Enduring the summer heat can take on many forms, but few are as refreshing, convenient and wholesome as Rishi Tea’s recently introduced Natural Tealeaf Powders. And just because these pre-portioned sticks contain tea in powder form rather than loose leaves doesn’t mean...

What does the future hold for humanity? The collapse of lawful society? A multi-generational natural disaster? Homeland invasion? The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse? Hopefully, none of these. But being prepared for life-threatening situations can drastically improve our odds for...

If the Hideaway Pub and Eatery was located a little closer to downtown Milwaukee, the habitual winners of the city’s “Best Buffalo Wings” awards (you know who you are) would get a run for their money. But alas, the Hideaway is indeed hidden, just off Ryan Road, sheltered by the...

Ma Baensch Food Products has stood at the intersection of Locust Street and Humboldt Avenue since 1945, gathering years as one of Riverwest’s oldest businesses. Whether visitors to the annual Locust Street Festival in June see Ma Baensch’s red brick building complete with electric blue...

When you think about the energy consumed by one restaurant in terms of the waste generated and the resources used—food, electricity, water, gas—it’s a significant amount. And that’s just one restaurant on one block of one street in one city of one state, in just one country. With each level...

Sundown this Thursday, May 28, marks the beginning of Shavuot, a Jewish holiday that celebrates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai 3,321 years ago. With the giving of the Torah, the most holy of the sacred writings in Judaism, the Jews were commanded to observe the laws...

Four days, an entire festival, entirely devoted to a single type of food: chocolate. How sweet it is… This Memorial Day weekend, the city of Burlington is hosting its 23rd annual ChocolateFest, the first major festival of the summer celebration season. Thanks to its location between Milwaukee and...

Benihana may be internationally known for theatrical teppanyaki favorites like the steaming onion choo-choo train and the ol’ eggshell in the chef’s hat-flip trick, but it has another Japanese specialty hidden up its kimono sleeve: sushi! While the enduring Asian culinary tradition of sushi...

When faced with a radical crisis, when survival is threatened, an organism will either die or adapt to the circumstances within its habitat. Adaptation is a basic phenomenon of biology, and humanity is certainly not exempt. In fact, our highly developed brains, capable of language, introspection, problem solving and...

Devotees of the Silver Spur Texas Smokehouse are thanking their lucky stars that the 18-year-old restaurant barely skipped a beat after a fire destroyed its former digs at 19990 W. Greenfield Ave. in Brookfield a year ago. As owners Frank Hornick, Joe Zupan and Sondra Bartolotta sifted through the ashes...

Milwaukee’s cuisine is an edible storybook telling a tale of our state’s thriving agricultural production and our city’s unique cultural diversity. The ethnic grocery stores and specialty food shops that dot the city speak of the immigrants who opened businesses to sell the familiar comforts of home. Compelled to tell the...

It's amazing what can happen when financial profit is not the primary focus of an enterprise. While the ashes of our economic market rain down upon us, practical business organizations like co-operatives provide a safe haven.

There isn’t a city in the country that tailgates with the unrelenting loyalty and passion of Milwaukee and its Brewers fans. Devoted parishioners of the almighty Church of Baseball regard tailgating as a rite of passage, where the uninitiated are prohibited from calling Milwaukee home until they have knelt before a...

Happy hour comes in the morning at Le Cakery, a charming bakery and cafe in the village of Elm Grove. When Hakan Hare purchased the business last year, he found the prevailing thought to be that Le Cakery made only cakes. If he could only get customers in the door, he thought, they would find that in addition to...

In viticulture, a great deal of emphasis is placed on the specific geographical and geological characteristics of the vineyard in which the grapes are cultivated because of the flavors they impart to the wine. Given this, there may be some initial skepticism about the virtues of wine made from a kit. The principal ingredient in one of...

It is our nostalgic claim to Irishness that finds us in a smoky corner bar on St. Patrick’s Day, teetering, green beer in hand, before an aluminum serving tray piled high with lukewarm corned beef and soggy cabbage. While it is with good intent and a celebratory spirit that we serve and indulge in these stereotypical Irish...

The easy, quick, travel-friendly energy bar can be salvation when, in a sleep-induced haze, you opt to snooze for 30 more minutes rather than wake up in time to eat a complete breakfast. Along with protein and fiber, these compact energy bars are packed with carbohydrates, which makes them ideal for fueling...

While Valentine’s Day still celebrates romantic love, it is no longer defined by it. The holiday has broadened to include the love we have for our friends, our family and even ourselves. It’s the one day on our calendar devoted to such a worthy cause and it would be a shame to let it pass by without acknowledgement.

You don’t have to dig deep to see the allure of fast food. It’s cheap, it’s convenient and it’s everywhere. The fast-food franchise machine, however, has gone unchecked for decades, garnering an unprecedented degree of power over our country’s food supply. It has played its part in fueling the industrialization of...

Working as a stage carpenter with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Peter Robertson took an annual sojourn to Reggio Emilia, a picturesque city in northern Italy. He developed a deep appreciation for the region’s specialties, like pancetta, balsamic vinegar, parmesan cheese and, most importantly, the fresh...

Whether it’s in the form of government regulation, consumer demand or simply one’s conscience, concern about environmental sustainability is rearranging the way we do commerce. But making a strategic transition from traditional business to green business is fraught with challenges. Some companies fail to adapt...

It's the turn of the new year, an occasion when many of us commit (or recommit) to investing more time at the gym and less time at the drive-through. Let's be honest, though: After the first few weeks of going about things the healthy way, naughty eating habits often ease their way back into our lives, bit by sinful bit. Rather than draw out the relapse, why not royally blow this year's resolution right away by taking a trip through the wonderfully indulgent Chocolat Bar at the InterContinental Milwaukee Hotel. After eating your weight in chocolate...

Some holiday customs are so old and established that, as a culture, we've lost sight of their origins and the journey they made to land a spot on our exclusive list of cherished traditions. Eggnog's seasonal sojourn to the dairy cases of American grocery stores usually begins in early November and ends shortly after New Year's. The rich drink is typically made with eggs, milk, sugar and/or cream. It can be homemade or store bought, made with skim or soy milk, found with or without alcohol, served hot or cold and garnished with all sorts of culinary accoutrements, from ground nutmeg and cinnamon to peppermint sticks, whipped...

During the countless hours Chef Michael Feker spent cooking in the kitchens of the finest restaurants, some of which have been his own, he was creating a mental blueprint of the perfect kitchen. That plan was made manifest when the renowned chef designed the kitchen for his culinary school, Chef Michael Feker’s School...

Standing before a looming wall of wine at the local wine shop or liquor store, you wouldn’t be alone if you felt overwhelmed when faced with the task of picking a bottle. How do you choose which one to buy? Do you base your decision on the type of grape used, the wine’s region of origin or the winery where it was...