You know you are in “America’s Dairyland” when hamburgers and charcoal-cooked brats (bratwursts) come glistening with butter, and when cheese curds are served in every bar. Cool, smooth custard is another creamy specialty; and cream pies are superlative. Fruit pies – apple, cherry, rhubarb, berry – also are memorable, even when they are not served a la mode. Friday night is fish fry night in virtually every restaurant; and if you’re up in Door County in the summer, do avail yourself of the pyrotechnical spectacular known as a fish boil. Milwaukee is rich in ethnic foods and is one of America’s top corned beef cities; and, of course, its population of brew pubs and corner taverns is peerless.
On the western edge of Lake Superior, superlative natural ingredients reign supreme. Prolific orchards contribute ripe fruit for mouthwatering pies, and the pristine waters of the lake yield firm-fleshed...
One essential characteristic of any worthy hamburger is democracy of spirit—it should be accessible to all and not cost an arm and a leg. That's why our list of...
We’ve never met a cooked potato we didn’t like. Baked with butter, salt-boiled, fire-roasted, puréed with cream, au gratin, dauphinois, frittered, and french fried—all are surefire transformations of the homely...
ALONG THE SLIM PENINSULA of northern Door County, Wisconsin, which juts out into Lake Michigan east of Menominee and north of Sturgeon Bay, the night sky erupts with flames...
For two-lane travelers, pulling into a parking lot perfumed by hamburgers and hot onion rings is as satisfying as any four-star dining experience. At a true classic drive-in, you...
Imagine a vast triangle with points in Buffalo, Cincinnati, and Grand Forks, North Dakota. This is the fish-fry zone. In city taverns, American Legion halls, and woodland supper clubs...
WITH THE EXCEPTION of the hot dog bun, there has never been an edible invention as useful as the ice cream cone. Eat it all and leave nothing behind...
If Dr. Seuss had been a restaurant reviewer, he would have liked soda fountains best, for they are where Pink Elephant punch and rootbeer Black Cows line up alongside...
Before Ralph Nader, cars were fun. For generations of joyriders, a purring V-8 was a vehicle for play and pleasure. "Companion of carefree days" is how Chevy advertised itself...
"My dears, everything we make is charcoaled except the BLTs and the egg salad," a waitress informs us when we ask about specialties at the CHARCOAL INN, a luncheonette...
Eastern Wisconsin is a joyful place to visit … It is the might of Milwaukee and its diverse heritage, the still shores of Lake Michigan, the football-crazed city of...
A road trip along the the southwest shore of Lake Michigan offers a wild taste-buds adventure (assuming you can get out of Chicago with any appetite remaining ... but...
Is there another dish as diverse as pizza? It can be an utterly simple tomato pie – nothing but sauce on crust – or it can be a multi-meat...
Great Soft Serve There is so much inferior soft-serve ice cream (aerated, chemically-flavored), that soft-serve in general has a bad reputation among ice cream lovers. But there are exceptions, soft-serve...
Sheboygan to Fish Creek The drive north from Milwaukee is a grand taste of Wisconsin. First stop: Sheboygan, renowned for its butchers' brats (rhymes with hots, short for bratwurst), cooked...
Best Kringle in Wisconsin Only a few states have officially named a state pastry. Maine's is Whoopie Pie; Connecticut's is the snickerdoodle cookie; Texas has two: the sopaipilla and strudel....
Unique Regional Dishes After 40 years and 5 million miles spent on the road looking for America's best regional food, we've assembled a list of the quintessential, must-eat food in...
An awe-inspiring specialty of Midwest dairy country, sour cream raisin pie is a powerhouse that balances sweet custard and sour cream, flaky crust and silky filling, the concentrated intensity...
In the Dairy State, great cream pies are a given. Abundant cherry and apple trees mean outstanding fruit pies as well. In short, Wisconsin is pie paradise, home of...
Wisconsin is the Dairy State, which means a worthy Milwaukee eating plan must include creamy custard (at the vintage drive-in Leon's) and a butter burger lunch (at Solly's Grille)....
Twelve champion chocolatiers, from the Oregon coast to downeast Maine.
First, we apologize to the Stockholm Pie Company in Wisconsin, to Nick's Kitchen in Huntington, Indiana, to the Bang Bang Pie Shop in Chicago, and to Beardsley Cider Mill...
The only possible happy exclamation incited by corned beef hash spooned from a can is "Arf!" But freshly chopped and sizzled to a crisp, crowned with poached eggs eager...
Chili is like DNA: everybody's is different. Texans claim (rightfully) that history proves theirs to be the first. Or at least they were the first to make a big...
We Americans love our hamburgers, at home and on the road. From mischievous fried sliders to majestic beef pillows oozing juice over coals, burgers are a birthright coast to...
Crumb-topped, lattice-topped, or layered with caramel and welcoming a scoop of ice cream on top, apple pie is everywhere from coast to coast. For your pleasure, a baker's dozen...
Although ice cream tends to be more butterfatty, frozen custard tastes richer because it traditionally is made with egg yolks. Even when eggs are not part of the formula,...
When barbecue migrated up the Mississippi from its homes in the Deep South and in Texas, it took on a new personality -- similar to what happened to the...
When people think of good corned beef sandwiches, they tend to envision New York, or maybe Miami or Los Angeles. But in fact, the Midwest's best corned beef sandwiches,...
The turtle sundae is not unique to the heartland. Its sublime combination of crisp nuts, hot fudge and caramel sauce atop vanilla ice cream can be found from coast...
The Friday night fish fry is so popular in Milwaukee that it is rare to find a restaurant that does not have one. From Benji's Deli to the Bya...
