Family, food, fellowship: Ally's Bistro in Menomonee Falls has it all

MENOMONEE FALLS – As is the case with so many different walks of life, the restaurant business tends to run in the family.

For Ally’s Bistro owner Rodney Zimmerman, his parents’ restaurant helped him to find both his calling and his own family.

Zimmerman was born in Merrill, Wisconsin, and worked in his parents’ restaurant for 18 years.

“I don’t think I would’ve done it otherwise. You learn a lot about it from when you grow up. You get a very realistic experience of what the demands are as far as the hours you have to work and what you have to deal with,” Zimmerman said.

It was also at that restaurant that Zimmerman met his wife, Michelle.

“My mom hired her as a waitress in high school, and that’s how we met,” Zimmerman said.

Things continue to run in the family for the restaurant as it shares its name with Rodney and Michelle’s daughter.

Plenty to offer

Ally’s Bistro prides itself on offering a variety of cuisine in a comfortable atmosphere.

“People feel at home and feel welcome,” Zimmerman said.

The restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner — and also offers catering.

Morning cuisine at Ally’s centers around breakfast sandwiches, wraps, omelets and waffles, while lunch presents a smorgasbord of options, ranging from soups, salads and sandwiches to paninis and pizzas. Dinner brings about a number of additional options, including seafood and pasta dishes and, on Friday night, of course, a fish fry.

Menomonee Falls resident Kurt Hardy said that Ally’s paninis and Reuben sandwich are his favorites; he finds himself at the restaurant at least once a month.

“Friday nights are fun, or we’ll stop by on Saturday morning for the awesome brunch,” Hardy said. “Whether it’s relaxing with a beer outside on the patio or enjoying some great jazz music on Friday nights, Ally’s has become one of the best spots in the Falls.”

Growing together

Ally’s opened in September 2011 and has grown both in customers and in size ever since.

According to Zimmerman, the restaurant at first would welcome 50 to 70 guests per day, but that number now reaches 500 to 600 and occasionally spikes even higher.

“Last Thursday, we served more than 1,000,” Zimmerman said.

In 2016, Ally’s Bistro, N72 W13350 Lund Lane, finished its expansion into a neighboring space, which allowed it to add its bar area.

The Zimmerman children remain involved in the business as well.

“For Saturdays we usually throw out a couple of specials. My son Mike came up with a neat French toast recipe,” Zimmerman said.

As far as potentially opening other Ally’s Bistro locations, Zimmerman is open to the idea, but on a smaller scale.

“We would certainly entertain another location, but I don’t think I’d want to do anything outside of the Milwaukee market. We’d stay fairly local,” Zimmerman said. “What we’ve created here now is pretty complex and complicated because we do so much, but to do a little bit simpler version of our lunch fare in a little bit of a smaller setting, I could see that given the right place and the right situation.”

Six years ago, the Zimmerman family, including daughter Ally and Rodney and Michelle’s two sons, Michael and Nicholas, relocated to the Milwaukee area for the specific purpose of opening the restaurant. If you ask Rodney, that move has  paid off.

“This has worked out just perfectly for us,” he said.

Ally's Bistro

ADDRESS: N72 W13350 Lund Lane, Menomonee Falls

PHONE: 262-251-9727 

WEBSITE: www.allysbistro.com

PRICE RANGE: From $3.29 for a cup of soup and $4.99 for a Veggie Breakfast Sandwich up to $9.99 for an Italian Roast Beef Panini and $17.99 for Fresh Atlantic Salmon

OUTDOOR PATIO: Yes

HOURS: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday; closed Sunday