Brew Pubs, Brewery's, Gastro-Pubs, Purveyors of Porky Goodness and Such.
Always worth the trip.
Remember life is a journey....NO not the band Journey...Like walking a path to enlightenment.
You can't get to enlightenment without BACON.
So while on a recent trip (See Pub Crawl) with a great friend to the Cream city (2 rashers of bacon to the first person who can tell me why Milwaukee is called that)
We started at the Milwaukee Brewing Co. http://milwaukeebrewingco.com/ Very good beer, good food, very nice staff and the locals were super helpful.
Remeber always chat up the locals for the very best a town has to offer.
We were searching for a gastro-brewpub in the neighborhood and could not find it.
But with some help we were on our way.
Welcome to the Hinterland http://www.hinterlandbeer.com/
And yes if your anywhere near Milwaukee you have to go there.
We get there as they are opening and sit at the bar.
Dan the bartender was very knowledgeable about there beer and food.
Which is very good with a good selection of solidly made beer.
OK just for the record I am a home brewer and my friend was a Professional Brewer.
NO not the baseball team...making beer...the elixir of gods.
I will leave the serious beer critiques to him. Back to the porky goodness.
Hinterland's menu changes daily.
Which gave us some concern because we heard they had PORK BELLY & Pigs Cheek.
Spoiler yes we were able to get both.
We started with Pork Rillette.
"Rillettes is a preparation of meat similar to pâté. Originally made with pork, the meat is cubed or chopped, salted heavily and cooked slowly in fat until it is tender enough to be easily shredded, and then cooled with enough of the fat to form a paste. They are normally used as spread on bread or toast and served at room temperature. "
Thank You Wikipedia
DELI COUS, WOW, You have to try this.
Next, we had a Homemade Smoked Hungarian Sausage with Potato Hash.
We added Bacon as garnish to this dish. Highly recommended.
Seriously Good eating. We could have eaten 2 or 3 of these they were so good.
And yes he cures and smokes his own bacon...Delicate and tender with gentle tones of smoke... a true delight.
At this point we meet the chef as he comes to the bar.
Chef Dan Van Rite, who, no offence bears a slight resemblence to Chuck Norris.
We are talking all thing Smoking and bacon ......
He then send out a Homemade Brined / Pickled Sausage
Sorry forgot to take a picture.
It was wonderfull. It was cool and spicy with bright flavors perfect for the summer.
Not heavy like you would think.
We are then treated to a tour of the kitchen to see his modified smoker.
Man he has some super cool toys. But the solution to a problem he had is pure creativity.
Behold the soupcan soldering iron smoker.
And Chef Dan Van Rite.
See I told you he kinda looks like Mr Norris.
Chef Dan is defantly working the cutting edge of culinary exploration.
When We say Gastropub Think this guy.
He is passionate about his food. You can see that in him and his staff.
By the way a top notch staff, they are as professional as he is.
By the way did I mention He is a James Beard Nominee.
The next item on our plate was the Pig Cheek. Hey relax the only part of the pig you cant eat is the "OINK"
To be accurate Apple Cider Braised Pork Cheek with Apple Slaw and horseradish emuslion.
Simpley put it was tender, flavorful and delecious.
Almost forgot to take a picture of this.
It smelled so good we couldn't wait.
Sadly the only pork product we did not eat was the 1/2 slab of ribs. They sill had some time to cook and we had seveal more pubs to hit.
I Guarntee I will be back. This place is pork-a-rifik.
Oh and the non pork menu is OUTSTANDING... Well Worth The Trip...
On with our trip
We visited Water Street Brewing....OK Beer....Inattentive staff.
Rock Bottom Brewing http://www.rockbottom.com/ Good solid beers. Good Food, Great Staff.
It was here from a local we got a lead for a Belgium Pub. And so the hunt was ON.
We found it Cafe Benelux http://www.cafebenelux.com/ WOW what a way to end the eveing
Siting on the second floor balcony drinking amazing Belgium Ales and eating mussels.
I want to come here for brunch.
Next, Trip to Milwaukee must Include Hinterland, Benelux, The Public Maket, The Wicked Hop, Lakefront Brewing.
DO NOT Confuse this place with Water Street, Lakefront makes Great Beer.
And where ever a good lead takes us.
Legal stuff. The opinions in this blog are mine. I have linked to the websites of the places I liked so you can find them eaiser. If anybody has a problem with that...send me a note. thank you
