See what new businesses opened in October in Milwaukee's north suburbs

A bookstore, a fast-food chain, a fish-and-reptiles store and a pet essentials store were among the new business happenings in October in the communities north of Milwaukee.

Here's more about these places.

The Book Nook in Hartford

The Book Nook, a new independent bookstore in downtown Hartford, opened Oct. 17 at 62 N. Main St.

The store is about 1,500 square feet, and in its main section are fiction and suspense/thriller books. The Book Nook also carries romance, fantasy/romantasy, non-fiction, true crime, young adult and children's books.

Owner Stephanie Poree said about 85% of the books in the store are used and the rest are brand-new retail. This bookstore has events planned such as book clubs, pumpkin knitting, sourdough classes, author events, kids painting parties, holiday mini photo sessions and silent reads. Poree said the bookstore also sells products from local vendors which include crystals, candles, soaps, crochet stuffies, ground coffee and tea.

Its hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

For more information and updates, find the Book Nook LLC on Facebook.

Culver's opens its new location in Grafton

Culver's opened its new location in Grafton on Oct. 19. It's at 1743 Wisconsin Ave., a half-mile north of its former location at 2001 Wisconsin Ave.

According to its online menu, Culver's has ButterBurgers such as the mushroom and Swiss, jalapeno jack pub burger (limited time), the Culver's bacon deluxe, and Wisconsin Swiss melt. Other menu items include the North Atlantic cod sandwich, butterfly jumbo shrimp, Italian ice, cheese curds, soup, custard and floats.

Hours are 10 a.m. to midnight daily.

For more information, visit facebook.com/CulversGraftonWI.

Pet Care Essentials Plus in Hartford

Pet Care Essentials Plus opened a location in Hartford at 1225 Bell Ave. in October. Earlier this year, it opened locations in Brookfield at 18000 W. Bluemound Road and in West Bend at 1215 W. Paradise Drive. It plans on opening locations in Pewaukee, New Berlin and Grafton.

Pet Care Essentials Plus is a family-owned business that has premium pet food, treats, toys, grooming supplies and all other things for pets.

Its hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 to 8 p.m. on Sunday.

Its New Berlin location will be at 3580 S. Moorland Road; its Pewaukee location at 2020 Silvernail Road and its Grafton location at 1823 Wisconsin Ave.

For more information, visit the Pet Care EssentialsPlus Facebook page.

Scales and Tails in West Bend

Scales and Tails is a specialty pet shop that focuses on fish, reptiles and all the things they need to thrive. It opened Oct. 23 at 2311 W. Washington St., Suite 1.

Its grand opening is 1 to 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30. At the grand opening, the staff will show off some of the animals and teach how to take care of them.

According to its Facebook page, "Our goal is to help every customer find the right pet, supplies and advice for a long and happy life."

The store has reptiles that includes Kenyan sand boas, leopard geckos, Australian dumpy tree frogs, raspberry Pac-Man frogs and erythristic Brooks kingsnake. Scales and Tales also has fish that include silver dollars, oranda goldfish, sun catfish and blue metallic guppies.

Its hours are 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. It's closed on Sunday and Monday.

For more information, visit facebook.com/scalesandtailsllc

Cathy Kozlowicz can be reached at 262-361-9132 or [email protected]. Follow her on X at @kozlowicz_cathy.