1. Get Out and Enjoy Fall!
BRIANNA SCHUBERT, ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR
Fall is my favorite time of year – the crisp weather, leaves turning bright hues of red, warm drinks, sweaters. But it’s a fleeting season, so we have to make the most of it. And that’s why this week, I’m shouting into the void to anyone who will listen that now is the time to get out and enjoy fall! Not sure where to begin? Lucky for you, we have guides to just about every fall activity you could possibly want to do: Apple picking, pumpkin patches, corn mazes, haunted houses, the ultimate Wisconsin fall drive, you name it. Don’t wait around … it’ll be winter before you know it.
2. Get the General Tso’s Cauliflower at DanDan
ARCHER PARQUETTE, MANAGING EDITOR
I am a simple man of meat – a meat man, you might say. When I go out to dinner, my orders largely consist of chicken, chicken derivatives, ground chuck, hamburgers and various other protein-heavy dishes. And yet, on my first trip to the Third Ward’s much-beloved DanDan last weekend, I was persuaded to try the General Tso’s Cauliflower, by our dining critic Ann Christenson’s recommendation in the very pages of this magazine. Ann called it “a flavor and texture tour-de-force [with] sweetness, tang and a tantalizing bite.” Allow me to second that opinion. Of all the delicious dishes I tried at DanDan – and there were indeed multiple – the cauliflower was the standout. It presented a challenge to my meaty ways, one that necessitates a return visit.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
3. Visit the Farmers Market Before the Season Ends
ANN CHRISTENSON, DINING EDITOR
It pains me to say this, but the summer/fall farmers market season is almost over. Some markets run through the end of this month, though, so there’s still time to get fresh, local foods/products. I was at Shorewood yesterday (their last market is Sunday, Oct. 27) and came home with some treasures. Two things for certain were on my list – a cup of cold brew to send much-wanted caffeine coursing through my system, and local honey, because at this point in the (terrible) ragweed pollen allergy season, I’m willing to try anything. In the end, I got the coffee (delicious, from Vennture Brew Co.), a big bouquet of fresh broccoli and golden beets from Amy’s Acre (my favorite produce vendor there), a pasture-raised whole chicken (from D & L Pastured Meats) and a jar of River East Honey (from Dragon Fly Farm, which utilizes urban honeybee colonies). I started my regimen of 1 teaspoon of raw honey today. It’ll be my most delicious food medicine experiment, to date.
4. Indulge in a Real Housewives of Salt Lake City Watch Party at Kinn Guesthouse
EVAN MUSIL, ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR
Look, I’ve already babbled about this silly show on our site before, so I’ll just cut to the chase: The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City made a surprise trip to Milwaukee earlier this year, and the first episode of this excursion aired last week. They visit the bobblehead museum (in a callback to a memorable quote). They go to a Bucks game to see Giannis (one of the cast members frequently brings up her Greek heritage). And, as usual, rumors and nastiness unfold. Not a whole lot was said about our city other than offhand remarks and a bizarre claim about one’s father living next to Jeffrey Dahmer. Yeah… But the housewives had great things to say about Milwaukee on social media, and it’s always a treat for the city to get more deserved time under the national spotlight. Another Milwaukee episode – teased to take place at This Is It! – airs this Wednesday. The Lookout at Kinn Guesthouse, which hosted the housewives during their stay, is holding a watch party from 7-9 p.m.
5. Gird Yourself for Chat Pile’s Cool World
CHRIS DROSNER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR
How many times can I recommend Chat Pile in this editor’s pick column? Apparently the answer is at least two. The Oklahoma band’s oeuvre through three EPs and a single full-length album, 2022’s God’s Country, has been grinding, bass-driven sludge metal telling intimately horrifying tales of murder, madness and mayhem. Now, with the new album Cool World out Friday, it sounds like Chat Pile is adjusting its dystopian lens to a wider focus – it’s not just this one thing that’s screwed up, it’s the entire world. “If I had to describe the album in one sentence,” vocalist Raygun Busch says on the band’s website, “It’s hard not to borrow from Voltaire, so I won’t resist – Cool World is about the price at which we eat sugar in America.” The band has already released three songs from the album and all are in my top 10 Chat Pile songs, new sounds mixed with old, a bit more Korn influence showing than the band’s previous library. I’m stoked to hear the full record.
