This week we have some big announcements, including the semi-finalists for the 35th annual James Beard Awards, and news of a forthcoming East African Restaurant coming to Milwaukee. We also discuss the latest Milwaukee Magazine cover story that goes inside the minds of the city's top chefs.
On March 25 we'll learn who the finalists are for this year's James Beard Awards, and we'll see if any of these three semi-finalist Milwaukee chefs are among them: Dane Baldwin, an industry vet best known for The Diplomat, is nominated for Best Chef Midwest, as is Karen Bell of Bavette La Boucherie. And in the category of Outstanding Restaurateur award, there's Paul Bartolotta of The Bartolotta Restaurants (Ristorante Bartolotta, Harbor House, Lake Park Bistro, Bacchus and others). It's amazing seeing Milwaukee chefs getting recognized.
Then Ann gives us the scoop on the latest huge dining feature in Milwaukee Magazine, the magazine's annual Chefs Dish roundtable. They dish about what they eat, where they eat, the challenges the industry faces, and sexism and inappropriate behavior in the kitchen in the age of #MeToo. Among the chefs included are Justin Aprahamian, the chef-owner of Sanford, as well as Miles Borghgraef of Birch + Butcher, Joe Schreiter of Mistral and Mia LeTendre, the chef-owner of Strange Town. They also discuss their customers. Do Milwaukee diners live up to the stereotype of being frugal Midwesterners, or is the reality more complicated than that? You'll have to read the issue to find out.
And finally we discuss a new East African restaurant. Swahili Kitchen will replace Asian Papayoyoat 2020 W. Wisconsin Ave. It'll have rice options including white rice with coconut, spicy rice, vegetable fried rice and Pilau, "a fragrant rice seasoned with cardamom and cumin."
Hear us discuss all that and more on this week's episode below.
