Beer and Chocolate
 |
| Toffee from Indulgence Chocolatiers. |
Frontier Airlines Center (500 W. Wells St.) is going to pack them in this weekend. The reason? Wine & Dine Wisconsin (Nov. 12-13; 11 a.m.-5 p.m.). Restaurants like The Capital Grille, Hinterland Erie Street Gastropub, Maxie’s Southern Comfort and Blue’s Egg will offer samples of their specialties. And the exhibitors, as they’re called, are not just restaurants. There will be wineries, distilleries, cheese makers and breweries. In the midst of all this food and drink mayhem will be Julie Waterman, owner of Waukesha-based Indulgence Chocolatiers. Waterman’s booth at Wine & Dine will feature her toffees and chocolate bars. She has also teamed up with Leinenkugel’s, the Chippewa Falls brewery. Leinie’s booth will offer samples of its seasonal Big Eddy Russian Imperial Stout with two of Waterman’s creations – her blackberry espresso truffle and Mayan spice chocolate bar. And if you stop by the Leinie’s booth at 1:30 p.m. either day, you can hear Dick Leinenkugel and Julie Waterman chat about the pairing of chocolate and beer. Sounds delicious, no?… You will hear more about Indulgence Chocolatiers in the year ahead. If you had a business on Oakland Avenue, just north of Kensington, you’d be in a sweet spot. Waterman plans to open a chocolate boutique in that very area. It will be in the Ravenna Building, not expected to be completed until summer 2012. But that just gives her time to create more indulgences. You’ll be able to find her truffles, bars and toffees, as well as new seasonal items and products she’s developing as I write this. Check out her line of sweets here. And click here for Wine & Dine ticket info.
Kafe Closure
The Third Ward’s Kafevino (330 E. Menomonee St.) has not been whirring up cappuccinos and ringing up bottles of Cab for some days now. The Third Ward cafe/wine shop is “closed for restructuring” – at least through November. The shop is run by Sheridan House owners Jane Schilz and Lee Barczak.
The Cherry Pie Controversy
Every October, Milwaukee Magazine toasts the tastes and talents of the town in the Best Of Milwaukee cover story. We have a long tradition of taste tests for this annual issue, and this year we asked six grandmas to sample cherry pie from five prominent local bakeries. These delighful ladies spent an afternoon at our magazine headquarters, nibbling on crust and filling. They chose Mukwonago’s Elegant Farmer as tops. The Farmer’s creation was lauded for its “slightly tart” filling and crumbled, nutty topping. The last-place finisher was the wholesale East Side Ovens, which supplies baked goods to coffeehouses, restaurants like Beans & Barley and farmers markets such as South Shore in Bay View.
The bakery is loved by many, and at the South Shore Farmers Market earlier this season, East Side Ovens asked its customers to jot down their impressions of the bakery’s cherry pie. “There was no prompting for the ’correct‘ answer,” says bakery owner Doug Maierhafer. What he received were 17 reviews that praised the pie’s “not too sweet” filling and “flaky” crust. We pass on this information to cherry pie lovers everywhere, in case you want to do your own taste test. It could be a very sweet undertaking.
Comfort and Joy
Plat du jour? Huh? That translates to “plate of the day” in French. If your cravings these days consist of things like mashed potatoes, pot roast and pasta in most any form, you are not alone. I am right there with you. Coquette Cafe (316 N. Milwaukee St., 414-291-2655) has started offering a weeknight plat du jour – Monday-Fridays, from 5 p.m. And it is comfort food, through and through. On Mondays, the special is mac and cheese with roasted chicken, goat cheese and rosemary oil ($14.95). (Does that remind you of the The Social, which met its demise a few years ago? The dish was a signature there.) Other specials: Tuesday, slow-cooked lamb shepherd’s pie with cinnamon mashed potatoes, $15.95; Wednesday, choucroute garnie (smoked pork loin, sausages, sauerkraut, potatoes, $15.95); Thursday, braised BBQ short ribs with parsnip puree and sautéed green beans ($16.95); Friday, lobster mac and cheese ($19.95).… Speaking of wallowing in hearty food, Sala da Pranzo (2613 E. Hampshire St., 414-964-2611) will debut a couple of specials next week. Meatball Day (Tuesday) offers the enticing combination of a small house salad and a dish of pasta, topped with one meatball, for $5. Five bucks? What a deal. Wednesday is another cheap eat – a bowl of steamed mussels, $5. That will continue every week until they say nay.
Look for Dish on Dining on Tuesdays and Thursdays!
Wait! Don’t stop reading. I’m on Twitter! Follow me @ann_christenson
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
