Onopa (pronounced with all long-Os, FYI) has been open since June 2001, and with the closing of restaurant/nightclub Thai Joe's in June, 2004, Onopa has been moving up in the Milwaukee ranks of notable weekend nightclubs. In fact, Onopa is roughly the same size that Thai Joe's was and has the same offering of restaurant and nightclub that made Thai Joe's so appealing. However, since Thai Joe's is now down for the count, Onopa probably serves as the forerunner of its type of venue in Milwaukee.

Serving as a semi-organic and vegan restaurant on Sunday through Thursday, The Bistro at Onopa Brewing Company serves up a variety of  appetizers, salads and pizza, most of which (sans salads, of course) contain some sort of in-house brewed ale in the recipe. Even the French Onion Ale Gratinee soup contains Onopa's signature nut brown ale. Pizza seems to be the main draw at Onopa, with titles ranging from the "Margherita" (roma tomatoes garnished with basil-fused olive oil and mozzarella cheese); "The Vegan" (spinach, onions, tomatoes, olives and field greens) and the "Traditional", which is like a supreme with soy pepperoni. Each pizza features a special "ale dough", which contains Onopa's very own beer in the dough. Other entries on the menu include a vegan organic roasted vegetable plate; puff balls, which consist of soy pepperoni, parsley and cheese in a deep-fried pastry dough; eggplant parmesan; vegan lasagna, organic penne pasta and wild mushrooms, spaghetti alla marinara, herb crusted whitefish, andouille stuffed chicken and a Friday Ale battered fish fry. Tables line the inside of the bar area and there's a sizable outside courtyard at which to feast if the weather is cooperating.

The chalkboard that proudly displays the names of on-tap beer at Onopa looks to be one that is frequently updated, but don't expect to ever find the usual Miller or Bud products on the slate. Other than Onopa's selection of brews, which include Moustache Ride Pale Ale, Pierce Street Porter, Bouzards Special Bitter and Nut Brown, among several other specialties, the taps could easily be reminiscent of a beer snob's dream. All of the usual suspects are there, including Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Summit Grand Pilsner, Dogfish Head and New Holland Mad Hatter IPA. For the non-beer snobs out there, fear not -  bottles of PBR, Point Special, Schlitz, Hamm's and Blatz are available as well. There are weekday specials too, including $2 pints of Onopa brews on Wednesday and Thursday and $10 all-you-can-drink pints on Sunday.

Finally, after you've pleased your palate with Onopa's fine food and drink, there's still one more aspect that makes this place so neato, for the lack of a better term: the music. Usually - though not always - limited to Friday and Saturday, Onopa plays host to Milwaukee-area and smaller national acts coming through town. Admission usually hovers around the $10 range, but varies from show to show. Along with a small, intimate venue, you'll get your selection of the beer discussed above and pizza for $2 per slice from The Bistro, which is open until 2 a.m., when the bar closes.

Speaking from experience, I can't rattle off too many other venues that cater to the fans as Onopa does; tasty microbrews on tap at very affordable prices, a restaurant by weekday and club by weekend (that still serves food during shows!) and an eclectic lineup of smaller bands without the eye-gauging admission prices and service charges of a bigger club.

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