Milwaukee's popular South Shore Terrace beer garden will open for the season this week

Mike Wojciechowski warms up with a beer near a fire pit while attending a beer garden kick-off event at South Shore Terrace in 2019.
Mike Wojciechowski warms up with a beer near a fire pit while attending a beer garden kick-off event at South Shore Terrace in 2019.

Screw you, snow. Milwaukee's beer garden season is starting whether you like it or not.

The uber-popular South Shore Terrace beer garden opens for the season on April 3, Milwaukee County Parks announced in a Monday news release.

"I am ecstatic to kick off yet another season at South Shore Terrace," Milwaukee County Parks Executive Director Guy Smith said in the release. "There is no better way to kick off the 2024 beer garden season than to do it at South Shore — one of the most popular beer gardens in the region and a beloved part of the County Parks system. Prost!"

Here's what to know about South Shore Terrace, including its hours, menu and opening day ceremony.

Where is the South Shore Terrace beer garden?

South Shore Park, 2900 South Shore Road, Milwaukee

Beer and other beverage options at South Shore Terrace

"Molson Coors is extremely proud of our long-standing partnership with the County Parks, and we are excited to start another season at South Shore," the news release said. "This is a wonderful place to delight in our parks while enjoying some of the best beers and beverages."

The beer garden has 20 tap beer lines with an array of offerings, including from Miller, Leinenkugel's, Blue Moon Brewing Co., Terrapin Beer Co., Hop Valley Brewing Company and Cervecería Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma S.A. de C.V., according to the beverage menu on the beer garden's website.

Other alcoholic drink options include Simply Spiked in a variety of flavors, hard cider, a michelada, a beer'mosa and "Park's Punch."

Non-alcoholic beverage options include non-alcoholic Blue Moon, Sprecher root beer, gourmet sodas, Pepsi products, Bubly sparkling water and bottled water.

Here's a look at the full beverage menu.

Food offerings at the South Shore Terrace beer garden

South Shore Terrace's food menu includes shareables such as hand-breaded Clock Shadow Creamery cheese curds, sidewinder fries and Milwaukee Pretzel Co. soft pretzels; sandwiches like the Buffalo & Bleu Burger and Milwaukee Melt; bratwurst and Polish sausage; salads; a Friday fish fry; and desserts. There's also a kids menu.

The full kitchen menu can be found here.

Proceeds from both the bar and kitchen support future park projects, according to the release.

What else to expect at the South Shore Terrace beer garden

Take in views of Lake Michigan and the city's skyline, gas fire pits and lakefront seating, according to the news release.

South Shore Terrace beer garden's hours

Shore Shore Terrace is open from 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and holidays.

The beer garden can be reserved for private events on Mondays and Tuesdays.

South Shore Terrace beer garden's opening ceremony on April 3

To celebrate the season opening of South Shore Terrace and the "official start" of beer garden season in Milwaukee, there will be an opening ceremony and first pour just before 4 p.m. April 3, per the release.

Starting just after 4 p.m., attendees will receive free beer and root beer while supplies last, the release said.

South Shore Terrace's 2023 sales

In 2023, South Shore Terrace served more than 100,000 beers, 15,000 non-alcoholic drinks, 25,000 orders of sidewinder fries, 5,500 orders of cheese curds and 5,000 pretzels.

For more info on the South Shore Terrace beer garden

Visit southshoreterrace.com.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee South Shore Terrace beer garden to open for 2024 this week