After learning he’s one of the five finalists for the James Beard Foundation Awards’ Best Chef: Midwest, Ardent’s Justin Carlisle thanked his staff by name on social media. That’s fitting. When I’ve asked Carlisle – owner of the East Side’s intimate, indelible must-visit (1751 N. Farwell Ave.) – about kitchen titles (“head chef,” “sous chef”), he seemed less interested in appellations than in being part of a team. You’ve undoubtedly heard that the Ardent team doesn’t utilize Wisconsin farms — for beef, eggs, cheese, etc. — to talk the talk or be part of a trend. They do “because it’s the way chefs should cook,” Carlisle has said. If you haven’t been there, you need to go, not only to experience the cuisine but the attention the staff devotes to service. And for a completely different, Ardent on a different scale, there’s Red Light Ramen — the restaurant’s post-11:30 p.m. persona on Friday and Saturday nights. This place wasn’t named Ardent for nothing. The Beard awards will be held in Chicago on May 4.
Photo by Adam Ryan Morris
Justin Carlisle’s Beard Award Nomination
The high-caliber culinary foundation gives national attention to a deserving Milwaukee chef.
