For the 10th straight year, October is Dining Month on OnMilwaukee, presented by the restaurants of Potawatomi Hotel & Casino. All month, we're stuffed with restaurant reviews, dining guides, delectable features, chef profiles and unique articles on everything food, as well as voting for your "Best of Dining 2016."
This edition of #WeWant brings you all the caffeination you could need or want!
Press it: Kona French Press
It's been years since I had a French press coffee / espresso maker, and I think it's time to change that. I recently had a cup that a friend made and I had forgotten how rich and strong the flavor is when made with a device like this. Plus, it's almost tea season for me, which this can be used for, as well. I particularly like the design of this one, however, my only reservation is whether or not it's easy to clean. – Molly Snyder
Drink it: Kava instant
Everyone tells me that one of my absolutely worst personality traits is my impatience. I tend to agree and that may be why I basically drink two kinds of coffee. I like gas station coffee and instant coffee. I know purists scoff at the instant coffee, but for me it's quick and I can't tell the difference between my morning cup and a multi-dollar cup at Starbucks or Colectivo. And my favorite instant, by far, is Kava instant. It's dark, tastes like coffee and has less acid than the fancy stuff. I can't find it in any stores in Milwaukee, but it's easy enough to find. – Dave Begel
Eat them: Il Morso Coffee Bars
A new startup chocolatier has launched a series of sweet nibbles (il morso, means "the bite" in Italian), laced with caffeine, that melt in your mouth. Made with no more than five ingredients (and sometimes only three) – all organic and fair trade – these squares offer 15-25 calories of flavor and jolt. Three varieties – mocha, americano and coffee & cream – are made from espresso beans and chocolate – while the fourth (my favorite, despite my passion for espresso), Matcha Green Tea, is, of course, tea-based. There's just a gram of sugar (2.5 grams of fat) in each Morso, which lets you get a dose of caffeine when you need it most. Find them online at ilmorso.com – Bobby Tanzilo
Brew it: Hario Paperless Coffee Dripper
Even though I spent my first 20 years on the planet despising coffee, I’ve spent the last 20 years addicted to it. And while I appreciate great coffee, I’m usually too lazy to make it myself. When I do feel inspired, however, I’m looking for increasingly clever, simple and gourmet ways to make coffee, which culminated in building a homemade pour-over machine this summer. That makes awesome coffee, but requires filters, filter trimming and pre-rinsing. The Hario paperless coffee dripper is even easier, though: With a reusable stainless steel mesh filter, you can cut a few minutes from the extraction process – meaning you’ll get an amazing cup of joe in about two minutes, plus the time to boil the water. This dripper fits right over mugs of various sizes and is easy to clean. If you appreciate great coffee, you’ll notice the difference using a pour over. Hario makes it even easier with this $15 gadget. – Andy Tarnoff
Make it: Manual Coffee Maker
The Manual Coffee Maker (MCM) is a beautiful, minimal, pour over coffee making vessel that provides the ultimate control over your coffee's taste profile. Though coffee tends to be the fuel of choice for the get-up-and go type crowd, the design by Craighton Berman is meant for those who appreciate the ritual of making coffee as much as the caffeine jolt. – Jason McDowell
Nibble on them: chocolate covered espresso beans
A steaming cup of high quality coffee gets my mornings off to a great start. But, if I find my energy waning in the afternoon, I love indulging in a few chocolate covered espresso beans -- not only for a burst of caffeine, but also for the mini chocolate fix. You can get the delicious beans at quite a few places around town, but I generally find myself picking up a box at Stone Creek Coffee. They have two sizes (4 and 12 ounce for $4 and $9, respectively). – Lori Fredrich
