In her Best Bites series, dining critic Rachel Bernhard rounds up some of the most delicious dishes she ate around Milwaukee in recent weeks. From food-truck finds to fine-dining dishes, these are some of her favorite things that crossed her plate each month.
Summer is my season. Gimme all the lakeside picnics, outdoor concerts, farmers market feasts, patio eats and on-a-boat bites available. I’ll gobble it all up with glee.
I got a good start last month. Aside from visiting some new Milwaukee patios and looking for the best beer garden food , I dove into summertime eating by hitting up a few festivals, stopping by food trucks and seeking out what early-season produce was popping up on farm-to-table menus.
Here are a few of the best things I ate in June that made me all the more excited for what summer has in store.
Spicy steak panini from Nessun Dorma
Nessun Dorma, 2778 N. Weil St., is such a sweet little nook tucked into the Riverwest neighborhood. Inside, it’s a cozy hideaway with loads of old-school charm. Outside, in summer, the wrap-around sidewalk seating on the corner lot is pretty and peaceful. And on the menu, salads, soups and snacks are simple and satisfying, and nightly specials like pasta and pizza are always inventive.
But don't sleep on Nessun Dorma’s panini. I'll be coming back for the spicy steak ($16), which caused me to sit back in my chair to soak in its deliciousness on a visit last month.
Two thick squares of asiago-sprinkled, crusty ciabatta bread sandwich ultra-tender strips of beef tenderloin, melty provolone cheese, light spring mix lettuce, a swipe of garlicky aioli and a sprinkling of giardiniera that, yes, packs a smack of heat that brings the whole thing to life.
Sitting outside at my flower box-flanked patio table with that panini — and a glass of rose sweating in the June evening heat — I think I found one of my new favorite simple suppers of summer.
Steamed pork buns from Braise
When I first tasted the pork buns ($12) at Braise, 1101 S. 2 nd St., nearly a decade ago, I lifted a prayer to the restaurant gods that they’d never leave the menu.
They must’ve listened, because these pillowy handhelds have been a small-plate standard since. It had been a few years since I’d tried them, though, and on a recent visit, I had to see if the buns lived up to one of my favorite food memories in Milwaukee.
Oh yeah, they totally hold up. Those puffy buns — soft, chewy and just a little but sticky — are like clouds that cup crispy pork belly, a scattering of crunchy spiced nuts and a peppy scallion vinaigrette that kicks up the flavor with acidic oomph.
They’re just as delicious as I remembered them so many years ago, when I took a bite and asked, ”What are these ?” before asking if we could order more for the table. I sure hope that prayer still holds up all this time later.
I was craving a sweet treat on my way home from work when I remembered Midwest Sad just set up a standalone pick-up window downtown at 770 N. Jefferson St. (If you’re aware of the fabulous Pakistani takeout spot, Shah Jee’s, it’s located on the opposite side of the same lower-level space.)
I’ve followed Midwest Sad on Instagram ( @midwestsadmke ) since it began selling its adorable-looking sweet treats like macarons, mini cakes and Oreo dirt cake “succulent pots” at Hot Dish Pantry last year, and I was pulled into its new location by a photo of its latest special — creamy banana pudding — that I couldn’t shake from my mind.
Lucky for me (and you!), the banana pudding has been so popular that Midwest Sad carved out a permanent spot for it on its menu.
This banana pudding ($6) could make a Southerner swoon. It’s velvety and creamy with intensely sweet, in-your-face banana flavor in the best way. Crushed vanilla wafers are sprinkled over the top and on the bottom of the cup —make sure you dig down to get ’em — and thick, fresh banana slices are mixed into the pudding. The take-it-to-go serving is just enough to share for two (though I polished mine off myself), and though I brought mine home to enjoy, I envisioned myself happily scooping into the pudding from a blanket outstretched at Jazz in the Park at nearby Cathedral Square.
Dandan noodles from DanDan (Summerfest outpost)
When it comes to Summerfest food, it’s difficult for me to stray from my faves. Yes, of course, that means the Saz’s Sampler Platter . It’s hard for me to pass up those Heavenly Roasted Nuts, too. And though I’m always tempted to try each year’s new Summerfest foods , I’ll admit nothing usually excites me too much.
Until this year, when I learned DanDan would have an outpost at Summerfest — its first time as a vendor at Henry Maier Festival Park. On opening day of Summerfest, just hours after wrapping up coverage of DanDan chef and co-owner Dan Jacobs’ spectacular run on “Top Chef: Wisconsin,” I decided I hadn’t had enough Dan in my life.
So over to the DanDan window I went, in search of its namesake dandan noodles ($17). And ... who took my order? Well, Jacobs himself! Seriously ... does the guy ever sleep ?
Of course there was a bit of a line filled with folks frenzied to try the “Top Chef” finalist’s food, but my noodles came out quickly — just a couple minutes of waiting, tops — and they were served steaming hot in a cardboard takeout container.
The noodles were slick with chili oil and topped with ground pork, peanuts, sesame seeds, scallions and herbs, and you get a pretty decent serving of them for the price, too. Enough to make a meal but not too much to weigh you down for a night spent standing on metal bleachers. I slurped the noodles happily with chopsticks, pleasantly surprised by how fantastic of a walk-and-eat festival dish they were.
Are they the best representation of Chinese-American food I’ve had? I wouldn't say that. But it’s impressive how DanDan has managed to mass-produce its signature dish for festivalgoers while maintaining the integrity you’d expect from James Beard Award-nominated chefs — and how often can you say that? Consider this a new addition to my Summerfest dining rotation.
Rachel Bernhard joined the Journal Sentinel as dining critic in June 2023. She’s been busy exploring the Milwaukee area food scene to share her favorite finds with readers along the way. Like all Journal Sentinel reporters, she buys all meals, accepts no gifts and is independent of all establishments she covers.
What should she cover next? Contact her at rseis@gannett.com . Follow her on Twitter at @rachelbernhard or on Instagram at @rach.eats.mke .
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Best Bites: 4 of the best dishes our dining critic ate in Milwaukee in June
Most Popular
Comments / 0