Like many modern shopping centers, The Corners of Brookfield bills itself as its own community, a small town with a grocery store, movie theater, med spa, department store – upscale, all – and loads of places to drink and dine. And its latest spot is an elegant French restaurant called Margaux Brasserie that opened in June.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
Proprietor Kristyn O’Laughlin Eitel – whose restaurant group also operates the BelAir Cantinas – spent four years crafting this restaurant, intent to “get it right.”
Mar-go, as it’s pronounced, projects strength and femininity – underscored by design work by women-run businesses (silk flower installations by The Botanical Collective, a mural by Emma Daisy). O’Laughlin Eitel’s enthusiasm for French cuisine is matched by executive chef Nick Aprahamian, who says his culinary upbringing had a French bent.
“It’s got me written all over it,” he says of his new post. Aprahamian – who shares DNA with another local chef with the same last name, his Sanford-owning cousin Justin – channels his passion into the menu with what he calls “modern pizzazz.” This is more laid-back than by-the-book French.
Going back to O’Laughlin Eitel’s objective, Margaux gets many things right. The ambiance is refined, stylish, gregarious, cheeky – and the menu is reverent, relaxed and often quite good. Two entry points are the chicken liver mousse ($18) – silky smooth texture, with a sweet, funky flavor – and the mussels with frites ($24), which are firm but soft, served in a bowl of white wine butter sauce with thin, perfectly crisp frites.
Two other apps misfire – the truffled gougères (choux pastry puffs, $19) and duck confit turnovers ($19). Though the truffle and goat cheese flavors come through, the gougères don’t have the requisite tender, almost custardy middle. The turnovers – small puff pastry pies – are dry and the confit (duck cooked in its own fat) is the antithesis of succulent.
On the flip side is the royale with cheese burger ($19), a juicy, crusty smash patty with melted Gruyère, garlic aioli and shallot jam and a shiny toasted brioche bun. Another French restaurant must, steak frites, features tender, well-seasoned hanger steak ($56) with a bright, creamy demi-bearnaise sauce. And, yum, more frites!
Finally, the bouillabaisse ($40). Margaux’s version of this fish stew is very respectable – the saffron-laced broth is light and rustic, and the seafood (mussels, shrimp, bay scallops, cod) isn’t overcooked. Fingerling potatoes soak up the broth, and garlic toasts spread with rouille (a saffron mayo) add a final traditional Provençal touch.
Every time I’ve come here, my eye is drawn to the framed print of nuns wearing full habits huddled together smoking cigarettes. Margaux has a personality – serious when necessary, but she can let her hair down, too. She knows who she is, and I like her more each time I see her.
Margaux Brasserie
Address: 20107 N. Lord St., Brookfield, 262-330-5043
Hours: Mon-Thurs, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Fri 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sat 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sun 9 a.m.-9 p.m.
Prices: Appetizers, charcuterie $16-$38; soups, salads $11-$16; entrées $19-$47; desserts $10-$13
Service: Friendly, attentive, professional
Reservations: Accepted but accommodates walk-ins
