Milwaukee Iconic German Restaurant Karl Ratzsch Closes Suddenly After 113 Years

MILWAUKEE, WI — After 113 years of business, Milwaukee's iconic Karl Ratzsch restaurant has closed - less than a year after it was famously re-opened.

According to a report in the Journal Sentinel this Sunday, the restaurant has "served its last Schnitzel and raised its last beer."

"It was my greatest hope that I could take this restaurant into the future and take it to a new generation, without it being lost," Hauck said in a news release reported in the Journal Sentinel. "Unfortunately due to many factors, I am no longer able to sustain keeping Karl Ratzsch open.”

Karl Ratzsch was one of Milwaukee's oldest restaurants, serving up an atmosphere and menu that pulled exclusively from the area's rich Germanic heritage.

According to a Journal Sentinel review published just this year, "Karl Ratzsch just might make the best schnitzel around — the crunch of the super-crisp breadcrumb coating is incredibly satisfying. The restaurant makes both wiener schnitzel — veal ($21) — and schnitzel nach wiener art ($22), signifying pork. (Pork schnitzel is served a la Holstein, with sunny-side-up eggs, capers and anchovies.)"

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