Burger Infinity

Stack’ing It Up

The buffalo burger at Stack’d.

When the burger mood strikes, do you head for your basic bacon and Swiss? There are alternatives, you know. They fall under the heading “specialty burger.” At Stack’d Burger Bar, there are options like Don’t Mess With Texas (bison with pepper Jack cheese and jalapenos), the Gobbler (ground turkey with shoestring fried sweet potatoes and gravy), and the Black Stack (black bean burger with cheddar and avocado). This month, the specials get special-er. Feast your eyes on these October additions – a Tallgrass buffalo burger with bacon, sriracha cilantro wing sauce, and blue cheese ranch; jerk pulled duck sandwich with jicama slaw; bistro steak sandwich; hummus stack; and a pumpkin shake that you could have spiked with Roaring Dan’s Rum. Maybe two spikes. The night, as they say, is young. Specialty burgers $12-$13. Hours: Mon-Thurs 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Fri 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sun 10 a.m.-9 p.m. (170 S. First St., 414-273-7800)

Filling the Empty
Everyone should have enough to eat. But many people – far too many – go without food. The goal of this Saturday’s Milwaukee Empty Bowls is to raise awareness about hunger and help put a stop to it. The minimum donation is $20 per bowl, which will benefit local food pantries and meal programs. The bowl is not just some Styrofoam cup. You’re able to choose from more than 2,000 bowls handmade by artists, teachers and students. The soups are prepared by more than 50 chefs. Here are some examples: clam chowder (Harbor House), chicken dumpling (ParkSide 23), coconut curry soup with paneer and crispy wontons (Triskele’s), and beer cheese (Cafe LuLu). Saturday Oct. 8, 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. MATC’s Oak Creek campus (6665 S. Howell Ave.)Everyone should have enough to eat. But many people – far many – go without food. The goal of this Saturday’s is to raise awareness about hunger and help put a stop to it. The minimum donation is $20 per bowl, which will benefit local food pantries and meal programs. The bowl is not just some Styrofoam cup. You’re able to choose from more than 2,000 bowls handmade by artists, teachers and students. The soups are prepared by more than 50 chefs. Here are some examples: clam chowder (), chicken dumpling (), coconut curry soup with paneer and crispy wontons (), and beer cheese (). Saturday Oct. 8, 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. MATC’s Oak Creek campus (6665 S. Howell Ave.)

Pasta Place
Riverwest’s little haven of carb comforts is in fall changes mode. Veering away from its cash-only roots, centro cafe now accepts credit cards – Mastercard, VISA and Discover. The restaurant’s new chef, AJ Dixon (whose cooking background includes The National in Walker’s Point) has been busy. Dixon hopes to teach cooking classes on future Sundays. The menu has grown a stitch, too, to include Wisconsin mushroom gnocchi and a lasagna of leeks, rosemary and butternut squash. Hours: Mon-Thurs 5-9 p.m.; Fri-Sat 5-10 p.m. Antipasti available at the bar Fri-Sat until 11 p.m. (808 E. Center St., 414-455-3751)

Wine Ruckus
Competition is a healthy thing. You can watch it play out between two area sommeliers. Dream Dance Steak’s next Sommelier Showdown is in a few weeks. It will pit Jaclyn Stuart – the sommelier at Sheboygan’s Margaux Bistro & Wine Bar – against Brendan Moore, founder of Rootstock Wine Company. The event’s guests – people like you – can join in a blind taste test and vote for the best wine pairing. The showdown also includes a multi-course meal featuring red grouper with preserved lemon relish, and bacon-wrapped ostrich. Cost: $75 per person. Tuesday Oct. 18, 6 p.m. Dinner at 6:30 p.m. (Potawatomi Bingo Casino, 1721 W. Canal St., 414-847-7883)

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If you spot a restaurant opening or closing, post it on the comments section of my column, or e-mail me directly: ann.christenson@milwaukeemagazine.com