Hot ham and rolls is a Milwaukee tradition

Sundays in Milwaukee have a smell: buttery, fresh-baked rolls.

After church, it’s tradition to pick up what’s known as hot ham and rolls – an end-of-weekend feast with origins in the cream city’s German or Polish roots, depending on which bakery owner you speak to.

For less than $30 at Grebe Bakery, for example, you can get three pounds of ham, 18 rolls and two pounds of potato salad.

The meal is part of Milwaukee’s identity, so much so that former Gov. Scott Walker made it part of his politico persona along with other attributes Walker promoted to assure voters he was as Wisconsin as they were.

He tweeted nearly 20 times about procuring hot ham and rolls from now-shuttered Fattoni’s deli after church in Wauwatosa during his first term as governor.

Brian Schwellinger, president of Badger Ham, which provides the hams for many bakeries’ meal deals, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in 2021 the hot ham and rolls tradition is likely rooted in religion.

“There were so many churches that the church tradition was a strong part of the community, and after service is when you had your first meal of the day,” Schwellinger said.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Hot ham and rolls is a Milwaukee tradition