HobNob gains attention for excellence in hospitality
The James Beard Foundation typically pays attention to the nation’s edgiest and newest chefs and restaurant concepts. An easy majority of the annual Beard semifinalists […]
Food/Drink
Take 12: All in good taste for 2019
Extraordinary dining is not about category or price. This year I found it at farms and an aquarium, from rural Wisconsin to the seaside of […]
Winning recipes: grasshopper cheesecake, choco cheesecake bars
Two home bakers in Wisconsin have taken the top prizes in the Taste of Homes recipe contest, “Best-Ever Baking”. Sue Gronholz of Beaver Dam was […]
Sip craft cocktails at farm-based distilleries
My hardest task on this nothing-short-of-perfect August afternoon is to choose. Key Lime Pie or Pineapple Upside Down Cake? Cranberry Gimlet or Vo-Mosa? All are […]
Fair food: more skewing of skewered cuisine
Long gone are the quaint summers when food on a stick during a county or state fair meant eating an ice cream bar, cotton candy […]
Offbeat bars: Le Tigre, John Bryant’s, Cleo’s, more
Inside a plain-jane strip mall, between a hardware store and compact ethnic grocery, is a cat house of sorts. One with low lights, cash-only transactions […]
Ellsworth: cheese curd king
In Wisconsin is a high level of enthusiasm for squeaky-fresh cheese curds, a mild and young variety of cheese. We love stringy-hot, breaded curds to […]
Food trends: CBD oil, dietary adaptations, speedy service all matter
What a long way we’ve come since two guys in California – Roy Allen and Frank Wright – sold root beer in glass mugs for […]
Greece: What makes Greek food authentic
Last of three parts. We all make presumptions based on our limited exposure to people whose culture, heritage or religion seem foreign to us. That […]
Tasty gain: Major Milwaukee food hall coming
Jackie and Sara Woods’ doughnuts and breakfast sandwiches pop up here and there in the Milwaukee area. It’s been that way around eight months. “I […]
Savor this: pound cake, kringle, hootch, bitters
This month’s Midwest Foodservice Expo showed off what’s new and best in the world of Wisconsin food and drink. The annual event, for Wisconsin Restaurant […]
Bitters in, bottoms up at boot camp
A class with cocktails: That’s how Taylore Ransom and Erik Rozolis of Janesville spent a recent Saturday afternoon in Madison. For them and about 30 […]
Three for tea: urban to rural
On the dreariest of winter days, fog obscures otherwise gorgeous views from the 23rd floor of The Pfister Hotel in downtown Milwaukee. Three of us […]
Take eight: Hot for chocolate
A little luxury during winter is hot chocolate, made all the sweeter when served in a setting that goes beyond the disappearing act of powdered […]
Take Twelve: All in good taste for 2018
Lots of us have an appetite for the memorable when away from home, and sometimes we quell it with food. We remember – long after […]
‘150 Bars’ book: unique places to take a swig
Prohibition ended nationwide 85 years ago, as of this month, so now is a particularly appropriate time to hoist that hot toddy. Comfort and familiarity […]
Ultimate Eats: Savoring food as culture
Food is an easy, on-target introduction to a location’s cultural roots, and a new book latches onto must-try dishes when traveling the world. “Ultimate Eats: […]
German-born master chef takes over Black Forest, Three Lakes
As most U.S. teens were just learning to drive, 15-year-old Marcel Biro was a world away, navigating culinary school. The year: 1988. The place: East […]
Archie’s Waeside in Iowa: citadel of American beef cookery
In a modest residential area – near farmland, railroad tracks and tall grain storage silos – is an almost-full parking lot at 5:30 p.m. on […]
Now is the season for open-air dining in rural Wisconsin
About 65 scenic miles separate two Wisconsin restaurants that serve pasta, brick-oven pizza and wine from around the world. The classy Italian menu at both […]