Birch
Birch is a single-location farm-to-table restaurant in Milwaukee's East Side, founded in 2021 by Chef Kyle Knall and Meghan Knall. It serves seasonal Midwestern cuisine cooked over a wood-fired hearth via tasting menus under $100, private events, and pop-up programming to local diners and regional visitors.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersMilwaukee, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Birch does
Birch is a single-location, contemporary farm-to-table restaurant located at 459 E. Pleasant St. on Milwaukee's East Side, founded in 2021 by Chef Kyle Knall and Meghan Knall. The restaurant's core product is seasonal American cuisine cooked over an open wood-fired hearth, with menus that rotate based on ingredient availability from direct supplier relationships with Stone Bank Farm and West Allis Farmers Market vendors, including cellared produce in colder months. Service runs Tuesday through Saturday evenings with a weekday happy hour, and the offering is structured around tasting menus priced under $100 per Fodor's Travel recognition.
The business operates three revenue streams: (1) dine-in service (food, beverage, wine, dessert) during regular service hours, (2) private events accommodating parties of 12 to 75+ guests with options for shared or exclusive use of the venue, and (3) recurring pop-up programming including the Trattoria Pop-Up and Pepe's Oyster Bar. Distribution is managed through OpenTable for reservations, the restaurant's own website for private event inquiries, and Toasttab for gift cards. The customer base is primarily local Milwaukee residents and regional visitors seeking high-end dining, plus groups booking private events for celebrations and corporate gatherings.
Birch is a privately held, founder-owned business with no external institutional investment, no parent company, and no subsidiaries disclosed. Headcount is approximately 21, with named leadership including Chef/Owner Kyle Knall, Owner Meghan Knall, General Manager Jeff Cleveland, Sous Chef Aaron Blazek, and Lead Bartender Stevie Ruiz. The restaurant's market position is reinforced by two James Beard Foundation nominations for Chef Kyle Knall (Outstanding Chef 2022; Best Chef: Midwest 2024) and editorial features in the New York Times, Forbes, Fodor's, Eater, USA Today, and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Revenue is not publicly disclosed.
Birch firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Birch
- Legal name
- Birch Restaurant
- Website
- https://birchonpleasant.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Birch is a single-location farm-to-table restaurant in Milwaukee's East Side, founded in 2021 by Chef Kyle Knall and Meghan Knall. It serves seasonal Midwestern cuisine cooked over a wood-fired hearth via tasting menus under $100, private events, and pop-up programming to local diners and regional visitors.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Birch industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Fine Dining Restaurants
- NAICS
- Full-Service Restaurants (722511)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Farm-to-Table & Contemporary American Restaurants (THAFACAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Chef’s Table & Tasting Menu Restaurants (THAFACAG), Fine Dining Restaurants (THAFACAA)
Keywords
Where Birch is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Milwaukee
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Birch business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Dine-in Restaurant Service: Full-service fine dining with seasonal menus featuring contemporary Midwestern cuisine. Revenue generated from food, beverage, wine, and dessert sales during regular service hours. Operating Tuesday-Thursday 5pm-9pm, Friday-Saturday 5pm-10pm with Happy Hour Tuesday-Friday 4pm-6pm.
- Private Events: Private event hosting for parties of 12 to 75+ guests, with options for shared space or exclusive use of entire venue. Revenue from catering and event bookings.
- Special Programming and Pop-ups: Regular themed dining events including Trattoria Pop-Up (Italian wines and small plates) and Pepe's Oyster Bar. Creates additional revenue opportunities through premium tasting experiences.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Tasting menu format with prices under $100 |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Birch product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Birch is a fine dining restaurant serving contemporary, seasonal American (Midwestern) cuisine cooked over an open wood-fired hearth, with menus built around locally sourced produce from Wisconsin farms such as Stone Bank Farm and West Allis Farmers Market vendors. The core service is full-service dine-in (Tuesday-Thursday 5pm-9pm; Friday-Saturday 5pm-10pm; Happy Hour Tuesday-Friday 4pm-6pm), complemented by a craft beverage and wine program. The business also books private events for parties of 12 to 75+ guests and runs themed pop-up dining events.
Product overview
Birch is a single-location farm-to-table restaurant offering a unified dining experience centered on seasonal American cuisine cooked over a wood-fired hearth. The core product encompasses food service (dinner seating Tuesday through Saturday), a beverage program including cocktails and wine, and dessert. Supporting offerings include private event hosting for groups of 12-75+ and special programming events such as Trattoria Pop-Up and Pepe's Oyster Bar pop-ups. The restaurant operates as a single establishment, not a platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Birch Restaurant (Dine-in Experience) Contemporary farm-to-table fine dining experience featuring seasonal American (Midwestern) cuisine cooked over an open wood-fired hearth, with menus built around locally sourced ingredients from Wisconsin farms. Open Tuesday-Thursday 5pm-9pm, Friday-Saturday 5pm-10pm, with Happy Hour Tuesday-Friday 4pm-6pm.
- Private Events Private event hosting for parties of 12 to 75+ guests at Birch restaurant, with options for sharing the dining space or exclusive use of the entire venue. Includes customizable menus from the restaurant's farm-to-table program and the beverage program.
- Programming and Pop-Up Events Rotating themed dining programming featuring pop-up experiences such as Trattoria Pop-Up (Italian wines and small plates) and Pepe's Oyster Bar, designed to drive recurring guest engagement and offer premium tasting experiences.
- Beverage and Wine Program Curated craft cocktail, wine, and dessert program complementing the seasonal food menu, featuring small low-intervention winemakers and seasonal dessert offerings.
Quantifiable outcome
- Featured in New York Times 'America's Best Restaurants 2023'
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Birch
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Birch technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Birch partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Stone Bank FarmcoreDirect partnership with Stone Bank Farm, a local farmer providing the foundation for the restaurant's farm-to-table cuisine. The restaurant works closely with Stone Bank Farm to source fresh, locally-grown produce year-round.
- West Allis Farmers Market VendorscoreOngoing relationship with vendors at West Allis Farmers Market, where Birch chefs personally select produce year-round. In colder months, the restaurant utilizes cellared produce from these same farmers, supporting local agriculture throughout the seasons.
- OpenTablecorePrimary reservation platform partner enabling customers to make advance reservations. Direct booking links integrated throughout restaurant website.
- Small Wine ProducersminorWine program features small producers who add minimal intervention to winemaking and treat vineyards with great care. Supports artisanal winemakers aligned with the restaurant's philosophy of honest, quality ingredients.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Birch competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Eleven Madison Park: Daniel Humm's flagship New York City restaurant. Comparable as a top-tier American fine dining, multi-Michelin-starred tasting-menu venue with national press profile, though at substantially larger scale.
- The French Laundry: Thomas Keller's iconic Yountville, CA restaurant. Comparable as a globally benchmarked American fine dining destination with tasting-menu format and chef-driven identity, but at much larger scale and brand reach.
Direct peers
- Alinea: Chicago-based Michelin-starred tasting-menu restaurant led by Chef Grant Achatz. Comparable as a Midwest-based, chef-driven, nationally recognized fine dining destination with avant-garde culinary methodology.
- Benu: San Francisco three-Michelin-star restaurant from Corey Lee. Comparable as an independent chef-driven tasting-menu restaurant with strong national reputation and similar premium price positioning.
- Noma: Copenhagen restaurant led by René Redzepi; widely regarded as the global benchmark for farm-to-table and foraging-driven fine dining. Comparable for sourcing philosophy and seasonal tasting-menu model, despite operating at the very top of the global category.
- Oriole: Chicago tasting-menu restaurant from the Boka Restaurant Group. Comparable as a contemporary Midwestern fine dining concept offering multi-course experiences with similar price positioning.
- Blue Hill at Stone Barns: Pocantico Hills, NY farm-to-table restaurant led by Dan Barber. The defining U.S. farm-to-table fine dining reference; directly comparable in sourcing philosophy, seasonal menus, and tasting-menu format.
- Sanford Restaurant: Long-standing fine dining restaurant in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward. Comparable as the city's most prominent locally-rooted fine dining peer operating in the same metro and customer base.
- Smyth: Chicago fine dining restaurant from Chefs John Shields and Karen Urie Shields. Comparable as a contemporary Midwestern tasting-menu restaurant with strong culinary reputation and farm-driven sourcing.
Emerging players
- Tess: Chicago farm-to-table restaurant from former Oriole team. Comparable as a newer farm-driven fine dining concept operating in the same Midwest culinary ecosystem with a tasting-menu focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Birch social profiles
Digital presenceBirch financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Birch leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Birch funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Birch M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Birch
What does Birch do?
Birch is a fine dining restaurant serving contemporary, seasonal American (Midwestern) cuisine cooked over an open wood-fired hearth, with menus built around locally sourced produce from Wisconsin farms such as Stone Bank Farm and West Allis Farmers Market vendors. The core service is full-service dine-in (Tuesday-Thursday 5pm-9pm; Friday-Saturday 5pm-10pm; Happy Hour Tuesday-Friday 4pm-6pm), complemented by a craft beverage and wine program. The business also books private events for parties of 12 to 75+ guests and runs themed pop-up dining events.
Is Birch a public or private company?
Birch is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Birch founded?
Birch was founded in 2021. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Birch based?
Birch is headquartered in Milwaukee, United States, in the North America region.
How does Birch make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Dine-in Restaurant Service is the primary driver. The others are private Events and special Programming and Pop-ups.
Who are Birch's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Eleven Madison Park and The French Laundry. Direct peers are Alinea, Benu, Noma, Oriole, Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Sanford Restaurant and Smyth. Tess is listed as an emerging player.
Does Birch have an API?
No public API is recorded for Birch.
What industry is Birch in?
Birch's product category is Fine Dining Restaurants. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFACAF, Farm-to-Table & Contemporary American Restaurants, with a secondary code of THAFACAG, Chef’s Table & Tasting Menu Restaurants. Its NAICS code is 722511 and its SIC code is 5812.