taken. The post office remained until 1968, when the operation moved to St. Paul Avenue. Today the only tenants are imposing federal courtrooms and less imposing federal offices.
As the scene of high-profile trials and high-volume protests, the Federal Building is regularly in the news, but it’s surprisingly quiet on a typical weekday. This overlooked landmark still impresses, more than 125 years after its construction. 
Photo courtesy of Milwaukee County Historical Society
Take a closer look:
The 1932 addition matched the original building in scale but not in splendor.
Richly patterned stone, complex roof lines and picturesque arches were hallmarks of the Richardsonian Romanesque style.
Plans for a four-faced clock in the tower were shelved for budgetary reasons.
Electric streetcars started clattering Downtown in 1890.
Thanks to Judge J.P. Stadtmueller for a tour of his professional home.
[H4] This story is part of Milwaukee Magazine’s May 2026 issue.
[H4] Find it on newsstands or buy a copy at milwaukeemag.com/shop.
[H4] Be the first to get every new issue. Subscribe.

John Gurda

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