Each week on This Bites, dining critic Ann Christenson from Milwaukee Magazine and Radio Milwaukee’s resident foodie Tarik Moody dig into the city’s culinary and restaurant culture to help you find new spots, old favorites and the best ingestibles around Milwaukee.
Our city’s food map touches just about every corner of the globe. From East Africa to Southeast Asia and the Caribbean to exotic Canada, you can find pretty decent examples of most cultural cuisines right here in Milwaukee.
We’ve got two right at the top of this episode, starting in Central Europe and the pierogi that established a foothold in our area thanks to its Polish roots. If you’ve never popped this variety of dumpling in your mouth, it’s the perfect time considering we celebrated National Pierogi Day earlier this week (Oct. 8, in case you want to mark your calendar for next year).
The Polish Center of Wisconsin celebrated a couple different ways: a pierogi night that apparently was met with overwhelming demand and a reminder that Tata’s Pierogi are available by the dozen at the center (6941 S. 68th St. in Franklin).
From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, you can pick up a frozen 12-pack of pierogi for $6 or — if you’re playing the long game — three dozen and a reusable insulated bag for $25 that will also score you $1 off every time you refill it. The center does recommend that you call ahead (414-529-2140) to see what they have in stock, but here’s the running menu:
- Potato & Cheese
- Mushroom & Sauerkraut
- Sweet Cheese
- Potato, Cheddar & Bacon
- Mushroom & Mozzarella
- Meat (ground pork)
- Spinach & Feta Cheese
- Cabbage (vegan option)
- Potato Pancakes (5 per package)
We turn our culinary attention south for the other global news item that caught our eye this week, as Crossroads Collective recently welcomed a Colombian street-food concept to one of its vendor stalls. Capybara Café is operated by Valentina and Jonah Sloan, who have built a menu that’s faithful to Valentina’s native Colombia.
Among the items you’ll find are arepas, empanadas and salchipapas, plus Colombian hot dogs and stuffed patacones. They’ll also earn the “Café” part of their name with a variety of coffee options — from espresso drinks to cold brew — and drinks like Jugos en Agua and Jugos en Leche.
Let’s finish up with a couple places located just a few blocks apart downtown. On Broadway, The Wolf is quite literally bringing some interesting flavors to the table via their tasting menu. For $65 per person, you’ll get four courses that — according to the example on their website — could pull in everything from wontons to oysters and beef cheek to pork belly. Shifting to Mason Street, Ann recently made a visit to the grill that shares the street’s name and gives us a sneak preview of the full review you can find in the pages of Milwaukee Magazine.
You won’t find This Bites in print anywhere, but we’ll be here on your screen and in your ears every week with another collection of food news from around the Milwaukee area. If you appreciate our efforts, the best way to show it is to leave a rating or review wherever you listen. Thanks.
