Tally’s Tap & Eatery, a longtime third-generation family-owned restaurant and bar on Sunset Drive, was the unlikely subject of some controversy due to Francesa Hong’s recent campaign blunder.
Her campaign initially advertised an upcoming campaign organizing event at Tally’s Tap (though it
was misspelled) for Wednesday, July 8. While generating some conversation on X, astute eyes
noticed the advertisement posts shortly vanished.
It turns out Hong’s campaign was advertising an event they didn’t have permission to host. In an
official statement posted to the restaurant’s Facebook page following the event advertisements,
Tally’s Tap made clear that standard booking procedures for private events were not followed.
The post emphasized the venue’s long-standing requirements for groups seeking to reserve
space, including adherence to food and beverage minimums designed to cover staffing, overhead,
and the real costs of hosting.
Those requirements exist for a reason. Restaurants operate on thin margins. Private events tie up
tables, staff, and resources that could otherwise serve paying customers. Minimum spends are
standard industry practice to ensure the business doesn’t lose money on someone else’s
gathering.
Tally’s Tap has also long been willing to host candidates and groups across the political
spectrum, provided they follow the rules, so the restaurant isn’t perceived as expressly
advocating for one side or the other.
Hong, a Democratic Socialist and frontrunner in the Democratic primary for governor, is no
stranger to the restaurant business. She previously co-owned and operated Morris Ramen in
Madison before it closed. She has built much of her public persona around her service-industry
background as a chef and bartender. Yet according to Tally’s Tap’s statement, her campaign still
sought to avoid meeting the venue’s basic food and beverage minimum.
Local observers quickly pointed out the irony: a candidate who spent years running a restaurant
appeared unwilling to follow the same basic business protocols she once navigated herself.
Tally’s Tap has operated successfully for years as a community gathering spot in Waukesha.
They host meat raffles, karaoke, sports watch parties, and private events. The restaurant’s
statement simply reaffirmed that it follows consistent rules for everyone, and they did what any
responsible business would do: state their policies plainly and refuse to pretend otherwise.
The Hong campaign’s reluctance to meet them speaks volumes, and the well-known, widely adored
restaurant, a candidate who markets herself as a working-class champion and former restaurant
owner should understand better than most that small businesses cannot afford to subsidize
political campaigns.
