Gobbler to become entertainment venue

Live music and comedy shows are among the events on the menu for the former Gobbler supper club along I-94 at Hwy. 26 in Johnson Creek. According to a report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Manesis & Associates, LLC purchased the iconic round restaurant for $635,000, and owner Daniel Manesis, who also owns Daniel A. Manesis Transportation, Inc., a West Allis trucking firm, said he’s looking to spend about $1 million to renovate what will be called the Gobbler Theater. When the project is completed, the 16,500-sq.-ft. building’s kitchen will be replaced by a stage, and stadium seating for about 500 will be added. The famous revolving, circular bar, which makes one rotation every 80 minutes, will remain. 

The Gobbler was a hot dining spot in the 1960s and 1970s but had been vacant for more than a decade. The new venue is expected to draw performance acts that might otherwise target venues like Milwaukee’s The Rave or Madison’s Overture Center. Demolition is expected to start soon, with the venue opening either late this year or early in 2015.