For the fifth straight year, October is Dining Month on OnMilwaukee.com, presented by Concordia University. All month, we're stuffed with restaurant reviews, delectable features, chef profiles and unique articles on everything food, as well as the winners of our "Best of Dining 2011."
One of the most anticipated moments of the autumn dining season is upon us. I'm referring to the opening of the Bartolotta gastropub, The Rumpus Room, in the former Eagan's, 1030 N. Water St.
On Thursday night, there's a preview event and the restaurant then opens for full dinner service on Tuesday, Oct. 11. Lunch will be added beginning later in the month.
I got a look at the menu today. Certainly changes may come in the next week, especially after Thursday's event (Bartolotta's is hosting some practice runs, too, that could have an effect), but for now, we get an idea what the new place will serve.
There are eight categories: charcuterie, cured meats, cheese, munchies, appetizers, soup/salad, entrees and sandwiches.
Among the charcuterie are duck rilllettes with cherry preserves for $7 and a terrine of the day. There's house cured duck breast ($3), Usinger's braunschweiger ($3) and La Quercia guanciale ($4) among the cured meats; and you can choose three cheeses from a list of 10, for $3.
Munchies offers everything from $1 spiced corn nuts and deviled eggs to scotch eggs ($3.75), pretzels ($2), rumaki ($3), oysters on the half shell ($2.50 each) and more.
The appetizer – of the nine available – that caught my eye is the braised bone marrow, sweetbread with bacon vinaigrette for $15.
And I can't wait to try the fried chicken cutlet sandwich on ciabatta ($8, with choice of fries or house salad) and, being a fish fry fiend, the beer-battered market fish and chips ($17) on the entrees menu.
Other entries include pub steak ($19), pork schnitzel ($17), half fried chicken ($16), daily pasta (varies), sea bass ($24) and sea scallops ($23), among others.
The menu will be posted this week on the Rumpus web site. Damien Jaques and I will be both be at Thursday's preview, so watch Twitter and our blogs for updates.
Let the wild rumpus begin!
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
