1. Lovingly Whisper “Marone” While Eating a Massive Mozzarella Stick from Alphonso’s
ARCHER PARQUETTE, MANAGING EDITOR
Ever since I was a bambino, I’ve loved mozzarella. In fact, my great-uncle Lorenzo used to sit me down on his knee and feed me thick slices of it while singing “Nessun Dorma” and sipping red wine. The years of gastrointestinal issues were well worth those fond memories.
Anyway, I’m always down for some good mutzadell, so when I heard about Alphonso’s “Lightning Rod” mozz sticks, I had to give them a try. As suggested by the name, these things are bonkers. They’re about the size of a person’s forearm and come in their own pizza box. I was anticipating problems of scale, such as cold cheese in the middle, a too-thick crust, etc., but I am glad to report that not only were there no problems – the gigantic mozzarella stick was delicious. I highly recommend sampling one from the West Allis pizza joint, although you’ll probably want to share with a friend or two because they truly are monumental in scope.
2. Read Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell
ANN CHRISTENSON, DINING EDITOR
I’m becoming a complete snob. About the fiction I read. Since I finished the full oeuvre of Irish crime novelist Tana French, I’ve been searching for other writers in the crime/thriller genre who can masterfully tell a story. I know they’re out there. I’m just on a mediocre streak. Though the jury is still out on my current read – Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell. She’s no Tana French, but about a third of the way through, I’m pulled into the narrative, which is about a mother whose teen daughter disappears one day on her way to the school library. Her remains are found many years later, but the circumstances of her death are murky and there are no suspects. The book hasn’t jumped into predictable or far-fetched yet, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.
Tell us who you’d pick to be a Betty this year!
3. Watch Marquette-UW on Saturday
CHRIS DROSNER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR
The state’s two most prominent men’s basketball programs have been on opposite trajectories lately. Marquette had an out-of-nowhere awesome season last year in head coach Shaka Smart’s second season, winning the Big East and earning a No. 2 seed, its highest in school history. They were bounced by Michigan State in the second round, but hey, that’s a good season, and returning guard Tyler Kolek is a consensus preseason All-American. The No. 3 Golden Eagles (5-1) have delivered on some big early season hype, beating top-ranked Kansas in last week’s Maui Invitational before losing to No. 2 (and now top-ranked) Purdue. Marquette heads to Shaka’s hometown of Madison to take on a Badgers team that – and I say this with love, as a Badgers fan – has been painful to watch the past few seasons. I can stomach Greg Gard’s brand of basketball when it’s getting the job done, but man, when the Badgers are scuffling like they were during last year’s 17-14, NCAA Tournament-less season, I totally check out. After seeing the Badgers (4-2) beat a pretty good SMU team last week in the Fort Myers Tip-Off, I’m ready to give this young team a shot, even if I fully expect to be receiving snide texts from my Marquette fans on Saturday. Tipoff from the Kohl Center at 11:30 a.m. on Fox.
4. Get a Sausage, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Sandwich from Allie Boy’s
BRIANNA SCHUBERT, ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR
So, our fearless dining editor Ann Christenson wrote about this delicious sandwich from Allie Boy’s in our breakfast guide earlier this year. But I had it over the weekend and want to reiterate just how glorious it is. You’ve got the bagel, you’ve got the patty, you’ve got the egg, you’ve got the cheese – all perfectly proportional and balanced. And then, weirdly, my favorite part is the small slathering of ketchup on the bagel. It adds just a little extra something that brings all the flavors together.
