1. Grab a MobCraft Beer Advent Calendar
CHRIS DROSNER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR
This is a creative packaging idea that has seemingly exploded in the few years since MobCraft Beer began putting 24 of its beers in a special box, each with its own little dated cubby. There are not a lot of breweries that can swing this logistical and creative challenge, which MobCraft helps meet by including nine exclusive collaboration beers. The brewery sent me one last year, and the assortment was a fun December distraction. There were a few of MobCraft’s signature weird beers but also plenty of more approachable styles and a nice representation from their very underrated wild and sour program. Pro tip: The box is big – probably too big for most fridges – so I opened mine each evening, popped that beer in the fridge and drank the previous day’s treat. MobCraft is taking preorders for the calendars ($75) now, and they should be available for pickup in the taproom (505 S. Fifth St.) and at select retailers around Nov. 1.
2. Try “The Cavalier” at The Vanguard
ARCHER PARQUETTE, MANAGING EDITOR
I must confess that I have taken The Vanguard for granted. The Bay View bar and restaurant (which graced the cover of our September 2020 issue, with its sausage-y goodness) seemed like the kind of beloved local institution that was destined to stick around for years to come, no problem. Who doesn’t love whimsically themed meats? But last week, I read an interview with Vanguard’s co-owners on Milwaukee Record, in which they admitted that sales had plummeted recently and that they’re seriously looking at the possibility of shutting down in the months ahead. Struck by dread, I immediately planned a lunch outing to support the business. The Record interview mentioned that there had been problems with “inconsistent food quality.” Well, in my experience last Friday, that problem is fixed. I had “The Cavalier,” named after our mayor, a sausage topped with fig mustard, crumbled goat cheese and herbs. It was delicious, and I gulped it down in about ten seconds like a starving rottweiler. I was also happy to find the place crowded, and I hope more people come out support Bay View’s mighty sausage makers.
Tell us who you’d pick to be a Betty this year!
3. Read Tracy Flick Can’t Win by Tom Perrotta
ARCHER PARQUETTE, MANAGING EDITOR
Tom Perrotta is one of our great suburban novelists. For the past 25 years, his novels have charted the petty grievances, grand injustices and underlying sadness of life in those well-manicured neighborhoods. His 1998 breakout novel, Election, followed a high school history teacher’s attempt to sabotage the student government presidential election of Tracy Flick, a high-achieving, Type-A girl he didn’t like. Last year, Perrotta revisited Flick 20 years later with Tracy Flick Can’t Win, a sequel that finds the promising young woman stuck as the assistant principal at a mediocre high school. Like all Perrotta novels, it’s funny and insightful and a little bit tragic.
4. Dine at Elsa’s on the Park
ANN CHRISTENSON, DINING EDITOR
I was just at Elsa’s (833 N. Jefferson St.) the other night, seated by what is always a huge, provocative art installation. The one that’s been hanging for a while has a three-dimensional quality that also feels like it’s gently moving. From a distance, it looks (to me, anyway) like fur. But it’s made of toothpicks. And it’s fascinating to watch other diners try to figure out what it is. While I’m people-watching, I love an Elsa’s pork sandwich (even though the waffle-cut fries that were sort of perfect have been replaced with steak fries). One thing I rarely, if ever, miss here is good service. That’s something that general manager John Jordan knows something about – a lot, in fact. He talked about his views on what makes good service in this story from our October issue.
5. Listen to Snow Angel by Reneé Rapp
BRIANNA SCHUBERT, ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR
My favorite album right now is Snow Angel by Reneé Rapp. Rapp is most well-known for her roles in Mean Girls on Broadway and “The Sex Lives of College Girls” on Max, but she’s also an incredible singer, and this debut album showcases that beautifully. I particularly love the way she belts it out in “Tummy Hurts” and how much of a bop “Pretty Girls” is. In “23,” she captures the experience of feeling like everything should be good because it “looks good on paper” but life is actually really complicated and hard sometimes and imposter syndrome is real. Not that I can relate or anything. Anyways, it’s a great album and I definitely recommend a listen.
