Milwaukee Steakhouses Sometimes Offer the Unexpected
Pick any steakhouse in any city and chances are high that you will be able to guess what’s for dinner. There are certain traditional offerings – shrimp cocktail or oysters, wedge or Caesar salad – that most steakhouses offer most of the time. And we love those things – these menu items are classic for a reason – but whenever we sit down to a steakhouse dinner, we look for the unexpected offerings. Here a few Milwaukee places that offered a few things that surprised us…and we like surprises.
Dream Dance Steakhouse. In the Potawatomi Casino, Dream Dance Steakhouse offers some enhancements to your steak that you won’t find anywhere else. Waygu lardo, for instance, is the rendered fat of one of the most luscious of all meats, which you can have on top of your steak to up the richness quotient to the nth degree. If you need a bit of greenery to balance all that lushness, the Growing Power Mixed Field Green Salad is a bowl of toasted pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, and just a little cheese, a healthy complement to the red meat orgy.
Mo’s…a Place for Steaks. Ceviche is not common on steakhouse menus, but it’s not unheard of; Lobster Ceviche, however, is not at all common anywhere, and at Mo’s, it’s served with sea bass and shrimp, a tangy, lightweight way to work your way toward the big red meat. Or maybe you’ll opt for something other than a big hunk ‘o meat. “The Dainty Lady” is a 4 ounce filet with two scallops wrapped in bacon (seafood and pork go very well together) – as a guy, you might be embarrassed to order something named this way, but you shouldn’t be; go ahead, surprise yourself.
The Packing House. At The Packing House, you should start with the Shreds Basket, a golden mound of very thinly sliced Spanish onions (rather than the usual yellow onions), lightly dredged then deep fried; it’s not your Bloomin’ Onion, brother; it’s way better. Canadian Walleye is not something you see very often on a steakhouse menu, but here you get the filets either pan-fried or Amandine, a welcome change of pace for those of us who can, once in a while, order an entrée other than steak at a steakhouse. It can be done!
Carnevor Steakhouse. Mangalitsa ravioli – the pasta pillows plumped up with the meat from a delicious variety of heritage hog – is one of several dishes at Carnevor Steakhouse that you’re probably not going to see anywhere else; you have to try it; this rare pork is delicious. Butternut Squash Risotto is a blend of the delicate yellow vegetable and the creamy Italian rice, both of which blend together to make for a side that’s pleasantly filling, simple though delicious, and we’re guessing you’ve never had it before.
Mr. B’s. At a Bartolotta restaurant, you’d expect things to be done a little differently, and at Mr. B’s, that expectation would be met. Seafood towers are not exactly unusual sights at steakhouses, but at Mr. B’s the seafood – shrimp, lobster, oyster and crab – is roasted to bring out the oceanic sweetness and enhanced with white wine, garlic and herbs. Even the starchy sides get special treatment: the baked potatoes are salt-crusted and the roasted potatoes are cooked with bacon, adding such additional richness that butter is almost unnecessary.
