On our way up Saturday night, we were too hungry to make it to Janesville (StfRon's choice for Shakey's) or Milwaukee for dinner, so we got off the Interstate in what looked to be promising, Beloit. We soon realized we have made this mistake before. We drove and drove, looking for something other than Dairy Queens, Arby's and the like, and finally ended up down by the river.
Just as we were about to turn around and go back to the Interstate, I spotted a place called Domenico's Italian Restaurant. We wheeled in to give it a try.
The decor was pleasantly surprising; not your average family restaurant, which is kind of the appearance the place gives from outside, but a more Tuscan feel.
Since we wanted to get back on the road quickly, we chose the buffet. There was a good variety of food on the buffet. I partook of the olive bar with two more upscale types of olives than your average olives; beef stroganoff and noodles; pizza with green olives, sausage and onion; Hawaiian pizza; and salad including a nice tomato and onion salad topped with vinegar and herbs.
Once I tried the stroganoff, one of my favorites from childhood, I wished that was all I had filled my plate with. It was very good. But, the Hawaiian pizza was also very good, topped with a quality Italian cheese.
We also split a tiramisu for dessert, good, but not very boozy. Hey, I like boozy!
After we checked into our hotel, we moseyed out to see what was going on. Apparently a lot of exposure. At first we skipped the Miller Time bar, which was closest. There was some chick at the bar wearing a dress, and she had her bare feet up on the bar stool she was sitting on. Imagine a frog-type pose. It was a little disconcerting.
We stopped in to a place called Mo's Irish Pub. There was a band playing rather loudly, but it was decent music. We settled in at the bar, and after we'd had a drink, some guy came in and took off his shirt and belt, and appeared to be contemplating taking off his jeans as well. Time to go back to Miller Time. The crotch-bearing chick was gone, so we took a seat and had some drinks.
Sunday, we went to one of our favorite spots, Alterra by the Lake for coffee and pastries. I had an espresso cookie that was awesome. StfRon opted for a sour cream muffin, and we got a raspberry scone to go. I noticed that they had t-shirts made in the USA (by none other than the American Apparel Store) for sale, however, the sizes we wanted were a little out of stock, and there was a line out the door by the time I was interested in buying one. Have to hit it next time.
Not only do they carry made in USA clothing, they also use sustainable energy, which is a neat thing.
We later went to the public market in the historic third ward for some shopping. StfRon tried some cave-aged cheddar at the West Allis Cheese & Sausage Shoppe and had to have some. At $25/pound, it's a luxury.
We went to the Wicked Hop to meet our wedding photographers. Nice people. I finally got to try the bloody mary. These things are stocked with a beef stick, a huge green olive stuffed with bleu cheese (yuck), and lots of yummy string cheese curls. I also tried an eggs benedict made with crab cakes. Very good, but the hollandaise sauce tasted more like butter than hollandaise.
Sunday night, we decided to try Miss Katie's Diner for dinner.
Rachael Ray did $40 a Day here once, but that's not why we came. We headed to the bar area to work up an appetite, and there were several Italian guys and a couple of gals hanging out there smoking stogies and talking about their family. It was interesting to watch.We headed back to the dining room and ordered the ribs, cole slaw and hash browns, all of which the waitress said they are known for. The hash browns were very crispy and good. The ribs were tender, but I prefer a sweeter sauce, myself. The slaw was slaw. I still can't get past the slaw from Stuart Anderson's from a visit several years ago, and the slaw from Jim Neeley's Interstate BBQ in Memphis.
The diner is neat, though. The bartender said it is only about 20 years old, but you would guess it has been around since at least the 50s.
We then went in search of the Landmark 1850, the oldest tavern in Milwaukee. This place was
neat; lots of history here. We also noticed some newer touches, but overall it was great to see.Since we were here, we asked where the Port of Hamburg was, a German bar StfRon had read about. The waitress pointed out the window to a blue and white house next door. We headed there next.
They had a buffet set out for Father's Day, and several times people told us to help ourselves. I went for some fruit. Then, the bartender said there was Rouladen. We had to try it, so we got a couple of pieces. Now, I suppose maybe Rouladen means roll of meat or something, but traditionally you find it stuffed with pickles and carrots. This was filled with a white cheese and basil. Surprising, but not bad. Still, I didn't feel like I had really had Rouladen.
This bar had many, many German beers on tap. The decor is not much to write about, but if you're up for German draft beer, you might want to check it out.
We also checked out the new Hofbrauhaus Munich bar, the Old German Beer Hall. It's pretty neat, and did remind us somewhat of Germany, with a Munich-inspired beer garden out front and the long bench tables inside for dining. I had a big mug of the Hofbrau Original, which turned out to be a little bitter for my liking, but not intolerable.
Monday, we made our normal stop at the Pick 'n Save Metro Market to fill our cooler with fresh sausages and fresh-squeezed orange juice (why does no one in Peoria sell fresh-squeezed OJ?). The chalkboard count of fresh produce for the day was 719.
Sucking down a bottle of OJ, we headed to the Racine County Courthouse to apply for our marriage license. The courthouse is old, and unattended. We didn't have to pass a metal detector, or any security guards to get it. We were wandering around on our own trying to find our way.
The lady who helped with our application was very nice. And we passed!!
Next, off to find Frank's Diner in Kenosha. We had seen this place on Diner's, Drive-Ins and Dives. Frank's Diner, a true dining car, was pulled into place by six horses in 1926.
There are several signs and notices in Frank's warning you that service can be slow. I don't think slow quite covered it for the day we were in. I didn't consider it to be terribly busy. We waited probably 30 minutes for a chocolate malt, about 30 more for StfRon's burger (which was actually meant for someone else who apparently walked out) and about 15 more for someone to dish up some sloppy joe and cole slaw for me. I had also ordered the Hungarian mushroom soup, but they ran out before we got our order. The food was good, and it was neat to see this institution. We're glad we visited now, rather than our original plan of having people meet us the day after the wedding for breakfast at Frank's. Not only would they not have had seating for our group, I think some people would have been upset by how long it would take to eat, when they would probably rather be on the road heading home. BTW, they also gave us part of our food for free and apologized for things, even though we did not complain. Other people were complaining loudly, so we kept our mouths shut.
All in all, another fun trip to the Milwaukee area. And we saw a bimbo, to bo
ot (it seemed to be a Mexican bread truck)!
1 comment:
What an awesome run down of our weekend!
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