Listen Up
• Silver Spur Texas Smokehouse BBQ opened this week in the former Elm Grove Inn. (The building dates to the 1850s). The Spur’s extensive menu includes “fiery” Buffalo wings, chicken-fried steak, fajitas, chicken enchiladas, fried shrimp and Southwest catfish. As you can see, that doesn’t touch the barbecue side of the menu, which itself features St. Louis-style ribs, platters (of chicken, pulled pork, beef brisket, sausage and turkey) and combos. There’s also the BBQ Feed Bag (for 4-5 people), a melange of ribs, chicken, brisket, coleslaw, potato salad, ranch beans, fries and corn muffins ($59.95). General entrée price range: $8.95-$21.95. 13275 Watertown Plank Rd., 262-821-1511.
• We here at Milwaukee Magazine are not shy about discussing pizza – not with each other, not with the universe. It almost got ugly the other day between assistant editor Evan Solochek and me. The topic was crust. But that’s another story. In the new-pizzeria department, Brick 3 Pizza has officially occupied the old African Hut since last week (1107 N. Old World Third St.). It looks a million times different than the Hut. A clean kind of décor – wood floors, exposed brick, built-in booths and the ubiquitous flat-screen TVs. The New York-style pizzas are available whole and by the slice. Flavors are everything from pepperoni to chicken Parmesan. I got a slice of the caprese (tomato, buffalo mozzarella, green olives, basil), but the fresh tomato made it too wet. Bummer. Sun-Wed 11 a.m.-midnight; Thurs-Sat 11 a.m.-4 a.m. 414-224-6040.
• Bistro 333, at the Hyatt Hotel, is open and serving three square meals a day. The dinner menu promises beer-battered walleye fingers, braised spare ribs with Lakefront Brewery Maple Root Beer glaze and veal schnitzel served with a sunny-side-up egg. Hyatt Regency Milwaukee, 333 W. Kilbourn Ave., 414-270-6130.
• The Iron Horse Hotel’s new Smyth restaurant (500 W. Florida St.) will serve its first meal tomorrow night – May 1st. Here’s a smattering of what there is to eat: New York strip and filet mignon (the latter in 6- and 10-ounce sizes); pork tenderloin with grilled apple and sweet potato/white potato bourbon gratin; venison osso buco; buttermilk pan-fried chicken; and pan-seared salmon with fingerling potatoes and olive oil-pine nut butter. Hours: Tues-Thurs- 5-10 p.m.; Fri-Sat- 5-11 p.m. Make reservations by calling 414-831-4615.
Spring Things
Named after the three-sided Celtic symbol, Triskele’s (1801 S. Third St., 414-837-5950) incorporates threes into its menu. For instance, meats, seafood and vegetarian have their respective sections. Co-owner JoLinda Klopp is on a spring kick. You like rainbow trout? She’s doing a new prep for the fish – serving it with roasted artichoke compound butter and candied leeks. The grilled asparagus with poached egg, crisp prosciutto and sherry vinaigrette is back on the menu. Other all-around newbies: grilled, brined pork loin with port wine-shallot sauce and rosemary potato gratin; cod fricassee with smoky tomatoes, poached egg and grilled crostini; and house-made pasta with chickpeas, arugula and garlic-Chardonnay broth. Soon, very soon, it’ll be soft-shell crab season. Klopp says she’ll have these tasty, fully edible crustaceans on the specials menu for as long as the little critters are in season.
Mommy Dearest
May 1st being mere hours away, you know what that means. Mother’s Day. And you know what that means. Brunch. To help you please your mother, here are some venues serving brunch on this most important day (May 10th). As with Easter and every other holiday, call ASAP for reservations:
Tess, 2499 N. Bartlett Ave., 414-964-8377: Choices: steak and eggs, banana walnut French toast, crab cake Benedict, Southern scramble and others ($8-$14). Brunch 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Dinner also served: 5-9 p.m.
Meritage, 5921 W. Vliet St., 414-479-0620: The menu features eggs Benedict, corned beef hash and eggs, quiche, breakfast tostada and French toast ($6-$10.50). Open 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Milwaukee Public Museum, 800 W. Wells St., 414-278-2728: Catered by Zilli’s. Includes butterfly tours in the Rain Forest. Seating times: 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. MPM members and mothers $29; non-members $34. Reduced price for kids.
Envoy (at the Ambassador Hotel), 2308 W. Wisconsin Ave., 414-345-5015: Brunch buffet includes carving station, made-to-order omelets, seafood and desserts. 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Adults $25.95; children 12 and under $12.95.
Berkeley’s Café, 342 E. Silver Spring Dr., 414-897-8624: Brunch buffet featuring made-to-order omelets, eggs Benedict, pancakes, entrées, soups, salads and desserts. 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Adults $17.95; children under 10 $8.95
Sake Tumi, 714 N. Milwaukee St., 414-224-7253: Accepting reservations until May 8th. All-you-can-eat menu includes nori rolls, nigiri-style fish, shrimp and vegetable tempura and bulgogi (marinated, shaved rib eye). 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Adults $29; children ages 6-12 $10; children under age 6 free.
If you’ve listened to me dish with Jane and Kidd on 99.1 WMYX-FM, now you can listen to our food chats anytime right here.
Don’t miss this week’s Shopaholic to learn about a few hip, upcoming fashion soirées and the city’s best deals on great design.
