Paul’s Spirit
It was my first Saturday at the Pfister as the Narrator and I was nervous. When the parking lot was full, I almost drove away. Telling myself that I could come back another day. But instead, I found my way inside to the lobby bar where I first saw her— older, with the same white […]
Battle of the Happy Hours: Mason Street Grill
This week, I’ve been exploring Happy Hours at The Marcus Corporation’s three distinct and lovely hotels in Milwaukee: The Hilton Milwaukee City Center, The Intercontinental and The Pfister. See what I thought of CLEAR Bar in The Intercontinental here, Monarch Lounge in The Hilton here, and Blu in The Pfister here. Where: Mason Street Grill, […]
HUMANS OF THE PFISTER | SEPTEMBER 2016 | Back-to-School edition | “Knowing What to Say, When, and How”
No one cares anymore about the Oxford comma–or for correct language in general. I don’t like the loss of that. I want to hold on to some things that work. Because language matters–it’s communication. You want to be careful what you say and how you say it. Precision matters, too. Communicating directly and precisely–it’s a […]
HUMANS OF THE PFISTER | SEPTEMBER 2016 | Back-to-School edition | “Is That All There Is?”
In between his sets at the Mason Street Grill this Monday–where he plays every Monday from 5:30-9pm–Chicago jazz pianist Joel Burt and I talked a little about his musical journey and, using a bit of interpretive poetic license, about the most important question any learner can ask: “Is that all there is?” Getting here has […]
Jazz Virgin
I admit it. I’m a jazz virgin. But The Pfister Hotel is going to initiate me. At the Mason Street Grill on Wednesday evening, after listening to part of a set by the Jamie Breiwick/Mark Davis Duo, I snuck up to a table where a woman was sitting alone. Her companion had just temporarily vacated his […]
An Introduction: Prequel No. 1
Greetings, Milwaukee! While Narrator Emeritus Jonathan West’s photograph and bio still linger on the sidebar–it’s no wonder, since he has become such a presence and voice at the Pfister over the past year–I offer you two “prequels” to my first official post as Pfister Hotel Narrator, in which I will formally introduce myself and give […]