My wife and I headed up to Cedarburg on a rainy, mid-December Saturday, arriving around 11:00.
Our first stop was Creekside Antiques.
My wife bought some old, glass Christmas ornaments. I bought an Elsie the Cow doll to go with my Elsie the Cow sign.
Shortly after we were married, my wife purchased three doll rabbits in dresses. I have often stated, and it’s true, that in 30+ years of marriage the only thing I’ve ever told my wife she couldn’t buy was any more rabbits in dresses. A cow in a dress, on the other hand …
I bumped my hand against a door frame in the store. It was inconsequential except that my knuckle was dripping blood. I asked the woman behind the counter if she had a band-aid. Her response was to ask me what I’d done to my finger. When I told her I’d barked it on the door, she said, “Whoa. Wild man.” Which I thought was odd.
We asked another woman who worked there to recommend a restaurant for lunch. She referred us to two places right across the street. I thought this was probably the company response, so I pushed a little bit, but she wouldn’t waver. She assured us that those were the two places she most frequented.
We headed to the first, Anvil Pub and Grille, in the Cedar Creek Settlement. The Settlement is a group of shops and restaurants in the stone buildings of an 1864 woolen mill.
The Anvil is located in the old blacksmith’s shop.
It’s not a large place. The inside has one room with a balcony. All together, there might be 18 tables. Most of them were filled when we walked in. The hostess pointed us to a tall bar table about three feet inside the front door. It didn’t seem like a very relaxing place for a meal. We told her we’d wait for another table. She seemed perturbed and tried again to get us to sit at the table. We resisted. Ten minutes later, we were shown upstairs to the balcony.
We ordered blacksmith burgers with fries, and they were very tasty. I probably wouldn’t drive two hours to Cedarburg for another one, but if I’m ever in the area again, I’ll definitely go back.
We wandered through the shops in the Settlement and walked in the rain along the river.
Here’s a photo of what it all looked like long ago before it was quaintified.
The rain never really stopped all day, although at times it lessened to a drizzle. We didn’t let it bother us, and decided that without it the crowds would have been unbearable.