Wisconsin-focused eatery opens ahead of downtown influx

A new restaurant that features the brew and fare of the Badger State opened July 16, ahead of a fall influx of patrons into downtown Fond du Lac.

Co-owners Alan Blaine and Jessica Koepke worked for four months to prepare their new venture, 1848, ahead of their opening day on July 16. They held a soft launch of the restaurant a few days prior for family and friends, mainly.

1848, located at 11 E. Second St., bills itself as an eatery eager to celebrate Badger State food and drink. The beer menu hinges on Wisconsin companies Lakefront Brewing Co., Capital Brewing Co., New Glarus and others.

Blaine said 1848 is working toward sourcing all ingredients for dishes like their “Phondy” cheese steak or Friday fish fry from local food producers. Currently, about 90 percent of ingredients come from within the state.

“We have comfort food,” Blaine said. “Cheese curds, burgers, stuff we grew up on in Wisconsin.”

And all this makes sense, Blaine said, because downtown Fond du Lac will soon see a fresh crop of hungry and thirsty folks.

Marian University will open classrooms in the second floor of the AC Nielsen building, 30 Main St., for its School of Nursing and Health Professions this fall. That space will include a laboratory, offices, classrooms and a cafeteria.

Marian’s expansion means about 200 people will migrate to and from downtown daily. That move means more foot traffic in the heart of Fond du Lac. Blaine and Koepke are hoping more folks working downtown will mean a larger restaurant market there.

“The timing is really great,” Koepke said. “The college opening will provide downtown some rejuvenation.”

Though Koepke and Blaine have years of combined experience running bars, they are seeking to build 1848 into a restaurant first. That means 1848 won’t stay open for bar close. They say that will help adjacent taverns along Main Street.

Here at 1848, Blaine dashes from the kitchen to the barroom and back. This is day one, and there are still jobs to be done. The freezer’s likely too small, and he’d like to install heat lamps near the kitchen to keep warm food fresh off the grill.

But the hull of 1848 is much improved from where it was when they bought the joint, Blaine said. He handbuilt booths that are lighted by Pabst Blue Ribbon lamps that have time traveled from the 1970s to present day by way of antique shops and garage sales.

“We are just very passionate about the idea,” Blaine said. “We love doing this.”