Mauston, Wisconsin – The Lounge Bar

After a day filled with family fun at the Woodside Sports Complex near Mauston, our baseball family headed to their team’s hotel to swim and mingle with other parents, players and siblings. And that’s when Peepaw and I headed out from OUR hotel for some fun of a different kind…We headed to a bar across the highway. A bar simply called The Lounge.

The Lounge is part of  the Mauston Park Oasis Restaurant And Best Western Hotel complex. (Say that three times fast…even before you drink a beer!) And we knew we’d hit the jackpot when we were greeted by one of the friendliest bartenders in Wisconsin…A one woman welcome committee named Connie.

The bar was cozy and well maintained, and Connie made sure the beer was cold and the conversation lively. (A perfect combination for a memorable evening.)

It was a gorgeous evening, and I walked over to the large windows to enjoy the sunset. And in the twilight I was not surprised by what I saw. There they were…one of the baseball teams from the tournament we were attending with our grandson and family. And what were the players from that team doing after a full day of playing baseball?

They were playing a pick-up game of…baseball, of course! It turns out that team was staying in the Best Western Hotel adjacent to The Lounge. The team’s parents were visiting by the pool, and it appeared they had just enjoyed a cookout with the team, judging from the two BBQ grills I noticed near a picnic table. The whole scene made me smile. Memories being made on a beautiful summer evening in Wisconsin…

About that time another couple came in and sat down at the bar. Greg and Jannie told us they were also staying overnight at the Best Western after spending the day at a nearby car show. It wasn’t long before the four of us were sharing laughs and stories about our lives and our travels. That’s one of the reasons we enjoy small town bars and pubs since some of the NICEST people seem to end up there at the end of the day. (And-full disclosure-my nickname as a child happened to be Chatty Patty…so we’re never at a loss for conversation.)

Jannie showed a photo to me…a photo from one of their recent road trips in Wisconsin. I asked for the photo so I could share it with you, Dear Readers.

Here is her hubby, Greg, seated at a table in another Wisconsin bar…and he’s pouring his own pint of beer…from taps located at his table! In fact, Jannie said each table in the bar had four taps…and every table had four different kinds of beer on tap…so who knows how many kinds were actually being sold in the bar. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! Greg said the beer is sold by the ounce..and I guess it is weighed on that rectangular mat below the taps. And I suppose you could go “table-hopping” if you wanted to try them all… Thank god Jannie was the designated driver on THAT trip!

So…I guess it’s true…When it comes to beer and cheese…don’t mess with Wisconsin! They take both VERY seriously!

After our parched throats were soothed by our good old Miller Lite (Served in a regular bottle at The Lounge) , we asked Connie for her recommendation for dinner. She suggested a pizza delivery from her favorite spot…Dough Boyz. (The attached restaurant and The Lounge are owned separately so Connie can order food from other Mauston eateries to be delivered to the bar.)

And Connie was absolutely correct. That Dough Boyz pizza was AWESOME! And of course it was topped with more than the usual amount of…CHEESE!

Like I said…those Wisconsin folks know their beer and cheese. And Connie and her other customers at The Lounge certainly made two visitors from Iowa feel right at home.

Now…about those self serve beer taps…