Each month, as we put together the issue, the whole team gets immersed in the various stories that we are working on. But when there is a food feature like this month’s “Where to Eat Now,” immersion borders on obsession.
We all eagerly await dining editor Ann Christenson’s list of the best, curious to find out which restaurants make the cut and what dishes are standouts. And all of us delight in being among the first to know about a new discovery; it’s one of the perks of working at a magazine like this.
Milwaukee’s dining scene continues to grow at a remarkable pace. As I write this, the James Beard Award semifinalists were recently released, and in the Best Chef: Midwest category, three Milwaukee restaurants are represented. And the fact that our city is a key location of the new season of “Top Chef” also illustrates the point. I think a hush will fall upon Milwaukee when the first episode premieres this month, with the whole city glued to their screens.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
I feel very fortunate to have a job that is often very fun, and that was the case on the day we shot this month’s cover at Lupi & Iris. Chef and co-owner Adam Siegel collaborated enthusiastically with our team, going above and beyond the call of duty. Not only did he prepare the beautiful dishes, but he patiently adjusted the food as we made requests like, “Could you rotate the chop on the top right so that the bone points to 2 o’clock?” It’s easy to geek out over minutiae at a food shoot, but that’s how you achieve the gorgeous results you see on the cover and on page 39.
If this story leaves you hungry (sorry, I couldn’t resist) to sample some of these restaurants’ offerings, I suggest that you join us for the Milwaukee Magazine Chef Event on April 17, where you can enjoy small plates by some of the leading chefs in our region. Find out more at milwaukeemag.com/chefevent.
Until next month, enjoy!
– Carole Nicksin, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher
carole@milwaukeemag.com, @CaroleNicksin
Features
- Where to Eat Now: Superior service. Stellar spaces. And oooooh, that food. These are Milwaukee’s best restaurants of 2024.
- Life on The Line: What was a woman of a certain era to do when she needed to work outside the home but society deemed it unseemly? Some found their way to Milwaukee’s open secret: its riverside red light district.
- Behind the Lens: Photographer Tom Ferderbar found his vocation as a young man. Now 95 years old (and still snapping shots), he looks back at his life’s work.
- MilMag Interview: Decades before Laura Gutiérrez began running the United Community Center as its CEO, she was running the South Side institution’s halls as a teenager.
Your 414
- Peeps: A super sweet exhibition at the Racine Art Museum
- People Places Things: Realistic paintings that capture the countryside, plus a former Milwaukee cop’s thriller novel, a new music venue and more
- St. Patrick’s Day: For some on the Celtic culture circuit, the Irish vibes continue year-round.
- Civic Art: Meet Milwaukee’s first public artist in residence, who’s building a traffic-cone-covered car.
The Dish
- Imbibe: Feeling a little, well, listless? The fix for that is the colorful bar at Zócalo Food Park.
- Tidbits: The Hale House rounds out a month for Reubens, plus Menomonee Falls’ first brewery and our nuggets of food news.
- Q&A: Kerry Sinsky manages the front of the house at Buckley’s – a job she says doesn’t feel like work at all.
- Review: Inspired, inventive Latin American cuisine is coming out of the kitchen of downtown Waukesha’s Travieso.
Insider
- Agriculture: A Wisconsin organization advances a new class of eco-friendly grain.
- Pets: What’s in a name for prospective adoptees?
- Transportation: Take a train to AmFam Field? Green Bay? Oconomowoc? Maybe!
Explore
- Music: Once a pig barn, this Spring Green live entertainment venue is much cooler than its name would suggest.
- History: Grafton’s fascinating but little-known blues legacy
- Travel: Ever crave an Airbnb with a lot of character? We’ve got the accommodations for you.
