Horse Bound
Jason Gorman’s tenure at Potawatomi Bingo Casino’s Dream Dance is over. The Chicago-native chef officially reports for duty at the Iron Horse Hotel (500 W. Florida St.) – where he will be executive chef of all of the culinary operations there – this Thursday, Feb. 10. Gorman, known for his New Wisconsin cuisine, will certainly makes things interesting at Smyth, the Iron Horse’s fine dining restaurant. Jesse Wilder, who joined the hotel last October, is now food and beverage director.
Love and Brunch
“If loving you is wrong, I just want to eat pork belly.” That should have been a song lyric. Valentine’s Day is a mere week away. Cupid is banging on your door. Listen up. Coquette Cafe (316 N. Milwauke St.) is offering a three-course Valentine’s menu on the evenings of Feb. 12 (Saturday) and 14 (Monday). The $45 per-person menu: oysters Rockefeller; butter-poached Maine lobster and grilled hanger steak on tarragon mashed potatoes; and flourless chocolate Boca Negra love cake with white chocolate bourbon cream and raspberry compote. The courses are also available à la carte. This weekend, Coquette is also starting something très new – Sunday brunch (11 a.m.-5 p.m.). Owners Chris Hatleli and Nick Burki will offer, among other dishes, chicken confit crêpes, a quiche du jour made with local Yuppie Hill eggs, a salmon cake topped with poached egg and béarnaise sauce, and pain perdu (brioche French toast with caramelized pears), $11.95-$18.95. 414-291-2655
I’ve heard that love is a many splendored thing. It is when it benefits charity. This Saturday’s Valentine dinner at Hubbard Park Lodge will lend a hand to Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. It’s five courses for $40. There are choices for a
few of the courses. For instance, in the entrée category, you could
order a petite grilled filet, seared chicken with Door County cherry
brandy sauce, pretzel-crusted salmon, or lemon risotto with asparagus
and roasted red pepper. Feb. 12, 5-10 p.m. (3565 N. Morris Blvd.). Cash
bar and silent auction. Make your reservation now: 414-332-4207.
Packers Patty
In Milwaukee, we like our burgers. As
much as we like our fish fries. And our beer… Larry’s Brown Deer
Market (8737 N. Deerwood Dr.), long known for its Friday lunch-time
cookouts, is getting jiggier this week, due to the phenomenon known as
Packers fever. Besides offering plain old burgers ($4.50) and
cheeseburgers ($4.75), this week features the “HasBen RoethlisBurger.”
This clever creation is chopped beef “pressured” into a patty, grilled
and topped with caramelized onions, Hook’s aged cheddar and “green and
gold pass relish.” The “HasBen” comes on a pretzel bun ($5.95). Sounds
like the burger of the year. This Friday, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
Kissing Custard
Love is in the custard. Frozen
custard. You think it’s too cold for Kopp’s frozen custard? Hey,
you can’t complain about your cone melting too fast. Notice from cupid:
This month’s featured sundae is chocolate lover’s banana split; the
featured shake is Godiva chocolate cherry. As for lovey custards, this
Saturday’s flavor of the day is Passionate Kiss (passion fruit with
strawberries) and Monday’s (Feb. 14) is Chocolate Cherry Kiss. I do
think a pint is in order.
Look for more Dish on Dining on Thursday!
