Our Partner Program Highlight series celebrates the many businesses in our wholesale Partner Program. From restaurants to offices to other cafes, there are so many ways that coffee can be intentionally used to further connections with quality experiences.

When people come into Tala for the first time (often after just moving here) and ask about the local restaurant scene one of the first places we find ourselves recommending is Milwalky Taco in Libertyville. We love our small, local taco joints in Highwood too (don’t worry they get all of our tip money most days!), but there is something about Milwalky Taco (MT) we can’t get enough of, and it’s not just because they serve killer half-price margaritas on Tuesdays, although those do help!

the beginnings

Since 2016 Milwalky Taco has been a well known and well loved addition to downtown Libertyville along with its sister restaurant, Milwalky Trace. Opening the restaurants in Libertyville was a no-brainer for Josh Post, owner of Milwalky Taco, “I grew up in Libertyville and still live in the area. It’s a cute downtown with great restaurants. We just wanted to be a part of that.”

Because of Tala’s own beginnings out of our roastery in Libertyville, we definitely have some small town pride. We love the opportunity to support and partner with local businesses all around us. Milwalky Taco was one of the first in our wholesale Partner Program.

The collaboration story and our love for Milwalky Taco and the people there goes back even further than just the restaurant featuring Tala’s coffee. Josh Post and Tala’s very own, Ryan Hickman, attended Libertyville high school together back in the day. The two of them have grown up together and have continued to support and show appreciation for the other’s work through the years. When asked about the Milwalky Taco x Tala partnership in an interview, Josh was quick to share his praise for Tala’s team and the coffee, “I’ve known Ryan forever, I’ve known Keith for a long time. Jo and Stefan worked at Trace. I know all these guys and if their stuff wasn’t the best coffee ever, not saying it would even be here. Knowing those guys and loving those guys, combined with the product they put out it was a no-brainer. I’ve got their cold brew on tap and I survive off of it.”

The team

It wasn’t until after the interview that Connor, a bartender at Milwalky Taco, told us that his water bottle that he carries with him throughout the day is indeed filled with cold brew from their own Tala cold brew keg.

The whole team there just has fun with each other and were very comfortable together. When we asked Josh for some photos in front of the original MT mural he immediately ran up front and grabbed Kelly to get in the shot with him. She had worked there from the very start, he shared.

Josh loves his job as the owner of Milwalky Taco and makes it clear the people he gets to work with are the reason: “We’re family. These people are all family. It’s like a normal family. Treat people with respect and they’ll stick around. It doesn’t hurt that we stay busy. . . We’re all really close. That’s my favorite thing about owning a business and doing what I do. We’re almost at fifty employees now.” Similar to Kelly, the majority of the staff at Milwalky Taco has been there since the restaurants beginnings in 2016 or jumped on shortly after.

Food and drink

Josh also recognizes the role his staff play in creating and bringing new ideas to the restaurant and menu: “It’s a team effort. I’ll bring in something I've tried somewhere else or from when I’ve been traveling and wanted to put my own spin on something. Most of our recipes at Milwalky Taco are super traditional and come from my head chef, Aurelio. Bar-wise, my beverage director, Joy, is like a scientist. She comes up with some really cool stuff. Most of the menu is margaritas and palomas and super traditional drinks but we get weird and put some funky stuff on specials. It’s definitely not just me, it’s a team effort.” 

One of our favorite cocktails on the current menu is the Highwood Cold-Fashioned. Not only does it include Josh’s favorite Tala cold brew from the tap but it also includes 28 Mile debonair bourbon (a local Highwood distillery). Talking about the collaboration of including coffee in the menu Josh shares: “I try to incorporate them in things like cocktails. Then we did the 28 Mile thing so it just made sense to try to do something with both of them since they’re both in Highwood. So it’s not just that they’re local, it’s not just that I know them and love them. It’s that their coffee is rad. It’s a no brainer for me.”

At Tala we love our coffee drinks but our team is also in agreement when it comes to tacos. The tacos, appetizers and drinks at MT are not something you want to miss out on. When I asked Josh what they’re known for as a restaurant he was straight to the point: “Obviously tacos, definitely margaritas and cocktails. We kind of changed the town a little bit. I think we were the first place to do craft cocktails, especially the original Milwalky Trace. Which is just a normal cocktail nowadays but at the time we were doing stuff that nobody was doing. All our cocktails have way more booze than most places. We go hard with our drinks. We’re known for that. . . We’re known for our service and our food and all those things we concentrate on. Those are the things we care about and it shows and pays off.”

partner program

We are stoked to be featured on Milwalky Taco’s menu and love that their team is so excited to have us in their restaurant. If you are interested in our wholesale Partner Program and want to foster more community, business, and productivity for your team please fill out our inquiry form on the link provided. Our Partner Program is tiered which means we can work with your organization to create the perfect package that will work for you. Let’s partner up and bring some sweet and beautiful coffee into your organization! We’re excited to hear from you.