The Five O’Clock Club, Pewaukee, Wisconsin

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Old Fashioneds

Relish Tray: no, or at least not for fish fry
Ice Cream Drinks: maybe not, but great pie
Price Range: Friday fish fry ranges from about $9 to about $22
Ambiance: updated lakeside supper club with a lot of history

One recent Friday night, Owen and I met our friends Vic and Edna at the Five O’Clock Club in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. We had been talking about meeting up at a supper club, and picked a place that was not too far for either of us. 

I like a supper club that feels like a destination, and you have to drive down a long road to get to the Five O’Clock Club. Luckily, Owen and I had a slow Friday afternoon, so we were able to get there a little early, not long after the time the Five O’Clock name suggests. Even though we thought we were plenty early, the place was jam packed when we arrived. We had to park in the “make a spot” parking along the driveway. Upon entering, there was even a line to put your name in for a table, and the hostess was completely out of pagers. The long wait didn’t bother us at all, Owen and I don’t mind some extra time for an old fashioned or two. The weather that night was beautiful, and we enjoyed our first old fashioneds outside with other diners waiting for tables.

The Five O’Clock Club has been in business for an impressive 90 years, opening in 1929.

When Vic and Edna arrived, we found some seats at the bar – a precious commodity in the packed bar area. The bar area is stuffed with trinkets and decor, including a particularly impressive collection of Brewer’s bobbleheads. Our bar seats allowed a clear view of the bartender using enough bitters to tint the ice rose-colored. The old fashioneds were classic, though Edna’s brandy-sweet was very sweet. 

In all, we waited over an hour for a table, but with a couple old fashioneds and a couple old friends, we didn’t mind the wait. There are a couple different dining rooms at the Five O’Clock Club, and from what I could tell, all were cozy and woodsy and heavily decorated. We were sat right by a fireplace with a nice view outside.

The Five O’Clock Club has a limited menu on Fridays, just fish fry and a couple sandwich options. When we were led to our table, it was preset with cole slaw at every place, rye bread, and two bowls of tartar sauce. I do like that math, two bowls of tartar sauce for four people. 

Some less favorable math, the butter dish only had three pats of butter left when we sat down. Vic asked if we could get some more, and a heaping bowl of butter pats soon arrived. Vic is not a huge fan of rye bread, to the great offense of the great rye bread advocates, Owen and Edna. This rye bread was just what Vic likes, nicely spongy and subtly caraway flavored. Owen could do with some more caraway punch.

The coleslaw was nice and vinegary, and though I wanted to save it to eat with my fish, I couldn’t stop from eating it up right away. There’s something nice and distinctly supper-cluby about getting to eat part of your meal while deciding what you want to eat for your meal.

One of my favorite things about the menu at the Five O’Clock Club is that the cheese plate is listed as “market price”. Only in Wisconsin.

We started with some onion rings. The batter was incredibly crunchy, and the onion just slipped right out, but left its’ essence in a very pleasant way.

Vic and Edna also tried the seafood chowder, which came with a bowl of croutons. Sometimes, a creamy soup at a supper club can feel like a salt bomb, but not this time. The soup was good and rich, but not too salty. 

 For our entrees, we all took advantage of the fish fry combos, I tried the shrimp and scallops while everyone else tried the perch and cod, all of which came with fries. Fried scallops can be a risky move, but here the scallops were juicy and succulent, not rubbery at all. The lake perch was the real star of the night. It had just the right ratio of batter to fish, and nice fish flavor.

Afterwards, we all split a slice of apple pie. Owen and I should really meet up with friends like Vic and Edna at supper clubs more often. We always want dessert, but when it’s just the two of us, it seems like a lot to take on, and we usually talk ourselves out of it. The pie was wonderful, our only complaint was that it was served cold. Based on the comfortable service, and the number of pats on the back Owen received from our server, I’m sure the staff would have happily warmed it up for us, if we had thought to ask. With a cup of “well brewed” coffee (Owen’s opinion), it was the perfect end to a pretty nice night.