2018 Food Issue by The Badger Herald

STUDENT MEDIA AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2018 · FOOD ISSUE · BADGERHERALD.COM

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FOOD CART FUN

WHEN PARENTS ARE PAYING

CHEF TORY MILLER

POKE OVERKILL?

Spring roll cart great option for Badgers on a budget ‘Fresh Cool Drinks’ offers unique, individualized meal experience with fresh, affordable spring rolls by Julia Broudy ArtsEtc. Staff Writer

There are many characteristics that make up a unique community. Whether it’s the diversity of people, varied beliefs or a wide range of cultures, there are countless ways in which communities differentiate themselves from one another. As a student from California, I am constantly searching for new and affordable food unique to Madison. Through my exploration, I decided to sample the majority of restaurants relative to campus in order to better understand where I can access healthy, affordable and ultimately tasty food. Upon my food tour, I noticed there were various aspects of a restaurant, other than the food quality, that are pivotal in an enjoyable restaurant experience. For example, the service and whether or not the waiter knows your name after becoming a regular customer becomes an important aspect of going out to eat. I have found that a specific part of the Madison community that separates itself from other communities are the countless food trucks that line Library Mall. This area has become a communal space where people are able to gather and eat a variety of different meals. I believe the “Fresh Cool Drinks,” cart encapsulates all the important qualities that makes up a successful meal experience. The first time I went to the cart, my friend exclaimed, “You have to get the spring roll.” I looked at her confused as I thought we were in line for “fresh cool drinks.” To my disbelief, this cart not only sells delicious smoothies, but also spring rolls filled with veggies, your choice of protein, rice noodles, a mysteriously delicious sauce, all wrapped in rice paper. I trusted her word and adventurously ordered an avocado spring roll with tofu, salad, rice noodles, and of course, the magical sauce. Originally, I thought the spring roll would be similar to the appetizers I would order at home — small, fried, with a little sauce on the side. Contrastingly, this was an un-fried spring roll, that had to be eaten like a burrito. For a student on the search for healthy foods, this meal was not only delicious, but also provided me with a source of greens, protein, and undoubtedly a full stomach. Another aspect of the spring roll cart (I recently discovered no one actually abides by its true name) that is not often recognized is the customer service. Tsui, the owner of the cart, is the only one inside making the meals as she produces every spring roll and smoothie custom to the consumer’s order. What separates Tsui

from other vendors is her willingness and desire to give plan accordingly. Another aspect that may seem like the clientele what they want. an inconvenience is the fact that it can often become a It is more difficult to make individualized spring messy meal. rolls vs. all of them the same, she provides her Eating with your hands often causes ingredients customers with any specific order and always does it tend to spill out. Tsui is generous in her napkin with a smile on her face. This allows for buyers like me accommodations that, to me, it is never a real problem. to want to continue to purchase her products. Another In all, affordable, enjoyable and healthy food outweighs key quality about Tsui is she makes an effort to know a small mess and a line. her market. Last week, I went up to the cart to order Overall, after my food cart expedition, I have learned my usual: an avocado spring roll with tofu, salad, rice that there are many more qualities that comprise an noodles, and of course the magical sauce. enjoyable meal experience other than delicious food. Before I could even get a word out Tsui from her Customer service and creating relationships with cart: “Hi Julia, how are you today, would you like your clientele, have been several factors that encourage me to usual?” go back to a specific restaurant or food truck in this case. This simple interaction makes clients like me I believe that Tsui’s unique spring roll, a meal that feel important and want to continue to support her is solely unique to Madison, has attributed to the business. Her ability to know her customers on a enhancement of the community. Her devotion to her personal level allows buyers to further enjoy the meal buyers has made me want to continue to support her experience that she provides. business and it’s simply impossible to deny that the To top off nutritious food and excellent customer affordability of her food is a relief to broke college service, the spring roll cart is one of the most affordable students like me. Tsui may offer the ideal meal meals in Madison. For us college students on a tight experience and truly makes a lasting impact on her budget, finding inexpensive healthy options can be customers, allowing her business to succeed within difficult. But one spring roll from Tsui is only $3.50! Madison. I apologize for my enthusiasm, but as a broke college student, I am still in awe at the fact Photo · One spring roll, the size of a large burrito, is only $3.50! that I am able to have a filling and healthy Isabel Jordan lunch for under $5. The Badger Herald Additionally, you can purchase a smoothie for only $3 — a complete meal for $6.50. With this option, I have been able to eat healthy and save money — two actions that do not often go together. Though I may seem biased about the spring roll cart, I know that there are several drawbacks. Specifically, the line is always long. Due to its popularity, I believe there is no solution to this problem, but I am now aware that if I do want a spring roll, I must be patient and

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Tory Miller

This world-renowned chef leads four of Madison’s best restaurants — Graze, L’Etoile, Estrellon and Sujeo. Crucial to his success is a locally-sourced, community-based appraoch to cooking international cuisine.

WORK WITH MEANING. Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling The Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program from Marquette University prepares students for a career as a counselor in a variety of settings, and to enter the job market with a skill set that’s in high demand. Students have the option to stay general, or specialize in addiction, child and adolescent, or clinical rehabilitation counseling. In addition to rigorous classroom learning, we guide every student in finding the clinical placement that will be most meaningful for them. We challenge students to think critically about the cultural context of their approach, to seek opportunities to serve the underserved, and to do what it takes to Be The Difference. marquette.edu/cmhc

Where to eat when parents are paying the bill From soul food, to Cajun and Creole, to dining on the Yahara River — these pricey places are a must-visit by Talen Elizabeth ArtsEtc. Staff Writer

Downtown Madison is bubbling with amazing places to eat. While experienced Badgers already know this, we’ll be joined by about 6,500 new students this fall, many of whom have yet to explore Madison’s expansive food scene. For the purposes of this article, I’m going to consider “downtown” Madison as Capital Square, State Street, Monroe Street, Willy Street, and the Hilldale area. These areas are within walking distance to campus or are just a quick bus ride away, and chances are you’ve stumbled past one of these on your way to Target or the Willy Street Co-Op. Monroe Street recently opened Everly where Bluephies used to live (RIP), the Square has staples like New York style Gotham Bagels, and Willy Street is home to the best burgers at The Weary Traveler Freehouse. If you haven’t made your way to those fine establishments, you now have three new to-dos for this weekend! But if you’re in the mood to venture a little further outside the downtown circle, here are three more places that are worth the scenic drive:

Talen Elizabeth The Badger Herald Anointed One | 515 Junction Rd Madison, WI 53717 | Head’s Up: Closed Monday’s There is only one place in Madison I really call a “soul food” restaurant, and that’s Anointed One. Somehow, we have a handful of places to satisfy a creole fix, and definitely plenty of restaurants who boast “the best fried chicken” — yet no establishment has a menu fully committed to soul food.

Bless the sweet, sweet women who take care of me when I’m at AO. If you’re in while it’s tame, the staff will probably hand you the remote and tell you to change Netflix to whatever you please. “It’s home, here.” Excuse me while I wipe these tears away. Anointed One has daily specials that range from fried pork chops to their specialty gumbo that’s only around for so long before it’s sold out. Their list of sides is even longer than their stacked sandwich list. Man ‘n cheese, greens, candied yams… SPAGHETTI! You know you’re in a proper spot when spaghetti is listed as a side — insider secret. This is the type of food that makes you close your eyes after taking a bite and slow your chewing down to half-speed. The rib tips have texture to them without being tough and the fried pork chops are still juicy. My friends all make fun of how I clean chicken bones, but I promise you’ll be doing the same with these. As for my favorite sides, it’s probably a tie between the candied yams and the green beans. The yams are silky sweet and the beans have awesome flavor. They aren’t mushy — I hate mushy green beans. So if you’re in the mood for some traditional, all the carbs, all the calories soul food, it’s time to head over to the west side of Madison. Be prepared to feel completely stuffed after a meal here. BRB. Going back for banana pudding now that I have room… Nau-Ti-Gal | 5360 Westport Road Madison, WI 53704 | Head’s Up: Long wait to sit outside Wrap around porch, boats docked on the inlet, and brightly colored red, blue and green chairs make you feel like you’re about to be in the “Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay” music video. The two things you need to know about this place are they make great clam chowder, and it might be a while until you get a table outside. Both are worth the wait. So once you’re settled out on the porch, grab yourself a lemonade (with whiskey if you’re of age), and order the ‘Basa Bites’ to start. Basa is a catfish from Vietnam that Nau-Ti-Gal slices into strips and lightly deep fried. Squeeze a little lemon and enjoy the tartar. They’re thin strips

that are thick enough to pick up tartar sauce, and still thin enough to fall apart in fishy goodness in your mouth. The chowder has huge pieces of clam, potato, and bacon. What isn’t there to love about that? Come for the chowder, stay for the view.

Talen Elizabeth The Badger Herald

Liliana’s Restaurant | 2951 Triverton Pike Drive Fitchburg, WI 53711 | Head’s Up: Kind of a classy joint Remember how I said there were a couple places to get your creole fix? This is definitely one of them. Shrimp and grits, jambalaya, po’boys and some seriously great étouffée. But let’s start at the very beginning. Cornbread. If you like your cornbread sweet like I do, you’ll love the sticky sweet crust they have on theirs. It’s fluffy and flaky — it doesn’t get much better than that. The hardest part about going to Liliana’s is deciding between jambalaya or étouffée. The difference between the two is pretty simple. Étouffée is more or less a sauce served over rice, whereas in jambalaya the rice incorporated. I usually go with the étouffée at Liliana’s because it’s a bit spicier. If you don’t like your dinner staring back at you, make sure to ask them to keep the whole crawfish toppers off your plate. And if you love yourself, you’ll order the beignets: deep-fried dough dusted with powdered sugar. Seriously, étouffée and a round of beignets are the only sweet and savory mix you’ll ever need in your life.

Are Madison’s plentiful poke options overkill? Within five months, three new poke shops have made their arrival, opened their doors practically next door to each other by Emily Penn ArtsEtc. Staff Writer

Food trends come and go almost as quickly as the latest fashion. For Madison, that trend is a boom in poke restaurants. We already saw a short-lived french fry trend starting with Mad City Frites in 2016, and more recently the closing of Disco Fries, which, like Mad City Frites, also only survived a little after a year of their opening. In its place arrived the first of three poke restaurants near campus this past April: Poke Plus & Teriyaki. Why the sudden poke boom? Is this trend here to stay? Poke is a traditional Hawaiian dish. It is generally comprised of a base of rice which is topped with cubes of raw fish, a mix of vegetables and fruits and customized with a variety of sauces. In simpler terms, think of poke as a raw fish salad. Each of the three poke locations serves the bowls with their own unique spin. At Poke Plus & Teriyaki, customers create their bowls from scratch. The order counter allows diners to pick from a long list of toppings all displayed in front of them. After picking the base and fish, countless combinations can be made from the toppings and sauce choices. Staff member Yan Zeng admits some people are overwhelmed by the amount of options. “Here, you pick what you want, get it, and are off to class,” Zeng said. Poke Plus & Teriyaki focuses on speed. As they are located on the always-bustling State Street, Zeng isn’t too bothered by the competition. In addition to speed, this State Street poke shop offers a ten percent off student discount. They have a chalkboard sign on the sidewalk featuring this discount to anyone who passes by. “State Street is the perfect place for a quick bite for students,” Zeng said. “People don’t go to the other [downtown poke locations] anyways.” A couple weeks after Poke Plus & Teriyaki opened, Poke It Up arrived at 540 University Ave, just a short walk off of State Street. David Wartham, co-owner of the restaurant, admitted he had no idea another poke restaurant was opening at the same time as his. Warthman has a friend who opened up a Poke It Up in Arlington, Virginia. He saw how many people liked poke and felt there was a need in Madison for a healthy food option like this. Inspired by his

friend, Warthman opened up a restaurant with the same name. At Poke It Up, diners fill out an order form when they first walk in. The chefs prepare their food behind a counter and it’s ready for pick-up moments after paying. While Warthman agrees with Zeng that competition is good, he has created a poke burrito on their menu to stand out, similar to large sushi roll. All of the contents of the bowl are simply wrapped into a burrito shape. “People have no idea what it is until they order it and they are just like ‘wow’,” Warthman said. Sophomore Hannah Newman, however, was not a fan of the burrito. “The burrito ended up falling apart,” Newman said. Newman has been to all three campus poke locations. Her personal favorite is FreshFin, located at 502 University Ave. Andrew Foster, one of the owners of FreshFin, is a recent MBA graduate from the University of Wisconsin. FreshFin already has two Milwaukee locations — one in Brookfield and one in the Milwaukee Bucks’ Fiserv Forum. Foster said he has a soft spot in his heart for Madison, which led to wanting to open up shop near campus. “We’ve built a great following in Milwaukee and wanted to try and get that out here,” Foster said. Their choice to stay away from State Street was intentional, Foster said. They wanted to try and expand beyond college students to attract the young business professionals and others in the downtown Madison area. Although FreshFin arrived on campus months after Poke Plus & Teriyaki and Poke It Up, Foster started negotiations for their retail space back in August of 2017. He was fairly surprised by the number of poke shops that arrived in the time frame it took FreshFin to get on their feet. At FreshFin, diners order at the counter and wait for their food while it is prepared out of their view. Unlike the other two poke shops who serve

their toppings like slices of a pizza on top of their bowls, FreshFin mixes up the toppings for you. Foster believes the quality of their ingredients and service make them stand out. “We focus on high-quality customer service,” Foster said. “A lot of restaurants say that the customers come first, but we really mean it.” Another unique aspect to FreshFin is their loyalty program: “Earn a Bowl, Give a Bowl.” With this initiative, every time a customer earns a free bowl, FreshFin will also donate a bowl to a local charity or shelter. Their Madison location has chosen to donate to Porchlight, a Dane Country homeless shelter. Newman likes that FreshFin not only tastes fresh, but offers the best environment and toppings she loves. UW senior Sammi Golbert agrees about the quality of freshness and also loves the shop’s aesthetically pleasing interior. While Newman sees having three poke places on campus as an advantage because people have options eliminating crowds or lines, Golbert thinks it is overkill. “Two is okay if there is a major difference in price but three is just silly,” Golbert said. “One is bound to go out of business.” Golbert believes poke is just starting to spread as a trend and thinks the business will continue to grow or even keep changing as time progresses. Does downtown have space for all three of these restaurants to survive? Only time will tell.