Bay View is heating up. It’s already a go-to for dining and imbibing. Now, only more so. The new home of EsterEv (2165 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.) – owned by Dan Van Rite and Dan Jacobs of “Top Chef” fame – has an opening date. It’s Wednesday, April 17. (Which also happens to be the night that “Top Chef” airs on Bravo…)
Until recently EsterEv, which serves a fixed-price tasting menu, had operated on Friday and Saturday night inside DanDan. It’ll now be open Wednesday-Saturday nights. This new space – which used to house C-viche – gives them a 40-seat dining room, a bar and an outdoor patio. They describe the cuisine as “comfort food classics” drawing on “global inspiration.”
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
Jacobs shared his excitement about the move in a phone call just a few days before the opening date announcement. “Kate [Riley, an artist who is also Dan’s spouse] had a lot of design input and helped quite a bit. We didn’t use a design firm but Scott Starr of Rev Pop [a local branding and creative design firm] helped us out. Kate and a friend, Josh Miller, really dialed in a lot of the woodwork. [Kate] and I picked out the tables, light fixtures, and it’s been fun. The bathrooms, I think, are my favorite part; one is ‘Simpsons’ and Lord of the Rings inspired and the other is like Star Wars and Marvel.”
This kind of levity in design reflects the Dans. They’re serious about food and they’re also “goofballs,” Jacobs says. “I don’t want to lose that or make it too serious.”
In its new space, the EsterEv concept is aiming to be a welcoming neighborhood spot – a change from its more exclusive, private dining theme of its restaurant-inside-a-restaurant days. The four-course tasting menu starts at $80 per person, with optional beverage courses for $50 per person.
These are some of the dishes that may feature on the opening menu:
- Caviar Tater Tot (ossetra, dill, creme fraiche) – “Inspired by the chefs’ shared love for McDonald’s hash browns, this ‘fancified’ version is a nostalgic bite of heaven”
- Chicken Liver Toast (green tomato, red onion, everything bagel) –a “long-standing Jacobs family tradition that brings generations together in the kitchen during the holidays”
- Matzo Brei(egg, onion, schmaltz) – “a spin on Jacobs’ favorite meal as a kid, breakfast for dinner, or ‘brinner,’ that he would enjoy with his grandmother”
- Halibut (white asparagus, almond, meyer lemon) – a beautiful marriage of late winter and early spring ingredients
- Sunchoke (dulse, citrus) – EsterEv’s sous chef, Syd Zwieg, “reimagines sunchokes as a dessert to perfect one of the menu’s final bites”
The beverage choices were designed to complement the food menu. A few examples: the Balam (Anodyne cold brew coffee, xtabentun anise liqueur, cardamom cream float); the Drunken Monkey (bourbon, brandy, amontillado sherry, apricot, coconut, lime, pineapple, Chinese 5 spice), which was created as an homage to DanDan. Wines include a cold-climate addition – Rivals, by American Wine Project, a women-owned winery based in Mineral Point.
Besides the new EsterEv digs – and Jacobs’ role on “Top Chef” – the Dans are finalists for the 2024 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Midwest.
EstervEv’s hours: Wed-Sat 5-9 p.m.
Reservations are available on Tock.
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