1. Cream City»Dining
by Jeanette Hurt | photography by Matt Haas
historic yet new. this month’s new restaurants boast a bevy of history,
but while their spaces are historical, their flavors are novel and exciting.
Dish on Dining
The Cheel
Barkha and Jesse Daily, who together
ran the Thiensville Farmers Market, had
not initially planned on opening a restau-
rant. But when a condemned Victorian-
style bulding, dating back to the 1890s,
became available, the couple restored it
and opened The Cheel.
“Whenever I represented the farmers
market at events, I brought food I cooked,”
explains Barkha, who is originally from
Nepal. “People would ask us, ‘Where’s
your restaurant?’”
It took almost a year’s worth of renova-
tions — and help from the local commu-
nity — to get The Cheel, which means
“eagle” in Nepalese, open for business. It
has become a destination restaurant, as it’s
the only Nepalese restaurant in the greater
Milwaukee area. The space is warm and
welcoming and shows off the building’s
great bones, but with inviting touches.
Executive chef Joe Sandretti, who previ-
ously worked at Buckley’s, uses Barkha’s
family recipes for traditional dishes such as
momos, chicken tarkari or goat sekuwa.
Beef, chicken, fresh fish and lamb are
featured prominently on the menu, as are
many vegetarian and gluten-free dishes.
Start with a tidbit or small plate like the
momos or tofu gyaw, where pieces of
tofu are coated with chickpeas and fried.
Then, try a bigbit or entrée, but especially
recommended is the thali or combina-
tion plate of the day, which features two
entrees, a side vegetable dish, two dals,
rice and your choice of achars or dipping
sauces. If you can, save room for one of
Sandretti’s cheesecakes, which he fla-
vors with Nepalese spices. Each dish can
be paired with wine or beer, but general
manager Ryan Palkowski, who previously
managed Elsa’s on the Park, also shakes
up some very good classic cocktails. His
version of the brandy old-fashioned uses
imported Italian cherries and French
cognac, and his cosmo boasts a secret fruit
infusion (see if you can guess its flavors).
Expect wine, beer and even spirits dinners
this year.
105S.MainSt.,Thiensville,(262)236-9463,
thecheel.com
The Brown Bottle
For years, visitors to the Schlitz Brewery
ended their tour with a cold one at The
Brown Bottle. Years later, after the brewery
and beer “that made Milwaukee famous”
closed, the pub became a restaurant.
Recently remodeled and reopened, The
Brown Bottle now has new life, and at the
helm of this iconic restaurant is executive
chef Ben Hudson, a graduate of the Le
Cordon Bleu Culinary Institute. Hudson
previously helmed a vegetarian restau-
rant in Portland, Ore., and also cheffed at
Bacchus. “I like to do an unusual spin on
classic, comfort foods,” he says.
And one of his biggest twists is on The
Brown Bottle’s Friday night fish fry. The
fish is either beer-battered or baked, and
the baked version comes with a beurre
blanc sauce. The sides, which include
applesauce, tartar sauce and coleslaw, are
all made from scratch, and the coleslaw is
flavored with red peppers, chives and but-
termilk. “We don’t dress the coleslaw until
right before we open because I want it to
taste as fresh and as good for the last din-
ers as the first,” Hudson says.
His from-scratch clam chowder is laced
with fresh thyme and smoked bacon.
Burgers are delicious, as are salads,
which come with house-made dressings.
Especially good is the fall panzanella —
fresh greens are dressed with shallot vinai-
grette, house-made croutons, cranberries
and walnuts on a bed of creamy, roasted
squash.
Later this year, expect to see beer din-
ners, and during the warmer months,
enjoy the patio, which opens onto Schlitz
Park’s new Brewhouse Square Park. If you
plan to visit, call for directions or visit the
The Brown Bottle
The Cheel
24 M | April 2015