Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Onmilwaukee.com Scouting Report
By: Amy Schubert
I admittedly don't make the drive to Caledonia very frequently, but found an enticing reason to travel there after visiting Sebastian's Fine Food and Spirits, 6025 Douglas Ave.
Patrice and Scott Sebastian, veterans of Milwaukee's dining scene, have created and maintained a surprisingly comfortable, casual, yet high-end dining experience in one of the more beautiful restaurant spaces in our area.
The building, which for years housed the Spinning Wheel, was refreshed and refurbished when the couple opened Sebastian's nine years ago. Bright, airy colors enliven the cedar walls, a combination of antique cars and trains is behind the bar and floral accents linger throughout the space.
An immaculately manicured lawn and herb garden acts as the focal point of the main dining space, and a fireplace takes center stage in an adjacent dining area. Sebastian's is the type of restaurant that serves just as well for entertaining clients as it does for a quiet evening with family or a more celebratory friendly get-together.
The Sebastians formerly (and famously, to those who remember traveling to the location on 23rd and Wisconsin) owned both Café Sebastian, and Catering by Sebastian's. The pair had previously worked in Milwaukee icons such as West Bank Café, Chip and Py's, and Mike and Anna's, and after running both catering and café for several years in the 1990s, in addition to maintaining other careers, they made the full-time leap to opening Sebastian's in Caledonia in 2000.
The menu at Sebastian's marries fresh herbs from Patrice's garden, Scott's penchant for classic French preparation and sauces and the light, fresh flavors of Asian-influenced cuisine. The one-page selection of small plates and entrées is well-considered and ebbs and flows with the seasons, but diners can always expect fresh fish and seafood selections, steaks and unique salads and appetizers.
Asian influence has become more prevalent in their cuisine in recent years, and coincides with Scott's hobby and passion for Japanese knives. On my visit, I got to sample both their flair for the flavor influence and adeptness with utensils in a smartly sliced tuna dish that wrapped sashimi-grade tuna in nori and ginger before tempura battering, frying and accenting with a brightly flavored and colored pepper and mango slaw.
Small plates are $12 or less and feature standards like crab cakes and mussels, with a Sebastian's twist. Plates here look nearly too good to eat, and salads and specials are ripe with creativity. For dessert, expect interesting homemade selections like beignets with cinnamon ice cream and chocolate and caramel sauce.
Friday evenings feature a three-course menu for $19.95, with your choice of soup or salad, one of two entrees and one of two desserts. A recent Friday menu offered a Korean-style barbecue pork and a walleye dish.
But with a daily menu and nightly specials as intriguing as they have here, you may want to forgo the pre-fixe and dive into something more ethereal, like a copper river salmon or a yellow edge grouper.
I admittedly don't make the drive to Caledonia very frequently, but found an enticing reason to travel there after visiting Sebastian's Fine Food and Spirits, 6025 Douglas Ave.
Patrice and Scott Sebastian, veterans of Milwaukee's dining scene, have created and maintained a surprisingly comfortable, casual, yet high-end dining experience in one of the more beautiful restaurant spaces in our area.
The building, which for years housed the Spinning Wheel, was refreshed and refurbished when the couple opened Sebastian's nine years ago. Bright, airy colors enliven the cedar walls, a combination of antique cars and trains is behind the bar and floral accents linger throughout the space.
An immaculately manicured lawn and herb garden acts as the focal point of the main dining space, and a fireplace takes center stage in an adjacent dining area. Sebastian's is the type of restaurant that serves just as well for entertaining clients as it does for a quiet evening with family or a more celebratory friendly get-together.
The Sebastians formerly (and famously, to those who remember traveling to the location on 23rd and Wisconsin) owned both Café Sebastian, and Catering by Sebastian's. The pair had previously worked in Milwaukee icons such as West Bank Café, Chip and Py's, and Mike and Anna's, and after running both catering and café for several years in the 1990s, in addition to maintaining other careers, they made the full-time leap to opening Sebastian's in Caledonia in 2000.
The menu at Sebastian's marries fresh herbs from Patrice's garden, Scott's penchant for classic French preparation and sauces and the light, fresh flavors of Asian-influenced cuisine. The one-page selection of small plates and entrées is well-considered and ebbs and flows with the seasons, but diners can always expect fresh fish and seafood selections, steaks and unique salads and appetizers.
Asian influence has become more prevalent in their cuisine in recent years, and coincides with Scott's hobby and passion for Japanese knives. On my visit, I got to sample both their flair for the flavor influence and adeptness with utensils in a smartly sliced tuna dish that wrapped sashimi-grade tuna in nori and ginger before tempura battering, frying and accenting with a brightly flavored and colored pepper and mango slaw.
Small plates are $12 or less and feature standards like crab cakes and mussels, with a Sebastian's twist. Plates here look nearly too good to eat, and salads and specials are ripe with creativity. For dessert, expect interesting homemade selections like beignets with cinnamon ice cream and chocolate and caramel sauce.
Friday evenings feature a three-course menu for $19.95, with your choice of soup or salad, one of two entrees and one of two desserts. A recent Friday menu offered a Korean-style barbecue pork and a walleye dish.
But with a daily menu and nightly specials as intriguing as they have here, you may want to forgo the pre-fixe and dive into something more ethereal, like a copper river salmon or a yellow edge grouper.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Own Like a Chicken Bown.
As always, click on the photo for a close-up. This is going on the menu. Different sauce and maybe some micro greens and something, something.
Beautiful yellow edge grouper wrapped in a thin blanket of spiruly potatoes. Served with sauteed broccoli, baby basil beurre monte (butter sauce) with pine-nuts, beet and parsley oils.
Beautiful yellow edge grouper wrapped in a thin blanket of spiruly potatoes. Served with sauteed broccoli, baby basil beurre monte (butter sauce) with pine-nuts, beet and parsley oils.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Early Morning Garden
As I walked through the gate to the garden this morning I couldn't help but notice a feeling of peace and harmony as the slowly rising sun warmed the cold earth after an especially chilly June night. I wanted to sit down and have a cup of coffee and enjoy it.
Please click on the photos for close-ups.
Please click on the photos for close-ups.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Garden Update
Four beds remain un-planted. One bed has to be mended which is going to involve moving some dirt around. We'll plant the others as soon as weather and schedule permit. The planted beds are doing well. After going through a little shock the plants have new growth and seem to be adapting to the environment. I've got some weeding to do as well as some cultivating.
Unfortunately I'm losing the battle with the bunnies. I installed another wire fence around the lettuce beds and sprayed what smells like coyote piss around the perimeter (Note to self, stand up-wind when spraying)to no avail. They are enjoying the sweetest and most tender green lettuce. They don't like the red. I've seen birds hanging around the garden but I think they're looking for worms.
We're harvesting chives, chive flowers and asparagus at the moment. Another week or so I can start clipping lola rosa and red leaf lettuce. Unfortunately when I tilled the beds I forgot about the asparagus. I went a little too deep and probably disturbed some roots. We're getting asparagus but we should be getting more. It will be a little while before the two beds recover. Other than that I'm seeing some real positive growth. The beans and squash are really enjoying themselves and the cukes and toms are reluctantly putting forth effort.
After this rainy week I'll really have some weeds to pull.
Unfortunately I'm losing the battle with the bunnies. I installed another wire fence around the lettuce beds and sprayed what smells like coyote piss around the perimeter (Note to self, stand up-wind when spraying)to no avail. They are enjoying the sweetest and most tender green lettuce. They don't like the red. I've seen birds hanging around the garden but I think they're looking for worms.
We're harvesting chives, chive flowers and asparagus at the moment. Another week or so I can start clipping lola rosa and red leaf lettuce. Unfortunately when I tilled the beds I forgot about the asparagus. I went a little too deep and probably disturbed some roots. We're getting asparagus but we should be getting more. It will be a little while before the two beds recover. Other than that I'm seeing some real positive growth. The beans and squash are really enjoying themselves and the cukes and toms are reluctantly putting forth effort.
After this rainy week I'll really have some weeds to pull.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)