1. Try the Pfister Lobby Lounge’s Smashburger
CAROLE NICKSIN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF AND PUBLISHER
I had a great evening out on Friday, all under one roof. My friend and I started at the lobby bar at the Pfister. We had planned to go someplace else for dinner, but the atmosphere was so fun (some of the NCAA teams were staying there, so there was lots of activity), we stayed put. My smashburger was outstanding. I intended to offer my friend a bite – I really did! – but somehow it disappeared before I had the chance. Not ready to call it a night, we headed up to Blu, where we enjoyed a nightcap while listening to live jazz and gazing at the panoramic view. That’s what I call a perfect night out in Milwaukee!
2. See Some Cool Sweaters at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center
EVAN MUSIL, ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR
When I found out that knitter extraordinaire Sam Barsky would be showing his picturesque sweaters in an exhibition at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, I knew two things: I had to talk to him, and I had to view his whimsical knits in person. I finally made the trek to the Malibu of the Midwest last weekend, and seeing Barsky’s sweaters was inspiring, honestly. Instagram captures their charm, but it doesn’t capture each thread, each change in texture. Their immediate physicality makes it clear that someone made them – someone who poured hours of homespun imagination into his own wardrobe and, by extension, his daily life. “Maybe I too could do something like this,” I think to myself as someone who’s never once in his life picked up a knitting needle. But that’s precisely what Barsky wants to do – inspire others to take up knitting, or at least take the time to be creative.
Tell us who you’d pick to be a Betty this year!
3. Enjoy a Cup of Soup at Loup
ANN CHRISTENSON, DINING EDITOR
Harwood Avenue is one of my favorite commercial streets in Tosa Village. There you’ll find Le Rêve Patisserie & Café, Magpie (a really cool fine jewelry shop), Tabal Chocolate (the city’s only bean-to-bar chocolatier), and the great little soup shop called Loup (7505 Harwood Ave.). I was originally introduced to this soup concept – under the name Wisconsin Soup Co. – at farmers markets. At the brick-and-mortar, which opened in late 2020, you can order their soups (cup, bowl, quart) to eat there with bread or a sandwich. They also have a freezer where you can buy frozen quarts (root vegetable is a particular favorite of mine). Recently I had a nice solo lunch of a turkey and herbed goat cheese sandwich with a cup of chicken and dumpling soup. Yum!
4. Try the Screamin’ Sicilian Tavern Style Pizza
CHRIS DROSNER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Attention fellow frozen pizza enthusiasts: We’ve got a new great one in our midst. Milwaukee’s own Palermo’s rolled out the Tavern Style variant of its Screamin’ Sicilian line in summer 2023, but until recently I hadn’t noticed it in the wash of those boxed, higher-end pizzas I tend to never buy. Tavern Style is a simpler pizza in the simpler plastic-wrapped cardboard flat, and I picked up a couple of them on sale recently. Boy, is it good. The sauce, the cheese, the pepperoni are all super flavorful and sing together perfectly. But the best part is the crust: super thin and actually buttery somehow, at least in flavor, almost like a pizza on a somehow-sturdy Ritz cracker. Pizza wizardry! Tavern Style’s full retail price is $10, and while I’m not quite sure I’m laying out that much on the regular, I will definitely be mixing it into my rotation.
5. Read MilMag’s CRMA-Nominated Stories!
ARCHER PARQUETTE, MANAGING EDITOR
Is this a little bit of self-promotion on behalf of MilMag? Yes. I apologize. But please allow us this moment – we’re really excited! Every year, the City and Regional Magazine Association gives out awards for the best writing and design in magazines across the country. And this year our magazine is a finalist for six of them! That includes our feature writing, our dining section, and the big kahuna – General Excellence. We certainly have been feeling generally excellent since this announcement was made last week. If you’re so inclined, you can find links to the award-nominated stories here.
Editor’s Note: Archer claims self-promotion but neglects to mention that two stories he wrote – the January feature on how “Happy Days” and Milwaukee history do and do not intertwine, and September’s profile of MMSD boss Kevin Shafer – were nominated for writing awards. Go, Archer!
