Mikey and Louise
Louise’s Trattoria has a new next-door neighbor. It’s called Mikey’s Milwaukee (811 N. Jefferson St., 414-273-5397), and the name of the game here is diversity. Mikey’s is a restaurant/lounge open for lunch and dinner, and for complimentary apps during weekday happy hour, 4-7 p.m. As a dining establishment, this address hasn’t had much longevity. (Recently, it was Monsoon, part of the Mo’s empire. Prior to that, Zyng Asian Grill.) The dinner menu has several components. Comfort food is one of them. Examples: Mikey’s meatloaf (“Mikey,” by the way, is owner Michael Polaski.), three-cheese macaroni, barbecued baby-back ribs and herb-crusted chicken. Another section includes grilled tenderloin, seared ahi tuna, chicken-fried lobster (say what?) and rosemary lamb chops. The “friends table” is a mix of share-able dishes, like a Milwaukee sausage platter and pasta sampler. Appetizers, too, of course – blue crab cakes, bruschetta and sliders, among others. Dinner: Mon-Wed 5-10 p.m.; Thurs-Sat 5-11 p.m. As at predecessor Monsoon, there’s alfresco seating on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant.
Protected Voices
The city of Philadelphia is in the midst of an interesting dining controversy. The restaurant critic for The Philadelphia Inquirer is being sued for a supposedly libelous statement about a piece of meat. In a review run back in February, The Inquirer’s Craig LaBan deemed a certain strip steak “miserably tough and fatty.” The owner of the restaurant serving the offending meat filed suit, saying LaBan didn’t order a strip steak, but rather a rib-eye steak sandwich without the bread. Restaurant reviews, as opinion pieces, are usually protected by the First Amendment. But the lawsuit against LaBan and the newspaper says the critic got his facts wrong. The Inquirer is disputing that. But the bigger issue here is that LaBan, who covers his beat incognito, was forced by a judge’s ruling to do an on-camera deposition. Writers who review restaurants – and review them while fiercely guarding their anonymity – will tell you everything changes once the public knows what you look like. You start getting preferential service, free bottles of wine, maybe 10 jumbo shrimp, instead of four, in your shrimp scampi. An on-camera deposition? Ludicrous.
On Top of the Tapas
On Thursday night – for the next few months, anyway – the world is Downtown at Jazz in the Park. But could you possibly turn your car in a different direction and go north? I could. I hate crowds. Chip & Py’s, a long-time Mequon haunt, hosts Tapas Temptations on Thursday nights. Is it new? Not really. TT has been going on for a few years, but the tapas menu changes weekly. For instance, this week – I’m pounding out this column the day after Independence Day – the menu includes tempura onion rings with hot mustard sauce, shrimp kebabs with lime-cilantro couscous and beef, chorizo and black bean nachos. Prices generally run $7-$8. The bar tends to run drink specials, too. Maybe mojitos, Margaritas or martinis. (1340 W. Towne Square Rd., Mequon, 262-241-9589)
Pie Talk
Brady Street is a little more pizza-centric these days. Unique Pizza and Subs is the new Brady recruit (1016 E., in the old Au Bon Appetit). I took great joy in calling this place and asking just how unique the product is. “We’ve got a steak pizza, broccoli and chicken, barbecue, Hawaiian, cheeseburger…” the employee tells me. That frankly doesn’t sound that unique to me. But what does: the 24-inch Neighborhood Pizza. “It’s so big,” the unique-speaking employee says, “we gave it its own zip code.” Very cute. This pie starts at $29.95; you pick your toppings.
Speaking of Pizza
Not to leave you hanging, but next week I plan to expound on the notion of triple-baked pizza – if nothing pressing gets in my way. Is that for people who like their pizza on the singed side? I’m pleading the Fifth, for now.
Can’t get enough dining? I chat about restaurants every week with Jane Matenaer and Kidd O’Shea on “The Mix.” Listen between 8 and 9 a.m. on Thursday, July 12. That’s 99.1 WMYX-FM.
