Isthmus: Jan 28 - Feb 3, 2016 by Isthmus

JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

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VOL. 41 NO. 4

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MADISON, WISCONSIN

PA U L I U S M U S T E I K I S

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■ CONTENTS

■ WHAT TO DO

4 SNAPSHOT

SAVE THE KIDS!

Operation Fresh Start offers a different kind of education.

6-9 NEWS

SAVE THE BEES!

Proposed plan to prevent die-off may not be enough.

SAVE THE TREES!

East-side residents organize to bury power lines.

10 ENVIRONMENT

SAVE THE RAINFOREST! ERIN CLUNE 24 FOOD & DRINK LINDA FALKENSTEIN 14 COVER STORY LINDA FALKENSTEIN has been writing for Isthmus since 1994 and on staff since 1999. In just one of her roles as features editor, she oversees the paper’s food coverage. A keen observer of the local restaurant scene, she writes this week about the uptick in Madison of fresh and healthy fast-casual restaurants. Her love of eating out started early, according to an entry in her baby book when she was just 2 1/2 years old: “Sunsday, nice ride, go eat place Daddy? Good ‘dea?”

FOR ERIN CLUNE, mixology is a personal hobby. She traces her interest in the subject to having lived in New York during the craft cocktail renaissance that began there decades ago. She started writing about cocktails on her blog, Life After NY, and now also contributes food and cocktail pieces to Isthmus.

Biodiversity group promotes Costa Rican ecotourism.

11 TECH

THE CLINIC IS OPEN

Local startups get free legal help.

12 OPINION

UNCIVIL SERVICE

GOP move affects hiring and firing of state workers.

14 COVER STORY

Gotta dance!

HAVE IT YOUR WAY

Folk Ball Festival

New fast-casual eateries are healthy, fun.

Fri.-Sun., Jan. 29-31, Union South

19 BOOKS

Frostiball

WORDS OF WISDOM

Madison’s new poet laureate, Oscar Mireles.

21-24 FOOD & DRINK

PIE, OH MY

Norske Nook in DeForest is now slice central.

CHILI AND CHOCOLATE

Sujeo’s Bandito Boulevard cocktail brings on the heat.

26 SPORTS

BUZZER-BEATERS

Excitement is building for prep b-ball.

28 MUSIC

WILD PAIR

Sat., Jan. 30, Monona Terrace, 8-11 pm, Isthmus After Party 11 pm-2 am

The Folk Ball Festival is a huge undertaking, with more dances, workshops and demos than you can shake a Morris stick at. The main event is the “Legendary Folk Ball Dance Party” (Sat., Varsity Hall, 7 pmmidnight), but other offerings include a contra dance and workshops on Balkan Romani music, Yiddish dance and Greek folk music. Not enough fun? Get gussied up and dance the night away at the Frostiball, a benefit for the Overture Center programs, with music by the Upbeat Orchestra, a live visual art creation, silent auction and cabaret, followed by DJ entertainment at the After Party.

DJs Surf ’n’ Turf know how to party.

MOLLY STENTZ 6 NEWS MOLLY STENTZ is the news director for WORT 89.9 FM. When she’s not on the trail of a good story or teaching others to report the news, she can often be found knee-deep in her garden or moonlighting at a local farm and plant nursery. She last wrote about honeybees for Isthmus in a 2013 cover story.

Welcome to the family

30 STAGE

Wed., Feb. 3, UW Biotechnology Center, 425 Henry Mall, 7-8:15 pm

SISTER ACT

Rumors of Truth explores family relationships.

Anthropologist John Hawks will discuss the astonishing discovery of Homo naledi, the newest member of the human family tree. The lecture will include footage from the field, and a chance to see threedimensional prints of the fossils.

32 SCREENS

COMFORTABLY NUMB

Anomalisa finds love amid the sameness.

47 EMPHASIS

SUPER-SIZE ME

Shop sells soaps, cleansers in bulk.

IN EVERY ISSUE 9 MADISON MATRIX 9 WEEK IN REVIEW 12 OPINION & FEEDBACK 12 THIS MODERN WORLD 13 FEEDBACK

13 OFF THE SQUARE 49 CLASSIFIEDS 49 CROSSWORD 51 P.S. MUELLER 51 SAVAGE LOVE

PUBLISHER Jeff Haupt ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Craig Bartlett BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Mark Tauscher EDITOR Judith Davidoff NEWS EDITOR Joe Tarr ASSOCIATE EDITOR Michana Buchman FEATURES EDITOR Linda Falkenstein ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Catherine Capellaro MUSIC & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Jon Kjarsgaard STAFF WRITER Allison Geyer CALENDAR EDITOR Bob Koch ART DIRECTOR Carolyn Fath STAFF ARTISTS David Michael Miller, Tommy Washbush

Sweaty palms alert Fri., Jan. 29, 9 am, & Sat., Jan. 30, 10 am, Monona Terrace

The Bouldering National Championships return to Madison for two days of awe-inspiring wall-climbing. The web-slinger has nothing on these folks. The Citizens’ National Championship takes place Saturday at Boulders Climbing Gym (2-5 pm).

CONTRIBUTORS John W. Barker, Dylan Brogan, Kenneth Burns, Dave Cieslewicz, Nathan J. Comp, Aaron R. Conklin,

ISTHMUS is published weekly by Red Card Media, 100 State Street, Suite 301, Madison, WI 53703 • Edit@isthmus.com • Phone (608) 251-5627 • Fax (608) 251-2165 Periodicals postage paid at Madison, WI (ISSN 1081-4043) • POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 100 State Street, Suite 301, Madison, WI 53703 • © 2016 Red Card Media, LLC. All rights reserved.

Like a good neighbor Thurs., Jan. 28, Neighborhood House Community Center, 7-9 pm

Believe it or not, Neighborhood House has been around for 100 years, and it’s celebrating its centennial with an exhibit of historic photos of the center and the Greenbush neighorhood. This opening reception will feature Italian appetizers. Mangia!

FIND MORE ISTHMUS PICKS ON PAGE 34

JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

Ruth Conniff, André Darlington, Marc Eisen, Erik Gunn, Bob Jacobson, Seth Jovaag, Stu Levitan, Bill Lueders, Liz Merfeld, Andy Moore, Bruce Murphy, Kyle Nabilcy, Kate Newton, Jenny Peek, Michael Popke, Adam Powell, Katie Reiser, Jay Rath, Gwendolyn Rice, Dean Robbins, Robin Shepard, Sandy Tabachnick, Denise Thornton, Candice Wagener, Rosemary Zurlo-Cuva ADVERTISING PRODUCTION MANAGER Todd Hubler ADVERTISING MANAGER Chad Hopper ADVERTISING ASSISTANT Laura Miller ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Lindsey Bushart, Peggy Elath, Amy Miller WEB ANALYST Jeri Casper CIRCULATION MANAGER Tom Dehlinger MARKETING DIRECTOR Chris Winterhack EVENT DIRECTORS Kathleen Andreoni, Courtney Lovas EVENT STAFF Sam Eifert EVENT INTERN Megan Muehlenbruch ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR Kathy A. Bailey OFFICE MANAGER Julie Butler SYSTEMS MANAGER Thom Jones ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Carla Dawkins

n SNAPSHOT

Out in the cold

Tzari Murphy, 18, gathers brush with an Operation Fresh Start conservation crew in 10-degree weather.

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

BY STEVEN POTTER n PHOTO BY LAUREN JUSTICE

Charles Theus wasn’t cut out for the traditional school setting. Now, his classroom is out in the cold. “School just didn’t interest me,” says the 19-year-old former Madison Memorial High School student as he hauls buckthorn and box elder tree branches onto a burn pile at the Schumacher Farm County Park in Waunakee. “I couldn’t focus on it the way I was supposed to.” So, he started skipping class, and as his attendance fell, so did his grades. Eventually, he quit school. But that wasn’t the end of his education. Before he left Memorial, a school counselor told him about Operation Fresh Start, a local nonprofit that provides construction training and employment opportunities for dropouts, ex-prisoners and other at-risk youth who want to earn a high school diploma. In addition to the three days a week of construction work the participants put in, they also attend class at the Fresh Start headquarters on Winnebago Street on the east side.

Last May, Theus was accepted into Fresh Start’s Pathways conservation crew, which works year-round on projects at various county parks. He not only enjoys the work, he sees a future in it. “We learn real good skills to have, if you want to go into landscaping,” he says, adding he hopes to find a related job when he graduates in a month. “The day moves by fast when you’re out here working.” As the oldest of five, his mother demanded he graduate from high school — something she wasn’t able to do — to set an example. “I need to show my brothers and sisters they need to finish school, and that if I can, they can,” he says. “I’ve gotta be that role model.” Celebrating its 45th year, Operation Fresh Start participants work year-round for a reason, says executive director Gregory Markle. “The youth we work with have faced many challenges and will face workplace challenges in their future,” he says. “Most jobs don’t close because of bad weather; neither does Operation Fresh Start. This is modeling the real workaday world.”

Program created: 1970 Participants who graduated since the program began: 8,000 Total OFS graduates in 2015: 280 Conservation crews: 3 Participants per crew: 10

Working in 10 degree weather like last Tuesday at the farm teaches participants something about themselves. “[They learn] that they can succeed in the face of difficulties [and] that they have the inner strength to persevere,” Markle says. And through teamwork, they learn that others want to help them succeed no matter how difficult it is, he adds. Funded primarily by the AmeriCorps national service program, Fresh Start participants put in 32 hours each week — about 70% is working in the field, 20% in class and 10% working on career development. They receive a $720 monthly stipend. Fresh Start also operates

a construction program where participants build homes for low-income buyers. In some cases, the Fresh Start alternative to traditional schooling is the only option left. “It gets them out of the classroom that wasn’t working for them,” says Markle. Ethan Yang, an 18-year-old who often skipped at West High School, knows he needs a diploma if he’s to enter the auto industry. “I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do to get an education, and this is it,” he says. He’s not crazy about working in freezing weather, though. “When you first get out here, it’s sooooo cold. But then, you get moving and get your blood pumping and get through what you’re here to do.” Like in high school, he’s struggled with attendance issues while in Fresh Start. He’s even been kicked out of the program for missing work. Thankfully, he says, “they let me back in.” His favorite part of the program is “being around positive people,” he says. “They teach you to be a better you.” n

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n NEWS

Buzz kill Will Wisconsin’s pollinator plan keep bees from dying? BY MOLLY STENTZ

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

“Just give us a break.” That’s all Doug Hauke is asking for. He’s one of the largest honey producers and beekeepers in Wisconsin. He keeps nearly 3,000 bee colonies near Marshfield, each with tens of thousands of honeybees. He produces 200,000 pounds of honey a year for Leinenkugel. He’s no small operator — and no novice either. Hauke remembers the days when Madison was home to one of the largest bee research labs in the country, run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He worked there in the 1970s, before it was shuttered. Yet even with his skill and experience, and the size of his operation, his bees are not immune to the threats facing beekeepers around the world. Wisconsin beekeepers reported losing more than 60% of their colonies over the 2014-2015 season, according to the most recent data from the USDA-funded Bee Informed survey. Much of the devastation has been blamed on agriculture’s heavy use of pesticides, which weaken pollinators against natural threats like mites and disease. While still successful, Hauke has nevertheless lost whole colonies of bees and seen firsthand the struggle to keep the practice alive. “When the spraying starts on a countywide basis...there is no safe place to run,” Hauke says, referring to the springtime pesticide applications his colonies encounter.

The plight of honeybees and other pollinators in modern industrial agricultural systems has been well-documented: They’re dying in droves. Jeff Pettis, one of the leading scientists from the USDA Bee Research Lab, told Congress in 2014 that the “economic sustainability of beekeeping is at the tipping point” and that the cost of constantly replacing hives is “making beekeeping no longer financially viable in this country.” Government officials near and far have been trying to figure out what to do to save the bees, nature’s migrant farmworker force. The Obama administration has provided guidance and money aimed at finding solutions. States have offered their own plans, tailored to their particular climate and crops. Wisconsin has just added its effort to the mix with a 52-page document called the Wisconsin Pollinator Protection Plan. It was written by a UW-Madison postdoctoral researcher, Christina Locke, in concert with representatives from about 30 groups identified as stakeholders by the Wisconsin Department of Agricultural, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). Hauke was one of two beekeepers invited to contribute, along with chemical company representatives, agricultural industry spokespeople, naturalists and government agency scientists. The plan is chock-full of advice for gar-

Pesticides are getting increased scrutiny as scientists try to figure out why so many bees are dying. But Wisconsin’s new draft plan to save pollinators doesn’t call for any new regulations.

UW-MADISON/CALS

deners, farmers, beekeepers and managers of public land — “best management practices” in the parlance of government. A few of the tips: Avoid spraying pesticides on blooming plants being visited by pollinators. Incorporate native plant species into your garden, which tend to attract more bee species. Place bee hives in areas where at least three species of flowering plants are in bloom at all times from early spring to late fall, so the bees have enough food. In some places, the plan contains resources and specific steps for how to achieve these things, such as links to lists of where to buy native seed mixes. The plan, however, does not offer any guidance for policymakers on how regulate pesticides. Recent estimates show that more than 80% of corn and about 40% of soybean acres in the U.S. were planted with neonicotinoid-treated seed — and this use has come under increased scrutiny lately for its impact on pollinators. Seed coatings are one of the most popular and prevalent uses of the neonicotinoid class of pesticides — and thanks to an exemption from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, they aren’t labelled or regulated as pesticides. This is the subject of a new lawsuit brought against the EPA in January by a beekeeper in Minnesota, which estimates that 150 million acres nationwide are planted with neonic seed coatings. The pesticide coatings are aimed at protecting plants from predators when they are young and vulnerable. But joint research from 12 major public universities, including the UW, shows that neonic treatments for soybeans often provide little value to farmers because the seed treatments are not timed for the attacks of major soybean pests. The EPA agrees. Soybean aphids tend to come looking for lunch after the concentration of pesticide has peaked.

Yet the process of planting can kick up a lot of dust, spreading the pesticide to neighboring fields, where it is taken up by dandelions and other wildflowers that bees feed on in the early spring. Several new studies have documented that many pollinators are affected by sublethal doses of pesticides, meaning a dose not large enough to kill them immediately, but enough to make them sick or disoriented. That Wisconsin’s pollinator plan doesn’t contemplate any regulation of pesticides is no accident. Locke says DATCP Secretary Ben Brancel directed the stakeholder group to craft the plan as a voluntary document, not a regulatory tool. Regulatory proposals need to be signed off on by the DATCP Board. Many industry representatives cautioned against “regulatory creep” as the plan was being developed, both at stakeholder meetings and in written comments to the plan’s author. “As all of the agriculture and farm groups stated repeatedly during the sessions, the plan needs to be simple, voluntary and recognize that some groups or agencies may at some point attempt to make portions of it mandatory or regulatory,” Tom Lochner of the Wisconsin Cranberry Growers Association wrote in response to the draft plan. The Cranberry Growers Association, for one, would like to see even less emphasis on pesticides in the plan. “Our growers and in general all farmers are responsible in their use of pest control chemicals,” Lochner wrote. Hauke, the commercial beekeeper from Marshfield, favors restrictions on pesticide use rather than an outright ban, such as the one the European Union enacted. He’d like to see the prohibition of prophylactic use of neonic seed

treatments, a practice where farmers use the pesticide as a precaution rather than in response to an infestation. He also suggests that when chemical companies bring new products to the market, the EPA should use independent, third-party research to verify their claims. The EPA is currently reviewing four major neonicotinoid pesticide registrations to determine their impacts on pollinators, and it has announced a temporary moratorium on new approvals. It took a similar pesticide off the market after a federal lawsuit. Other governments have taken action. In Canada, Ontario began phasing in restrictions on neonic sales last summer, with the goal of reducing acreage planted with such pesticides by 80%. In November, Quebec announced plans to ban neonic use in urban areas and severely curtail agricultural use. Several U.S. cities, including Portland, Ore., have restricted their use on city property. Madison intends to follow suit, according to its Pollinator Protection Task Force Report, published in the fall. Dane County published a report as well, which includes a goal of minimizing insecticide use by the county and its residents. But beekeepers like Hauke remain pessimistic that Wisconsin’s plan will bring major change. “Do I think Big Ag will change? Absolutely not, too much money involved,” Hauke says. “But I do believe the plan will inform and enlighten private individuals to be more aware of pollinators.” The plan is available online (see this story at www.isthmus.com for a link) at the DACTP website. DATCP is accepting public comments on the plan by mail or email through Feb. 19. n

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“My sleep has improved. My mood has improved. I’ve lost weight. I can exercise more without being exhausted. It’s like I have a superpower now; the way I am living now is so different from what I was capable of before.”

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This has long been a source of irritation for residents, who feel the city and MGE, which also does trimming, do not care much about the trees. That perception spills over into conflicts over whether to remove or try to save ash trees and whether to prioritize the saving of trees during construction or public works projects. Approximately 40 of the 135 trees in the Jenifer Street project area are slated for removal; some of the ash trees are being removed “preemptively” because of interference with power lines. This is especially troubling to neighborhood residents. “A lot of the trees are being removed as a convenience,” says Tipler. John Coleman, chair of the Marquette Neighborhood Association tree committee, says the problem is that the city manages itsZEI E trees from a “forest perspective” and is not con- R R D. cerned about individual trees. “I would prefer to see a more customized approach to try to protect individual trees,” he adds. Romines does not entirely disagree with Coleman’s critique of city forestry’s role. “As the LIEN RD. steward of all the city’s forests, we can’t become emotionally attached to one tree or another,” he says. “But when the tree is out in front of your house, [the attachment] is understandable.” “None of us want to cut down trees, and none of us asked for this,” adds Romines, referring to emerald ash borer damage. “We’re fortunate we’re in a city providing lots of funding for treatment and lots of money in replanting trees.” O He says the trees being removed preempTH tively on Jenifer Street already have more than a 30% canopy loss due to power line clearance pruning. “This puts them into poor condition,” he says. Ash trees under power lines will be replanted with trees that, once mature, will not interfere with power lines, he adds. “We’re not going to repeat those mistakes.” But Anne Walker, a landscaper by profession, says the trees should stay and power lines moved. She says she often gets letters from MGE telling her how careful planting of trees or installing new windows can help save energy. Why shouldn’t the “undergrounding” of power lines, in order to save shade trees that already help curb energy use, be part of this larger conversation on energy conservation, she asks. Says Walker: “I see that as an extension of the same policy.” Leslie Schroeder, another member of the tree committee, says it is important to remember that every cityGE tree was planted intentionE RD. GROV COTTA ally. “The human relationship with trees is both simple and complex; they’re our ancestral arboreal home, right? We find joy in their beauty, relief in their shade, comfort in their protection, and yet here we are forced to defend them through a system that only recognizes statistics and financial repercussions.” n

E AV

Soon after news broke that an entire row of trees on Emmet Street had been cut down by the American Transmission Co., neighbors to the south, across Atwood Avenue, offered condolences to those grieving the loss. “The tree in front of your house is a family member — it shades your home, the birds nest in it, you hang your kids’ swing in it — it is part of your life,” wrote one resident on an east-side neighborhood association listserve. “You may not even know how much of a friend it is until NO it’s gone.” RT HP But, he added, “The way you see the terrace OR TD R. tree in front of your house or on your block is TROY DR. completely different from the way that city forestry or Madison Gas and Electric or ATC...see it.... The city forester’s main job is not to protect or plant or preserve trees but rather to prevent any tree-related liability. We have to address this disconnect, and our community will be a better place for trees and people.” Another neighbor reached out in solidarity, asking if any residents of Emmet Street wanted to join an effort on Jenifer Street to of Public save trees there during upcoming roadwork. “Trees quite often surface as one of the son Board ANDERSON ST.Works was now sched“If we can work through this issue in a timely top priorities, particularly when you’re uled Feb. 3 to review city engineering’s proway for this street reconstruction project, we talking about mature trees in established posal for the street reconstruction project can help establish a process, change the city neighborhoods,” he says. “They’re part of — added urgency to their task. They spent the last part of the meeting talking about policy and find funding sources to prevent the fabric of those neighborhoods.” tree canopy loss in future street reconstruc- The Marquette Neighborhood Asso- getting people to write letters to the panel ciation’s relatively new treeABERG committee is and attend the meeting. tion projects.” AVE. There is a growing “save the trees” move- working furiously to come up with strate- “Okay,” said member Anne Walker. E. ment in Madison, sparked by the sting many gies to save trees targeted on Jenifer Street. “We’re there.” AV residents are already feeling at the expected The association’s board recently endorsed N LA KE TO first house in Madison wasNGon East loss of thousands of ash trees due to the inva- a proposal to support the partial burying Tipler’s ABERG AVE. I H1973, the sive emerald ash borer insect. Approximately of high-voltage power lines in order to save Dayton Street. He moved there in S A W remov12,000 of the city’s 22,000 ash trees will be re- trees. “We would like our alder and city en- day after crews had gone through E. moved, while 10,000 still in good health will gineering and forestry to work together to ing trees due to Dutch elm disease. The city be treated, according to city parks operations help us resolve the issues that threaten the replaced many of these trees with ash trees COMMERCIAL AVE. manager Charlie Romines. Given the enor- removal of these trees,” says Gary Tipler, a that would grow tall and wide; those located under power lines eventually created a safemity of this loss, new city public works or pri- member of the board. Dengel’s Bay vate projects that doom additional trees cause The tree committee met Monday night ty hazard. It was a problem the city did not at the Wil-Mar Neighborhood Center to dis- have when power lines were lower voltage. heightened despair. “When it comes to infrastructure projects cuss, among other issues, the cost of such The required pruning around the lines is ST. have unsightly there is a greater focus on the trees because of an initiative (it’s not cheap). The news they why many of MILWAUKEE our older trees EAB [emerald ash borer],” says Romines, who received earlier that day — that the Madi- Y-shaped gaps in the middle. oversees the forestry division. “Now any loss of a tree is a much bigger deal than even three KS years ago.” OA R I EM Ya The city promises to replace many of the ME FA ha T trees lost to disease or public projects. But the ra VE. A D O O R W so-called canopy trees of old — which can stand AT . AT . WO 50 to 70 feet tall and provide shade up to the secDR OD D AV O ond floor of some homes — will be replaced by O E. W . T E S much shorter trees if located under high-power A V E A N voltage lines, forever changing the landscape of TO . G older neighborhoods. It will also affect the enST IN N H vironment in myriad ways, since trees also help SO . AS M T W IA R S absorb rainwater, create habitat for wildlife, reE. L IL FE duce noise and protect from wind. W NI JE Saving as much of the lush, green urban canopy as possible has emerged as a priority among residents affected by the Jenifer Street reconstruction project, which will run from Spaight to Few streets. This does not surprise Romines.

n WEEK IN REVIEW

n MADISON MATRIX

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 20

FRIDAY, JAN. 22

TUESDAY, JAN. 26

n In response to contro-

n In an effort to increase

n Federal officials arrest a

versy over the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association’s crackdown on chants like “air ball,” and “season over,” Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette) introduces a bill to make the organization subject to state open records laws. Wonder if the WIAA will cry foul?

THURSDAY, JAN. 21 n UW System President

Ray Cross meets with student activists to discuss racial equality and inclusivity on college campuses. Cross has acknowledged the need to “do a better job” of improving the minority experience at UW schools. n Bills to overhaul the state’s civil service hiring process and strip funding from Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin pass in the state Senate. A bill banning research on aborted fetal tissue tissue does not advance.

sexual assault reporting, Rep. Joan Ballweg (RMarkesan), backed by state Attorney General Brad Schimel and UWMadison, introduces a bill that would grant immunity from underage drinking violations to survivors of sexual assault and bystanders who help survivors report the crimes.

MONDAY, JAN. 25 n The Willy Street Co-op

announces it is contemplating opening a new location in the Pierce’s Northside Market on North Sherman Avenue.

23-year-old Milwaukee man, Samy Mohamed Hamzeh, over a plot to commit a mass shooting at a Masonic temple. FBI agents say he’s a radical Muslim, but friends and co-workers describe him as a pot-smoking slacker, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. n Another high-profile departure from UWMadison: Darrell Bazzell, UW’s vice chancellor for finance and administration, announces plans to leave the university this spring to take a job at the University of Texas at Austin.

BIG CITY

A group that includes UW-Madison business students and graduates is facing federal prison sentences for an investment club scheme that involved transporting marijuana from California to Wisconsin. So smart, yet so stupid.

A nearly nine-hour standoff with an armed man on Madison’s east side Sunday ends when the perpetrator overdoses on pills. The 35-year-old man is taken to the hospital.

PREDICTABLE

SURPRISING

Former Calumet County District Attorney Ken Kratz, aka the villainous prosecutor as depicted in the Netflix docuseries Making a Murderer, is writing a book about the Steven Avery case to tell his side of the story, WBAY-TV reports. Attention, house hunters: Gov. Scott Walker puts his Wauwatosa home on the market. Priced at $338,000, it boasts four bedrooms, two bathrooms, an in-ground pool and comes haunted with the ghosts of failed presidential dreams. SMALL TOWN

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I’m sipping my third cup of coffee in the open-air dining room at the Albergue el Socorro private nature preserve and inn high in the mountains of Costa Rica following the most intense hour of bird watching in my life. From brightly colored tanagers and flitting little warblers to the big-beaked toucans, all varieties of feathered wildlife put on a spectacular sunrise show in the yard of the family-run business. I’m just a casual birder, but I know enough to realize this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. After our breakfast of scrambled eggs, black beans and homemade breads, Albergue el Socorro owner José Miranda explains how the 400-acre preserve is part of the 18-site Costa Rican Bird Route aimed at bringing more visitors to this Central American nation of 4.75 million. The inns and accompanying tourist dollars help fund these private preserves. The hope is that emphasizing tourism over extractive industries like farming, mining or forestry will slow destruction of the rainforest. Miranda hands me a guidebook to the various private reserves along the route. I start flipping through it, when I notice the address of the publisher: 7 N. Pinckney St. in Madison, Wis. Talk about stumbling onto a local story. It turns out the Costa Rican Bird Route is a project of the Rainforest Biodiversity Group, an effort launched over a decade ago by Andrew Rothman, a 1995 graduate of Madison East High School. Rothman fell in love with Costa Rica on a college trip while at UWStevens Point. After that life-changing journey, Rothman switched his major to natural resources protection and has now devoted his career to helping endangered species. He’s returned to Costa Rica many times and continues to champion ecotourism. Rothman’s career has since taken him to Washington, D.C., where he serves as migratory bird program director at the American Bird Conservancy. The Rainforest Biodiversity Group is still headquartered in Madison and has just completed another round of small grants awarded to those working on habitat preservation. Saving rainforests in Costa Rica also benefits birds in the U.S., since many of our brightly colored common summer visitors like the Baltimore oriole or scarlet tanager migrate south in winter to Central America. “When the birds are doing well in Costa Rica, it usually means they are doing well here too,” says Dan Schneider, a planner with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the longest-serving board member of the Rainforest Biodiversity Group.

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For years, tourism in Central America was slow to develop because of civil wars in various regions and the lack of convenient airline connections. But as peace has settled over more of the region, the number of visitors to Costa Rica has skyrocketed. Costa Rica is a leader in Latin American ecotourism, with nearly 25% of its land under some sort of protected status. Today, tourism accounts for over 5% of the country’s gross domestic prod-

one of the more remote preserves on the Costa Rican Bird Route. The drive there alone is spectacular and not for those without GPS — although cell phone service was good enough that I watched one of the UW basketball NCAA tournament games on my iPhone. Dur ing our three-week journey around Costa Rica, we weren’t lucky enough to glimpse the endangered great green macaw — one of the most coveted species for birders visiting Central America. But we did get a lengthy viewing of the beautiful long-tailed quetzal during a guided trip to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve, a mountainous area settled in the 1950s Jose Miranda is owner of Albergue el Socorro, a by Quakers from the U.S. drawn to Costa Rica by the fact it had combination lodge, preserve and birding hot spot. disbanded its standing army and was a pacifist nation. uct and brings in more foreign dollars than ba- Sometimes described as the “Switzernanas, pineapples and coffee exports combined. land of Latin America,” Costa Rica remains In 2012, according to the most recent figures one of the most affluent and stable nations available, Costa Rica counted 2.34 million for- in a region long ravaged by poverty and eign visitors, with spending reaching $2.4 billion conflict. It boasts universal health care, a in U.S. dollars. Nearly half of visitors come from per capita gross domestic product of more the U.S., with Canada contributing another 10%. than $10,000, a literacy rate of 95% and fe “We’ve had a lot of people from Wisconsin male life expectancy of 80 years. come stay with us,” says Albergue el Socorro “Costa Rica offers a look at a way of life owner Miranda, who with his wife converted distinct from the modernized world, while most of his family’s small dairy farm to a tourist allowing tourists to largely avoid the sad destination a decade ago. “My brother still milks realities of poverty in the Third World,” a few cows, but farming is harder work than giv- writes Julie Dasenbrock in her 2013 report “The Pros and Cons of Ecotourism in Costa ing tours,” Miranda jokes through a translator. During our stay last April, Miranda guid- Rica.” Tourism has also come under fire ed us down a narrow rocky path to a rushing from those who argue it has stymied indigmountain stream that demanded we pull off the enous economic development and left the hiking boots and cool our feet in the bubbling nation at the mercy of visitors. water. The trail out of the gorge wasn’t easy and Rainforest Biodiversity Group board by the looks of it was traveled more frequently member Schneider is aware of those by tapirs, a large, pig-like mammal, than adven- criticisms but maintains that ecotourism ture-seeking tourists. On the steepest section, provides a more sustainable model than Miranda had left a braided nylon climbing rope clearcutting rainforests in the name of economic development: “Every acre that is we used to pull ourselves up the muddy slope. Set on 400 acres two hours north of the cap- preserved for visitors is an acre of rainforest ital city of San José, the Albergue el Socorro is that isn’t being destroyed.” n

n TECH

Free advice UW Law and Entrepreneurship Clinic lends helping hand to local startups BY KATE NEWTON

Randy Nagy is always a little hesitant to sit down with a lawyer. He knows it will cost a fortune. Unfortunately for Nagy, who founded Fast Forward Forensics in April, lawyers are a necessity when you run your own business. “When I do sit down with a lawyer, it’s a 15-minute discussion, and I don’t want it to be any longer” jokes Nagy, whose company sells products to collect and store biological samples. But thanks to the UW-Madison’s Law & Entrepreneurship Clinic, Nagy and others have a free way to iron out the legal ramifications involved in running a business. “When I sit down with the clinic, it may take a half hour or 45 minutes, but you feel a lot better after that that a good decision has been made,” Nagy says. Founded in 2009, the clinic also gives two- and three-year law students an opportunity to put what they’ve learned into practice. Law student Bryon Eagon loves the opportunity. “It’s exciting because it’s real work, it’s not just a theoretical application and academic exercise,” says Eagon, a former Madison council member. “These are real clients with real-life legal issues that through our work we’re able to...hopefully help them grow and succeed as entrepreneurs.” The clinic provides free legal services for budding entrepreneurs, nonprofits and small businesses. Its mission is to provide experience and a challenging academic environment for students and “high-quality” services to clients; it also aims to bolster the local and state economies through its work. Hundreds of clients — 310 in 2015 alone — have sought

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Randy Nagy (left), founder of Fast Forward Forensics, consults with UW law student Bryon Eagon, who assisted Nagy with the company’s operating and reselling agreements.

services from the clinic ranging in scope from drafting international distribution agreements and contracts to finalizing a patent or navigating intellectual property law. “When we started, we had no clients and weren’t quite sure where we would find them,” says co-director Anne Smith, a UW law professor, who founded the clinic with attorney Eric Englund. “And now, we have so many that...we always have a backlog.” The clinic is now more selective. Prospective clients start by filling out an application, and, if

approved, attending an intake where they explain their business to Smith, students and supervising attorneys who serve as part-time mentors and staff. About 60% of clients are accepted and selected by student attorneys for consultation, Smith says. The clinic refers the rest to other resources that may help them. If students are unfamiliar with the nuances of an issue, they can consult a supervising attorney or the clinic’s advisory committee, made up of representatives from 17 Wisconsin law firms.

Nagy was “pleasantly surprised” by how much the students knew. The clinic helped him draft operating and reselling agreements. He’s now working on a distribution agreement so he can sell his products overseas. “It really puts into practice how we’re able to take some of the legal issues off his plate so he can focus on the science and business aspects of his company, so that he doesn’t have to juggle so many things,” says Eagon, who worked with Nagy. Not surprisingly, Smith says that clients consistently cite the lack of legal fees as their favorite thing about the clinic. The intention is for it to always remain free. Students’ work throughout the year amounts to about 8,400 “billable hours,” which would account for about $2 million in fees if the clinic did charge clients. Following up with clients after their services conclude gives a sense of how effective the clinic has been in fostering economic growth. A recent study from UW-Extension economics researchers found that 62% of new startups in Wisconsin “survive through three years of operation,” and that more than a quarter of gross job creation in the state is generated by startups. A clinic survey last year found that 75% of the clinic’s clients remained in business, 22% had annual revenues of $100,000 or more, and 10% employed five or more people. Eagon says he likes being able to foster and sustain Wisconsin’s entrepreneurial spirit. “The resources institutionally and professionally are here in Madison to cultivate success,” Eagon says. “It’s our charge as a community going forward to think how we can best support those in our community and keep this positive trajectory going.” n

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n OPINION

Cronyism gets the job Republicans destroy key parts of what was once a model civil service system BY RUTH CONNIFF Ruth Conniff is the editor-in-chief of The Progressive magazine.

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

More than a century ago, the great progressive governor Bob La Follette helped create Wisconsin’s civil service system as part of a raft of Progresssive Era reforms. Gov. Scott Walker is expected to sign legislation soon to do away with that system. I was reminded of the importance of the history of civil service because my daughter has been studying Tammany Hall, Boss Tweed and the whole corrupt era of cronyism and bribery in government in the late 1800s for her high school history exam. She was making flash cards with words like “patronage” and the “spoils system,” just as the Walker administration and its allies were seeking to bring these concepts back. Destroying key parts of the civil service system is the latest attack on good government and our state’s progressive ideals. To understand how dangerous that is, you had to tune in to the Senate floor debate on the issue, which took place at 10 p.m. on Jan. 20, when most Wisconsinites were turning in for the night. “It was absolutely the most disturbing testimony I’ve ever heard on the Senate floor,” says Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma). Vinehout’s colleagues testified about secret meetings with state employees from the Department of Corrections and the Department of Natural Resources who have been intimidated and threatened for daring to speak up about violence in the workplace, excessive amounts of overtime work in dangerous jobs, and hazards including pollution and safety violations their bosses don’t want them to disclose. Under the new law attacking the state’s civil service system, “just cause” for discipline and firing state employees includes “personal conduct that is inadequate, unsuitable or inferior.” “Here’s the question,” Vinehout says. “Is someone who works for Corrections or DNR who goes out for coffee and describes problems in the workplace to her elected representative on her own time commit-

DAVID MICHAEL MILLER

ting ‘inadequate, inferior or unsuitable’ personal conduct?” Targets of this clause could include whistleblowers. Consider the state geologist who says he endured unbearable political pressure at work and ultimately resigned after controversy erupted over reports of asbestos in rocks around the proposed Penokee iron mine. Or think of the Corrections worker who told a senator about an inmate strangling a psychiatrist. That’s dangerous not just for employees, but also for the public. Under civil service, public employees have long been hired based on merit. The early motto of the civil service system was “the best shall serve the state.” Changes in the law open the door to cronyism and corruption. Take the case of Brian Deschane, the 27-year-old college dropout the Walker administration

hired in 2011 to head the environmental and regulatory services division of the state Commerce Department. Deschane’s qualifications included a one-month stint at the Department of Regulation and Licensing. He also worked for a couple of Republican legislators and for two business lobby groups. And his dad was the head lobbyist for the Wisconsin Builders Association. Deschane was brought in to replace an administrator with a degree in chemical engineering and 25 years’ experience in the agency.

THIS MODERN WORLD

Controversy in the news over Deschane’s drunk-driving record ultimately led the Walker administration to send him packing back to his old job. But the administration had the flexibility to move him around like that because he was a political appointee, outside the civil service system. This is the direction Walker has been taking the state. In his first state budget, the governor moved 37 jobs out of civil service and into the classification that allows patronage. Now so-called civil service reform allows him to turn all 38,000 civil service positions in Wisconsin into patronage jobs. The main reason Wisconsin implemented civil service in the first place was to end the practice of politicians giving jobs to their friends and political supporters. Civil service made Wisconsin a model state for clean environment, efficient commerce, safe food and water and high-quality public services Now we are turning back the clock. Bob La Follette built a loyal following among his fellow Republicans by criticizing party bosses and denouncing bribery in the state Capitol — including attempts to buy his own vote. He championed tax reform, regulating corporations, and open government He developed a relationship between the University of Wisconsin and state government and strove to appoint experts to state boards, including the civil service commission. His main purpose, he said, was to “protect the people from selfish interests.” We need that protection more than ever today. n

BY TOM TOMORROW

HILLDALE .COM

n FEEDBACK

Herstory

nuclear reactor sites in Wisconsin, reactor sites that are not expected ever to light a light bulb again. Petersen omits the rest of the story from the NRC: “This analysis does not constitute an endorsement of extended onsite storage of spent fuel as the appropriate long-term solution” (Federal Register vol. 79 page 56251). Chuck Baynton, Whitefish Bay (via email)

Dear Dave Cieslewicz: I am surprised by the narrowness of your book recommendations (“Between the Covers,” 1/14/2016): men in politics, men in power, men in medicine, men in war, men in sports; adventurous men, fighting men, scientific men, competitive men, heroic men; MEN WRITING ABOUT MEN. The only women author mentioned is for a book that you don’t recommend. Please, Citizen Dave, remember the ladies next time. We have herstories and write books. Linda Dee, Monticello (via email)

How low can you go? I’m bewildered as to why you would print the letter in Feedback that complained about a Silk ad (“New Low,” 1/14/2016). In it was mentioned the increase of pedophile readership as a result of its printing. Could your running of this complaint have been motivated to highlight the writer’s ignorance in this matter, as the picture is clearly not that of a child? It would seem that a response from you would have helped to clarify this for the writer and other readers. At most you could have posited that men and women with her condition have the same rights to enjoy working in the sex industry. I am not a fan either of the ads, but I cannot abide the writer’s accusation. Christopher Collins, aka Eros X Caos (via email)

Waste not In stressing the message that “scientists” want to bring more nuclear power to Wisconsin, Allison Geyer’s article “Nuclear Options” (1/21/ 2016) does not serve your readers well. She names two scientists. The first is a nuclear engineer whose opinion is hardly unbiased. Neither of them addresses the problem of waste, which remains dangerous to living things for tens of thousands of years; the current law, which Rep. Kevin Petersen (R-Waupaca) wants to repeal, addresses waste in a sensible way. Petersen cites the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in support of his claim that “spent nuclear fuel can be safely managed in dry casks indefinitely,” which is precisely what is happening at two decommissioned

Many Wisconsin residents, liberal and conservative alike, waste a colossal amount of energy. We use inefficient lightbulbs with Edison-era technology and leave furnaces cranked up when no one is home. Cheap energy, generated out of sight of most of its consumers, has its costs in polluted air, ruined groundwater, earthquakes and global climate change. While some consumers make a point of conserving energy, it’s still primarily an expression of personal values — like eating vegetarian or shopping at local businesses instead of Wal-Mart. Unfortunately, in most parts of the U.S. energy conservation is not a community value, and there is no penalty for being wasteful. The discussion of bringing nuclear power to Wisconsin is a waste of time. We must acknowledge that the negative affects of energy generation are directly tied to our behavior, and shift our values to reflect the seriousness of the problem. Ben Seigel (via email)

Armed and dangerous Michael Cummins—boy, are you wrong (“A Free Society Comes with Costs,” 1/21/2016). I also used to think that a well-armed populace would keep the government in line. All it would take is a band of neighbors marching with their grandfathers’ shotguns to convince our elected officials to behave should they opt for tyranny. Then I got drafted. The killing machinery I saw convinced me those ideas were foolish. The murderous power of the military in those days was very scary. It is much deadlier now. The irrational, delusional Bundy gang at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge would last seconds if Uncle Sam turned the Army loose on them. There is no chance that armed citizens could stand against our military and force the government to bend to their will. Since 1970, more Americans have died from guns (about 1.45 million) than all the Americans who died in wars going back to the American Revolution (1.4 million). Is that worth the imagined proposition that our Wild West ethic and AR-15s will keep the government in line? The flood of guns we suffer under won’t prevent bad government; it will continue to bring misery and death. Frank Sandner (via email)

Share comments with Isthmus via email, edit@isthmus.com, and via Forum.isthmus.com, Facebook and Twitter, or write letters to Isthmus, 100 State St., Suite 301, Madison WI 53703. All comments are subject to editing. The views expressed here are solely those of the contributors. These opinions do not necessarily represent those of Isthmus Publishing Company.

OFF THE SQUARE

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JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

TEACHING FUTURE LEADERS

Built on Wisdom, Truth, Community, Justice, Compassion, & Partnership

n COVER STORY

State Street’s Forage Kitchen prioritizes local sourcing in entrees like the Local Roots salad.

FAST-CASUAL RESTAURANTS GO FRESH AND DELICIOUS

“FRESH. LOCAL. GLUTEN-FREE. Healthy. Small Batch.” All the buzzwords.

With that lingo, you might easily mistake the

restaurant being described for someplace like Graze, James Beard Award-winning Madison chef Tory Miller’s farm-to-table, “fresh from local pastures” gastropub on the Capitol Square. ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

It is, however, the tagline for Glaze, a New York

City-based chain of eight counter-service teriyaki restaurants — call it a boutique chain — spread across the U.S. from Manhattan to San Francisco, with a location slated to open this spring in Madison.

Glaze is just one of a handful of fast-casual spots that have found Madison an attractive market in recent months — Freshii, Naf Naf Grill, Bowl of Heaven, Forage Kitchen and Freska Mediterranean Grill have all opened within the past year. They share similar concepts, focusing on customizable bowls, salads and wraps, and often freshly squeezed juices and fruit smoothies. Fresher, healthier eating is coming to fast food in a big way, and we’re not talking about McDonald’s serving more salads. These spots don’t serve burgers; fruits and vegetables are the focus, not a sidelight. “Proteins” — from steak to tofu — are add-ons, not the centerpiece of the dish. A decade ago, the big hamburger chains began seeing competition from more upscale chains dubbed “fast-casual” — places like Panera Bread, Chipotle and Noodles. Though these spots still had counter service, they offered more attractive decor than the standard burger joint, more customizable dishes and the perception of better-quality ingredients. Fast-casual continues to gain market share in the restaurant industry, encompass-

ing everything from upscale burgers (think Five Guys, Mooyah) to pizza, but there’s recently been a strong upsurge of fresh and healthy. FastCasual, an industry website, publishes a yearly “Top 100” list of movers and shakers in the fast-casual segment, and it’s full of descriptions not normally associated with chain food. These up-and-comers “source local and organic ingredients from local farmers” (sweetgreen); serve “chefcrafted foods that are grown responsibly and sustainably” (the vegan Native Foods Cafe); are “farm-to-table” and committed to “ingredients with no added hormones or antibiotics” (Modern Market); reduce their food miles to increase flavor (MAD Greens); butcher their own meat (Asian Box); and pick most produce “fresh daily” for “slow food done fast”(Tender Greens). These restaurants have an array of fresh veggies at the ready. Grain choices from quinoa to black rice. Proteins from free-range organic chicken to goji-chipotle organic tempeh. Staff whip up your salad or bowl in a matter of minutes, usually for less than $10 a meal. Is this for real?

BEST OF BOTH WORLDS Diners are looking to get the “best of both worlds,” says Craig Thompson, professor of marketing at the UW-Madison business school. They want convenient, fast food that tastes good and is also good for their health. Thompson, who studies alternative food systems, thinks the rise of healthier fast-casual restaurants is part of an overall backlash against fast food that’s been ongoing for well over a decade, spurred by the publication of Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation and the release of Morgan Spurlock’s film Super Size Me. But since these works raised the public’s consciousness, even the way we talk about food has shifted. “Ten or 15 years ago it was all about fat,” Thompson says. He credits food writers like Michael Pollan and Mark Bittman with shifting the emphasis away from counting calories. Now, consumers are more likely to look for food that is fresh and unprocessed. When customers see their salads, wraps and bowls created right in front of them, it highlights that “this is being freshly prepared,” says Thompson. “This translates into ‘This must be good for me.’” And what is “good for me,” exactly? “There’s so much conflicting information out there,” Thompson notes. “Who do you trust? At some point as a consumer, you can’t research every option.” That’s why consumers are often willing to pay a premium to let a brand — like Whole Foods or Chipotle — do their vetting for them. “Consumers rely on the brand and place faith in that, until proven otherwise,” says Thompson. That’s why Chipotle’s recent incidents nationwide with food-borne illnesses have been so devastating. Sales have plummeted and confidence in the chain is at a low.

“I BUILT THAT”

THE LATEST IN FAST AND HEALTHY

BOWL OF HEAVEN 717 Hilldale Court

The star is açaí bowls and smoothies. Açaí bowls are more or less smoothies served in a bowl, composed of a blend of fruits like açaí berries, strawberries, pineapple, blueberries and banana, and even fresh kale and spinach, topped with organic hemp flax, granola and honey. Served icy cold, they’re better that way. Fresh juices, too, are made to order. Unique ingredients: MAQ7, a blend of the maqui berry, the gac fruit and five others you’ve never heard of; purple corn

FORAGE KITCHEN 665 State St.

Salads and grain bowls form the heart of the menu. A dozen pre-designed salads and two pre-designed bowls are on the chalkboard, or have the staff build your own from a wide variety of veggies and other add-ons. Small dining area; there is a lot of take-out. Açaí bowls; fresh fruit/veggie juices made on site but pre-bottled at the counter. Unique ingredients: citrus-marinated fennel, goji-chipotle organic tempeh, black (“forbidden”) rice

FRESHII 422 Gammon Place

Freshii has a large menu of salads, wraps, grain bowls, soups, burritos and juices. Customers can also create their own by checking off options on a printed ticket; then counter staff will make it up. This speeds up the assembly line process (there’s no last-minute indecision, or “what’s that?” conversations with the staff) and makes pricing and extras completely clear. You can also sign up for a juice cleanse program. Juices are made-to-order. Unique ingredients: turkey carnitas, spicy lemongrass, mango

FRESKA MEDITERRANEAN GRILL 8310 Greenway Blvd., Middleton

Build-your-own pita sandwiches, rice plates, salads and platters, plus four soups. Unique ingredients: lamb, marinated pork, babaghanoush, couscous, tabouleh, roasted pepper aioli, harissa sauce

NAF NAF MEDITERRANEAN GRILL 555 State St.

Build-your-own pita sandwiches, rice bowls, salads. Unique ingredients: steak shawarma, sumac onions, s’khug sauce, basmati rice

FRESHII, NAF NAF PHOTOS BY PAULIUS MUSTEIKIS

JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

Making your own meal without having to cook it yourself brings new meaning to the phrase “have it your way.” And it’s fun. A smorgasbord of colorful fruits and veggies are at the ready, to be combined in kaleidoscopic variations. Go slightly southwestern with a rice bowl topped with avocados, black beans and a cilantro lime vinaigrette, or head east with tofu, cabbage, carrots and lemongrass dressing all rolled up in a wrap of kale. Go crazy and add beet slaw, even though it matches neither of these cuisines. Because you love beets. It really is all up to you. Greater customer control over what’s on the plate is key in today’s dining scene. That’s why choose-your-own assembly line ordering has become so widespread in fast-casual. Susan Quam, executive vice president of the Wisconsin Restaurant Association, says her group has definitely taken note of the trend. Consumers aren’t just saying they want healthier options — they’re actually putting

their money where their mouths are and acting upon it, says Quam. “Build-your-own” is clearly on the rise here in Wisconsin, Quam confirms, with sandwiches, wraps, salads, bowls, ramen, even fresher takes on pizza (where customers have been building their own for years) being created at the order counter. “The build-your-own concept is being driven especially by younger diners, who look at food as an expression of themselves and not just fuel for their bodies,” says Quam. It’s important for them to “be able to choose what’s in their food, even though someone else is making it for them.” Customization also makes it easier to cope with many diet needs — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, paleo, raw, low-carb. Several restaurants (Chipotle and Naf Naf, for instance) have dynamic nutrition calculators on their websites. Calories, sodium and grams of fat automatically add up on the right side of the screen as you add options like steak or chicken, tofu, rice, pickles and hummus to your meal. This extensive info on everything from amounts of saturated fat to cholesterol, sodium, carbs and protein is a hidden benefit to eating at a chain restaurant. It’s unusual for an independent, locally owned restaurant to have this kind of accounting available, although Fit Fresh Cuisine in Fitchburg has been a pioneer in this locally. The six-year-old restaurant lists calories, carbs, fiber, fat and protein for its small menu of açaí bowls, smoothies, scrambles, salads and sandwiches. But Thompson sees an overall change in customer mindset: These days, people feel less of a need to count calories. “A restaurant like Freshii is saying, ‘We are serving you fresh, healthy food, so you can eat this without worries or guilt,’” says Thompson. And that’s liberating. “The consumer is thinking, ‘I don’t have to worry about rice; rice is natural, I can just eat and relax.’ I think that’s a big part of the promise.” The bottom line? It’s okay because it’s not a McNugget. Kathy Humiston, a longtime member at the Willy Street Co-op, penned a history of “hippie food” for the co-op’s Reader back in 2008. Brown rice, tempeh, soy, beans, sprouts — these staples of today’s “bowl” cuisine were introduced in the late 1960s and early ’70s by what were then called “natural food” advocates, reacting against the canned vegetables and Wonder Bread diets of their childhoods. Once obscure even to those who started the co-op, these ingredients are now close to mainstream. “I love it that whole foods are starting to show up in many different restaurant venues,” says Humiston. “I would love to see this become the new standard.” Humiston got serious about changing her diet when she became pregnant with her first child in 1983, and like many of her peers,

n COVER STORY

vowed she would raise her children on better food than she ate when she was a kid. Now that members of that generation are adults, they expect to find better food options when dining out, Humiston notes: “They’ve eaten this way virtually their entire lives. Other stuff doesn’t taste right or have the appeal to them.” Having grains like quinoa, forbidden rice and brown rice available at chains “opens up new possibilities for more people,” says Humiston. And isn’t that what the hippies were all about?

NOT A CHAIN Not every healthy fast-casual restaurant is a chain. State Street’s new Forage Kitchen, which opened last fall, is owned and operated by Henry Aschauer and Doug Hamaker, who also run Roast Public House. The two had the idea for Forage even before they opened Roast in 2012, says Aschauer, but it was more of a challenge to create: “If it were easy, everyone would do it.” A salad- and grain-bowl-based restaurant that tries to source its ingredients locally is a lot easier to do in a place like California, he notes. Forage “is in tune with how we live our lives these days,” says Aschauer. “Madison is ready for this; we are ready for this as a nation.” Katie Brozen, chef at Forage Kitchen, created its menu. Brozen attended the health-focused Natural Gourmet Institute culinary school in New York City (its

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

Chef Katie Brozen of Forage Kitchen strives to give vegetables “a ton of flavor.”

motto is “Kale, quinoa and community since 1977”). In addition to teaching all the traditional culinary skills, the school goes into sourcing, nutrition and the healthy, healing side of cooking, says Brozen. After working in restaurants in Manhattan and opening a small vegetarian restaurant in Brooklyn, Brozen moved to Madison to help open Forage. She liked Aschauer and Hamaker’s focus on global inspiration: “I love how other cultures have a better relationship with food than America,” says Brozen. Build-your-own bowl and salad spots are huge in New York City, and Brozen visited many to “see what they were doing and how they were doing it.” If the mission is to attract people who are just learning how to eat healthy, says Brozen, variety is crucial. “We need to bring those people over to the other side and show them that healthy food doesn’t have to be boring. Or just lettuce.” Brozen likes to “take an ordinary vegetable and give it its own personality and a ton of flavor.” She spends a lot of her time trying to source as many local products as possible for the restaurant. Wisconsin “has fantastic product, but in the colder months, it has been a challenge,” says Brozen. One of Forage’s most popular items is the “Power Bowl,” a grain base (brown rice is the default, but it can be made with black rice or quinoa) topped with tender rosemary lentils, sweet potatoes, poblano slaw, jerk chicken, guacamole and a green goddess dressing. It’s creamy and crunchy, sweet and savory, hot and cold — craveable 21st-century comfort food.

“We care about everything that goes into the food, so people get that idea of home,” says Brozen. “It’s a well-cooked meal on the go that’s not just flying at you as fast as possible.” Thomas Paras, former owner of Amy’s Cafe downtown, has just opened a fast-casual restaurant, Freska Mediterranean Grill, at Greenway Station. He terms it “like a Chipotle, but what I like to serve and the way I like to serve it.” The customizable sandwiches, salads and plates with a variety of toppings and sauces vary in healthfulness, says Paras — “Gyros meat is not diet, but chicken is” — and other add-ons like hummus, babaghanoush and tabouli are healthy. He also points to his “super slaw,” with kale, beets and cabbage. Paras researched other Mediterranean/Chipotlestyle fast-casual restaurants via the Internet before opening Freska. “Everybody’s doing it,” he says. “Probably somebody else is checking me out now.”

INSPIRATION? Outright health claims from these restaurants vary, as does the transparency of their sourcing. A spot like Naf Naf limits itself to describing its fare as “fresh, authentic Middle Eastern food,” while Bowl of Heaven goes more overtly into the health benefits of its signature ingredient, the açaí berry (“twice the antioxidants of blueberries, plus omega fats, amino acids, proteins, anthocyanins, fiber, iron, potassium, phosphorus, calcium and other phytonutrients”). Other claims from restaurants about being more responsible and sustainable bring up other, more thorny, questions. Has a location of a national chain devoted to sustainable sourcing put a locally owned mom-and-pop restaurant out of business? Has the sudden, ravenous American quest for healthy quinoa caused environmental damage where the crop is grown in Bolivia and Peru? And what about some of those processed alternative foods for vegans, like Tofutti cream cheese (which includes partially hydrogenated soy bean oil, maltodextrin, nondairy lactic acid, locust bean, guar and carrageenan gums, vegetable mono and digycerids and potassium sorbet)? Locally, Forage Kitchen lists some of its purveyors on its website — bread from Batch, tempeh from Milwaukee’s Simple Soyman, goat cheese from Nordic Creamery, cage-free eggs from Lake Mills and sprouts from Supercharge here in Madison. This kind of accountability is easier for a one-location restaurant than it is for a chain with outlets from coast to coast, where getting enough of the same ingredient to create a consistent product from outlet to outlet remains a challenge. Katie Brozen of Forage limits the amount of fat, salt and sugar in her foods. Only extra-virgin olive oil is used in dressings; some are oil-free. “We use pure sweeteners like organic cane sugar, coconut sugar and honey, and sparingly, only to bring the flavors together,” says Brozen. “Same for salt. It’s an essential ingredient that we use to enhance the natural flavors in the vegetables, versus having everything just taste like salt.” Freshii takes a more inspirational route, with slogans emblazoned across wall-sized blackboards in-store: “Let’s eat without regret. Let’s love kale. Let’s embrace quinoa.... Let’s eat things that make us feel good.” Sourcing is not specified.

At Freshii, the message is as important as the menu.

Is this food always healthy? It’s certainly possible to pile on enough dressings, cheeses, rice, pita sides and guacamole to rack up a considerable number of calories, but even so, grains and fresh vegetables are going to be healthier than processed and fried foods. Craig Thompson is doubtful, however, about some of the more specific health claims for certain ingredients. From a marketing standpoint, he says, “Some of these chains are benefiting from the hype around alternative diets and the quest for magic-bullet solutions to what ails us as a society.” And there are differing opinions on what constitutes a healthy diet. “Some people claim there are tremendous health benefits [to an açaí berry];” says Thompson. “Others will say, that’s just an expensive blueberry.”

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Madison, with its college population and growing millennial workforce, does have a demographic desirable for chains like Freshii and other vegetable-centric leaders like Lyfe Kitchen, sweetgrass and Native Foods. But Susan Quam of the Wisconsin Restaurant Association says that such chains would look not only at our demographics but at how many restaurants we already have. And Dane County is very dense. Plus, the location needs to be just right, one that younger diners want to be in and can get to easily. “They all want to have the best spaces available,” says Quam. Still, as people dine out more frequently (in April of 2015, the U.S. Dept. of Commerce reported that for the first time ever, Americans spent more money eating out than they did at grocery stores), diners are likely to continue to want more healthy options across the eating spectrum and even more customizability. And they’re going to continue to want to eat these on the run or bring them home for easy post-work dinners. “That’s not going away,” says Quam. n

17 3036_1511_DHP_Isthmus_Ad_9.indd 1

1/22/16 2:05 PM

Cr Criminal Justice Reform: W What Is Changing, W What Is Not, and Why Ce Cecelia Klingele, Law School

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28â&#x20AC;&#x201C;FEBRUARY 3, 2016

February 2, 2016 at 7pm Discovery Buildin Building Town Center 330 North Orchard Street

Part of a monthly series held the first Tuesday of each month Visit law.wisc.edu/profiles/cklingele

FOOD & DRINK ■ SPORTS ■ BOOKS ■ MUSIC ■ COMEDY ■ SCREENS

Mireles reading at a Jan. 14 “Stories and Spirits” event at Yahara Bay Distillery.

Poet of the people Educator and author Oscar Mireles assumes the mantle of poet laureate BY MICHAEL POPKE n PHOTO BY LAURA ZASTROW

two-year tenure until Martin Luther King Jr. Day, he estimates he’s received about 50 calls from organizers of various groups in Madison — including the Madison Reading Project and Arts Wisconsin’s Arts Day — since Mayor Paul Soglin announced in early December that Mireles would replace outgoing co-poets laureate Sarah Busse and Wendy Vardaman. “I knew I was going to be little more high profile,” Mireles laughs. “But it was also a little more than I expected.” On Sunday, Jan. 31, Mireles will be the guest of honor at a reception and poetry reading at Centro Hispano, 810 W. Badger Rd., from 2 to 4 p.m. Former poets laureate also will read, as will other notable poets from the city. The event is free and open to the public. It will be the first official effort by Mireles to achieve one of his goals as poet laureate: uniting local writers of poetry, fiction, nonfiction and music in mutual support and collaboration.

“There’s a lot of writing going on in Madison, and people are doing good things,” he says. “I want to bring them together to look at what we have in common and how we can support each other’s activities.” “[The poet laureate position] is a testament to our cultural values, civil discourse and exchange of ideas,” says Karin Wolf, arts program administrator for the Madison Arts Commission, which oversees the position. “Madison was one of the first cities in the country to have a poet laureate, and that’s something I can brag about.” The generic definition of “poet laureate” — a local poet officially appointed by a government organization or official to write poems for special events — doesn’t seem broad enough to cover the role poet laureate has played in Madison. Since 1977, five people have held the position and taken lead roles in creating verse for everything from Wisconsin’s Sesquicentennial in 1998 to the 2011 protests against Act 10 at the State Capitol.

During his first term as mayor, in 1977, Soglin appointed Tuschen as the city’s first poet laureate. Tuschen served for 23 years and organized poetry readings, performed in a variety of venues, and is credited with bringing beat-era performance poetry to Madison. He died from an esophageal hemorrhage in 2005 at age 56. Former Mayor Susan Bauman appointed Andrea Musher to succeed Tuschen in 2001. Musher, who is now a retired UW-Whitewater English and women’s studies professor, sought to formalize the position by bringing it under the Madison Arts Commission umbrella. Musher also established the John Tuschen Poet Laureate Memorial Fund through the Madison Community Foundation, which provides a small honorarium for new poets laureate to begin projects, and she’s eager to see what Mireles has planned.

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JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

If you see poems etched into the sidewalks along Williamson Street or displayed on Madison Metro Transit buses, or hear them recited at Common Council meetings, you’re witnessing traditions established by Madison’s poets laureate. Madison’s newest poet laureate, Oscar Mireles, executive director of the Omega School for adults seeking to complete their GED/HSED, is looking forward to establishing his own traditions. He’s the first Latino to hold the position, and the first male since inaugural poet laureate John Tuschen left the post in 2000. “I want to build upon what other poets laureate have done,” says Mireles, 60, the editor of three volumes featuring works by Wisconsin-based Latino writers published under the series name I Didn’t Know There Were Latinos in Wisconsin. His calendar is filling up quickly. Although Mireles didn’t officially begin his

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

n FOOD & DRINK

Breakfast All Day Beginning February 3rd, we will be adding 4 new breakfast items to our menu that will be available

Stop by for pie

ALL DAY, EVERYDAY

The Norske Nook colonizes DeForest BY KYLE NABILCY

Our bars will also be open all day... because Margaritas are Great for Breakfast! Sights to behold: Lemon Meringue (top) and Lingonberry Sour Cream.

and salty-sweet as the budino at Osteria Papavero. The Coconut Pineapple Dream cream cheese pie, like a piña colada rendered densely solid and complex. A stellar Lingonberry Sour Cream pie where each mouthful popped with whole lingonberries, tartness perfectly tempered by a blanket of whipped cream. There’s a Pecan Stout pie that could stand to be more aggressively candied on top, but the custard is really something, with hints of beer flavor. Fresh Raspberry is just what it sounds like, basically four vertical inches of solid raspberry, given structure by gelatin. And that towering Lemon Meringue? It’s a sight to behold, and the quality is unimpeachable. For fans of the Norske Nook, DeForest is a heck of a lot closer than Rice Lake or Osseo, and the heart of the operation is as warm as ever. I hope the bumps will smooth out. And the Nook is still always worth it for the pie. n

THE NORSKE NOOK n 100 E. Holum St., DeForest n 608-842-3378 n norskenook.com n 6 am-8 pm Mon.-Sat., 8 am-8 pm Sun. n $3- $15

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JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

I have to believe that anyone who has passed through the northwestern corner of Wisconsin knows the Nook. The Norske Nook serves massive pies dense with sour cream richness, bubbling over with fruit juices, heaped a mile high with meringue. Its locations in Hayward, Osseo and Rice Lake are bastions of upper Midwestern Norwegian heritage. When the restaurant announced it was expanding to heavily Norwegian DeForest — where the high school mascot is the Norskie, for Pete’s sake — it seemed like a match made in Valhalla. Business has been brisk at the new Norske Nook, which sits on a choice corner lot in the heart of town. You can, of course, come and just buy a pie. (Be sure to pre-order if a holiday is approaching.) But beyond the stuffed bakery cases, folks in the dining room are also sitting down to hearty breakfasts, simple lunches and the occasional gravy-smothered dinner plate. Perhaps the best thing about the Norske Nook, other than the pie, is the warmth and good intent of the service tableside. A server near my party offered to bring out a to-go cup for one person’s coffee as the bill was delivered. Another explained that a particular pie wasn’t in any shape to be cut into yet; it was too warm and it’d be a sloppy mess. Yet another ran out into the brisk January morning to make sure an elderly woman didn’t leave without her magazine. However, service out from the kitchen is uneven. I experienced forgotten sides,

misunderstood orders and a long wait for fish on Friday (an hour after being seated), despite a fairly quiet crowd. Entrees, too, vary in execution. The Reuben was creative, served on cranberry wild rice bread; the bread is a house specialty and worth trying. A whole lefsewrapped Norwegian meatball platter was the Platonic ideal of comfort food, with ethereally light mashed potatoes and browned meatballs the size of a racquetball, all doused in the Nook’s hallmark jiggly gravy. The Frisco burger was underseasoned, and a Norwegian smelt lefse wrap was fishy and dusty with raw flour. And for Friday’s fish fry, two pieces of beer-battered cod emerged, looking great. One actually was great; the other was translucent as lutefisk, clearly undercooked. The blond oily fries were further salt in the wound. The breakfast menu is wide-ranging and served all day. The corned beef hash was skimpy on the meat, a shame since the sliced corned beef I’d had in the Reuben was excellent. Norwegian pancakes were more pale and spongy than I expected, but the lingonberry sauce made up for it. The Ultimate Potato Pancake redeemed the meal, coming as advertised with ample bacon, egg and hollandaise. The Norske Nook is an established Wisconsin food entity; it should have its act together better than this, and if there hadn’t been errors in every visit, I’d write them off as a fluke. But then there’s the pie. Oh, the pie. The Old Fashioned Butterscotch pudding pie, nearly as rich

n FOOD & DRINK

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Johnson Public House is at the forefront of the third-wave coffee movement in Madison. The coffeeshop at 908 E. Johnson St. specializes in single-origin beans, house roasting and brewing the besttasting cup. Johnson Public offers two different bean options for its espressos; these rotate regularly. Recently, Madcap’s Third Coast espresso blend, Colombia Carlos Imbachi from Ruby Coffee Roasters and Colombia Rio Chiquito from Kin-Kin roasters have all appeared on the ever-changing menu. While customers don’t necessarily know which beans will be available, choosing your espresso base makes your cappuccino

truly your cappuccino. It’s an option few other shops offer. Not only does Johnson Public win points for catering to the individual, it also knows what makes for a satisfying cappuccino. This drink is smooth yet robust, its flavor lingering for several moments after each sip. Rare is the cappuccino that’s not flat or overly creamy, but here, the ratio of espresso to steamed milk to foam is pleasantly balanced. The barista is also likely to draw a lovely little crema heart in the froth of your cappuccino, a touch sure to brighten anyone’s blustery Wisconsin winter morning.

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Limit 1 Free Offer per Customer With Separate $20 Purchase. Excludes Postage Stamps, Lottery, Gift Cards, Cigarettes, Liquor, and Bus Passes. Offer good 1/25/16-1/31/16.

Three to try Oat or buckwheat pancakes

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

Mickie’s Dairy Bar, 1511 Monroe St.

Definitely splittable, these hefty cakes are more like griddled muffins than an ethereal disk of the buttermilk variety, but they qualify as classic prairieland winter comfort food.

Potatoes O’Brien The Cottage Cafe, 915 Atlas Ave.

111 n. broom

FREE DELIVERY

(corner of when you broom & mifflin) shop at our

255-2616

store!

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to your door when you order online!

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24 hours a day, 7 days a week

This east-side institution serves a Potatoes O’Brien, two eggs and toast combo. This is also possibly the only place in town where you can order a pork chop and eggs, and the cafe offers Spam as well as cheddarwurst as a breakfast meat option.

Benedicts Pat O’Malley’s Jet Room, 3606 Corben Ct.

On the quiet side of the airport, the Jet Room is known for its specialty eggs Benedicts. Try the wild Alaskan salmon version with two poached eggs and hollandaise sauce.

DINE IN / TAKE OUT Egg Rolls 7

Robinia Courtyard

sweet & sour dipping sauce

Thai-Style Noodle Salad 12 bún rice noodles, lettuce, julienned vegetables, herbs, grilled gulf shrimp, peanuts, nước chấm

2 Piece KBC 10

cucumber kimchi, sauces, rice

Bibimbap 18

meat of the day, vegetables, rice, egg,* ssamjang, served in a hot stone bowl (Not Available for Takeout)

Pastrami Phở 13

Mon, Wed thru Sun 11am to 3pm

rice noodles, meatball, tripe, soft tendon, herbs, beef bone broth

Shio Ramen 12

temomi ramen noodles, radish, grilled pork belly, katsuobushi salt, soft-boiled egg,* duck & pork fat, double stock broth

Khao Soi 15

wonton noodles, chicken, spicy red coconut curry broth

Korean-Style Veggie Ramen 12 temomi ramen noodles, shiitake mushrooms, pickled mustard greens, soft-boiled egg,* spicy broth

Chicken Ramen 12

608.630.9400 -- sujeomadison.com

temomi ramen noodles, shredded chicken, Napa cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, duck & pork fat, chicken broth

Coffee, breakfast & lunch. Burgers at night.

Wine Bar and small plates.

Southern Food, Wisconsin Style.

829 EAST WASHINGTON AVE. PHOTOS CHRIS KRONSER

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Kir Royal (Champagne & blackcurrant) Hesitation

Hesitation

Smoked Salmon Tartare with mango & fruits de la Passion

Temptation Smoked Salmon Tartare Beef Fillet sauce Bordelaise / Gratin Dauphinois & Petits Légumes with mango & fruits de la Passion 131 EAST MIFFLIN ST 608.283.9500 HERITAGETAVERN.COM

Heritage Brunch 9 :30am until 2 pm – Saturday & Sunday

Fascination Temptation

Chocolate Opera and raspberry coulis

Fillet and sauce Bordelaise – Beef Reservation deposit required – Gratin Dauphinois & Petits Légumes

Fascination

JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

Tartine red beets, bacon, goat cheese and walnut Kir beets, Royal (Champagne & blackcurrant) Tartine red bacon, goat cheese and walnut

n FOOD & DRINK

Dairy state drink

Walk on the wild side

New Glarus comes up with a milk stout

The Bandito Boulevard at Sujeo

It’s a little surprising that the milk stout hasn’t caught on more. Lake Louie and O’so both have a seasonal version of the style, but this is New Glarus’ first milk stout. In addition to American, English, German and Czech malts, brewmaster Dan Carey adds a touch of milk lactose, which imparts a subtle sweetness. Its soft texture also helps call attention to the chocolate and caramel tones from all those malts. While bitterness takes a back seat, this beer does have enough Hallertau and Czech Saaz hops to offer some balance and a clean finish. Carey developed the recipe over several months last fall, using small test batches to dial in the malt and lactose. “We really wanted to make a dark beer because of the time of year — a stout is nice to have when it gets cold,” says Carey. Buttery cheeses like fontina and asiago will go well with this beer’s malty sweetness. It’s also a nice beer with desserts featuring mild chocolate flavors. This beer was even more enjoyable the closer it got to room temperature, enhancing its soft and malty qualities. New Glarus milk stout finishes around 6% ABV. It sells in four-packs for around $11.

— ROBIN SHEPARD

Every cocktail has a story. The tale behind the Bandito Boulevard, like the flavor profile of the drink itself, is bold and idiosyncratic. Conceptually, the drink really started as a Negroni. Substitute whiskey for the gin, and you have a cocktail called a Boulevardier, which is traditionally two parts rye to one part Campari and one part sweet vermouth. Credited as the creation of a French bartender in the 1920s, the Boulevardier has endless variations. Many of them rely on citrusy bitters or sweeter syrups to smooth out the spirits. The version at Sujeo, 10 N. Livingston St., accomplishes much the same thing by using Ancho Reyes chile liqueur in place of the vermouth. It’s a successful choice, because even in the presence of whiskey, Campari can be an overbearing ingredient. The chile liqueur stands up to both of its siblings with a nice mellow heat, and the homemade chocolate bitters complements it nicely. Despite the fact that it’s built around the smoky and chocolatey Mexican chili pepper, the Bandito Boulevard goes well with Sujeo’s Asian food. In fact, the staff recommends pairing the moderately spicy cocktail with an extremely spicy Thai chili dish like the lamb belly pad ka prow. But if you don’t feel like balancing heat with heat, enjoy the drink on its own. It definitely speaks for itself.

— ERIN CLUNE

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

Eats events

PAULIUS MUSTEIKIS

WORT-FM Chiliocracy fundraiser

Food deserts

Sun., Jan. 31

Wed., Feb. 3

This chili cookoff features the goods from Baldwin Street Grill, Dotty Dumpling’s Dowry, Echo Tap, Harmony Bar, Mermaid Cafe, Next Door Brewing, That BBQ Joint, Tip Top Tavern, True Coffee, Weary Traveler and the Willy Street Pub and Grill. The amount you donate ($10-$20) determines how many tastings and how many votes you get. All proceeds benefit WORT. It’s at the Harmony, 2201 Atwood Ave., 1-5 pm.

The monthly meeting of CHEW (Culinary History Enthusiasts of Wisconsin) will feature the work of UW-Madison professor Jane Collins. “Food Deserts: Concept, Controversy, and Clarification” will center on the concept of food deserts, how the term has become controversial and what alternative concepts might better represent food scarcity. It’s at 7:30 pm at the Goodman Community Center, 149 Waubesa St.

Thai Cuisine

Twice the Thai!

Online Ordering Available! sabaithong.com DINE IN • CARRY OUT DELIVERY • CATERING

2840 University Ave. 238-3100 6802 Odana Rd. 828-9565 Open 7 days a week

Classic cookbooks Sat., Feb. 6; register by Mon., Feb. 1

A discussion of Olbrich’s new volunteer cookbook and classic Madison cookbooks by Karen Dunn, Marge Snyder, Barbara Park and Marty Petillo. It’s at Olbrich, 1 pm. Register ($15/$12) at olbrich.org or call 608-246-4550.

Participants are needed for a study at UW-Madison looking at whether the cautious use of sleep medication reduces depressive symptoms in people with depression and insomnia. To be eligible, you must be currently experiencing depression and insomnia, be 18-65 years old, and have access to regular care with a primary care provider. Participants will receive up to $400 to $450.

Contact Daniel Dickson at (608) 262-0169

Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin

Port Wine Saturday, Jan. 30 GRAND OPENING! Friday, Jan. 29 11:30 am

Authentic North & South Indian Cuisine Lunch Buffet 11:30am-3:00pm Dinner 5-10pm Open 7 days/week

6913 University Ave. (next to Willy Street Co-op West)

608-824-0324

Open til 8pm

Celebration Taste Red & White Port Wines Self-guided Tours Live Music Wine Talks

10 - 4 pm

Take a break from Wisconsin’s winter!

Light Food Open year-round Daily from 10-5pm 7876 Hwy 188 Prairie du Sac, WI 608-643-6515 wollersheim.com

NOW LEASING

With nightly dinner specials ✿ Jerusalem chicken sliders ✿ Taco night ✿ Mulligatawny Stew ✿ Beef Brisket

Check our website for details

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608.663.5500 • www.mannacafe.com

Downtown Living. Elevated. open house thu 4-7 & sat 10-4 or by appt

.com 306 w main st

call 608.279.0174

JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

Relax with a local Wisconsin brew or glass of wine

n SPORTS

GET TICKETS FOR THESE EVENTS!

CLEAN LAKES ALLIANCE

The surge before the madness Prep basketball heads into regionals

FROZEN ASSETS

FUNDRAISER Saturday, February 6 at 8pm THE EDGEWATER CLEAN LAKES ALLIANCE PRESENTS

YAHARA LAKES 101 SCIENCE CAFE WITH KATHY LAKE

Thursday, February 11 at 8am THE EDGEWATER

MAD ROLLIN’ DOLLS SEASON 12 GAME 2:

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ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

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GREG DIXON

Monona Grove (in blue) and the Edgewood Crusaders are both ranked among the state’s best. BY MICHAEL POPKE

This is the time of year when a high school basketball team’s strength and resolve are revealed. Early-season jitters should be gone, but it’s a little soon to begin thinking about playing in the state championship game at Madison’s Kohl Center (boys) or Green Bay’s Resch Center (girls). That’s not to say we can’t start talking about regional tournament action, though, which begins Feb. 23 for the girls and March 1 for the boys. How teams manage to keep their sanity over the next month or so will determine how they’ll react when the madness of March takes over. Last weekend, multiple Madison-area teams holding on to high spots in the Associated Press state rankings won wild games that may give them the boost they need heading into the final weeks of the regular season. The best place to begin is with the undefeated Middleton boys (14-0 through Jan. 24), who held off Hartland Arrowhead on Jan. 23, 81-78, thanks to a 5-0 run to the buzzer. The Middleton girls, at 13-2, have been almost as impressive. Through last weekend, they were tied with Verona for the Big Eight Conference lead. Meanwhile, Stoughton High School’s Badger Challenge pitted boys’ teams in the

Badger North Conference against teams from the Badger South Conference, with pairings determined by those teams’ positions in conference standings. The big winner was Waunakee, as senior guard Kyle Jensen sank a deep two as time expired to lift the Warriors past Madison Edgewood, 87-85. But give credit to the Crusaders, which made the game tight after trailing by 16. What’s even better than a thrilling buzzer-beater? Tournament officials announced that a percentage of the proceeds from the two-day Badger Challenge would be donated to the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center. Other area schools ranked among the state’s best boys’ teams include Sun Prairie, Madison Memorial and Monona Grove, while top girls’ teams include Stoughton and Monona Grove. I know a lot of people who tend to overlook prep basketball, especially in a Big Ten city. But when state tournament time rolls around, there’s nothing like the kind of community pride that high school hoops ignites. Remember Madison East last year? If you have the opportunity over the next few weeks, I urge you to check out a game at your local high school gym. For a few bucks, you’ll not only support the school’s athletics program but you’ll also likely witness some pretty decent basketball. n

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n MUSIC

Welcome to the party DJs Surf ’n’ Turf create a wild, inclusive scene BY MATT REITER

It’s an early Saturday morning in Madison, and the streets near the historic train depot on West Washington Avenue are quiet. But inside a refurbished train car, a party hosted by the up-and-coming dance DJ duo Surf ’n’ Turf is in full swing. A full spectrum of authentic, often absurd, human behavior is on display, including a howling, hulking bearded man in a peacock print lycra bodysuit, boa and Viking/deer antler helmet. A first-timer should resist the urge to cut and run. Sticking around means getting lost in the sonic and visual barrage that is a part of every Surf ’n’ Turf performance. The Madison-based DJ combo features Adam Mandelman and Rob Sanheim, who have played national and regional party circuits from the Burning Man in the Nevada desert to Madison’s Olbrich Botanical Gardens (where they return on Friday, Jan. 29, for Cocktails in the Conservatory). The collaboration began in 2013 after Mandelman met Sanheim at a coffee house and invited him to join in on a few of his solo sets around Madison. The two began regularly booking tandem shows as Surf ’n’ Turf,

a name inspired by Mandelman’s DJ sobriquet “Dr. Lobster” and Sanheim’s “Bobby Beefcake.” Dance music — an umbrella term for a cluster of related sounds including techno and house — can be a polarizing genre. But for Sanheim, it is a return to the relationship humans and music have shared for the majority of our time on this planet: “The repetitive nature and getting lost in the music goes back to the way people used to beat on drums and lose their minds. We’re doing that now, just with better technology.” Shows are bass-heavy and energetic, and songs transition seamlessly, rarely hitting a definite stopping point. Sets can last anywhere from a few hours to all night, depending on the venue’s guidelines. “In the right place, this type of music encompasses you in a way other genres may not,” says Mandelman. “It’s grandiose in nature and envelops you.” Mandelman and Sanheim recently played a capacity show at Gib’s Bar on Williamson Street. “We do a good job of getting people not normally into this kind of music to feel welcomed in a comfortable atmosphere,” says Mandelman. This goes beyond simple questions of musical taste. The DJs understand that dance

Rob Sanheim (left) and Adam Mandelman, seen here at Burning Man in 2014, have played national and regional party circuits.

music is historically rooted in queer communities of color and that venues were often behind closed doors. “It’s important to remember that these genres are tied to oppressed identities and rebellion,” says Mandelman. Sanheim says the duo’s per-

formances should create a “safe space where people can dance and lose their minds and not feel like someone is just there to get as drunk as possible, looking to hook up.” n

Piano brilliance Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra delivers a crisp 2016 opener

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

BY JOHN W. BARKER

ANASTASIA CHERNYAVSKY

Soloist Adam Neiman thrilled the audience with a riotous rendition of a Shostakovich piano concerto.

In its first concert of the year, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra delivered several novelties and two 20th-century piano concertos that featured soloist Adam Neiman, the brilliant young American pianist who has worked productively with the WCO before. The Jan. 22 concert, at the Overture Center’s Capitol Theater, also included some more familiar works, such as the Overture to Mozart’s opera Cosí fan tutte, in a crisp performance led by maestro Andrew Sewell. The first concerto, by Francis Poulenc, is a good example of his efforts to establish himself as a serious composer, as he blended his breezy cabaret melodies with emphatic orchestra effects. It has some amusing, and even attractive moments, but there are too many disparate elements, and the work just does not cohere, as a whole, or even movement by movement. By contrast, the Concerto No. 2 that Shostakovich wrote for his son Maxim to play at his 19th birthday has a swagger and optimism rather unusual for the composer. Its first movement is characterized by prolonged sassiness, the second is laced with Romanic lyricism, and the third displays a relentless playful-

ness. It suggests that young Maxim — who in later years became a wonderful conductor of his father’s music — had a splendid keyboard technique. Neiman, who was elegantly teasing in the Poulenc, had a riotous time playing the Shostakovich, which the audience particularly loved. Schubert’s Sixth Symphony is one of his works that is performed less frequently. It was the first mature symphony of his post-student years, when Vienna was caught up in a craze for Rossini. Schubert wanted desperately to be a successful opera composer, and he seemed trying to make his melodies fit into the mold of Rossinian arias, even with some attempted imitation of the orchestral writing. In those terms, the symphony does not quite work — trying to fit round pegs into square holes — but Schubert still could not help but write entertaining music. And Sewell conducted it with meticulous care and obvious affection. Still, I wish he, or someone here, would take up Schubert’s actual Seventh Symphony, a work in E that he finished only in piano score. It has since been orchestrated, notably by Brian Newbould, and a performance of that truly beautiful work would be a treat. n

n BOOKS

Poet continued from 19

In the latest edition of the National Enquirer it was revealed that Elvis Presley, Yes...the legendary Elvis was a Chicano Fans were outraged critics cite his heritage as an important influence I was stunned Can you believe it? Well...I didn’t really at first but then I remembered... his jet black hair you know with the little curl in front sort of reminded me of my cousin “Chuy” Elvis always wore either those tight black pants like the ones in West Side Story or a baggy pinstriped Zoot Suit Pachuco style with a pair of blue suede shoes to match Then I figured no, it couldn’t be So I traced his story back to his hometown a little pueblo outside Tupelo, Mississippi a son of migrant sharecroppers looking for a way out of rural poverty Let’s see...Elvis joined the army Maybe he enlisted with his “buddies” They never made a movie about it But they fought hard anyways I read somewhere that Chicanos have won more Silver Stars and Purple Hearts than any other ethnic group Maybe Elvis was a Chicano I wasn’t convinced yet! Elvis was a swooner, a dancer, a ladies man and always won the girl that hated him in the beginning of the movie he had to be a Latin lover or something even Valentino and Sinatra had a little Italian in them Elvis played guitar like my Uncle Carlos, always hitting the same four notes over and over again But now, I think I have figured it out It was probably that Colonel Parker’s idea to change his cultural identity, since it was just after the second big war and the Zoot Suit Riots it wasn’t the right time for a Chicano Superstar to be pelvising around the Ed Sullivan Show, late on a Sunday night I think it was just a hoax, to convince more people to buy that newspaper If Elvis Presley really was a Chicano He wouldn’t have settled to die alone, in an empty mansion

Jan 28 - Feb 14, 2016 OVERTURE CENTER for tickets

OVERTURECENTER.org | 608.258.4141

With no family around, No “familia” around Who cared enough to cry — OSCAR MIRELES

www.FORWARDTHEATER.com

JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016 ISTHMUS.COM

“I have no idea what Oscar will pursue, and that what’s cool,” says Musher, who says she can imagine a combination salsa party-poetry reading on the roof of Monona Terrace on a beautiful summer night. “Wouldn’t that be fantastic? Oscar can go anywhere with this.” In 2007, former Mayor Dave Cieslewicz (now an Isthmus contributor) named Fabu Phillis Carter — known simply as “Fabu” — as Madison’s poet laureate. During her tenure, Fabu brought a multicultural perspective to the role, introducing poetry to parts of the community not typically exposed to it. Her poetry is located in the Atrium entrance of the Park Street Villager Mall and on the Williamson Street sidewalk in front of the Weary Traveler Freehouse. Soglin, elected for his third stint as mayor in 2011, named Busse and Vardaman to the shared position in 2012. Together they established quarterly poetry readings at Madison Common Council meetings that continue to this day. The most recent reading, on Dec. 1, 2015, was “Applying for Citizenship,” written and presented by Rubén Medina, a professor in the UW’s Department of Spanish and Portuguese. Lines included “The White House / should be moved / to Puerto Rico / the Congress to Harlem / the United Nations/ to Wounded Knee” and “All military forces / in foreign lands / should return / within 30 days.” Council members applauded loudly when he was done. “Here we were, standing before a political body, delivering a poem that was very critical, in a civil manner,” Wolf says. “If we could all do that, the world would be a better place.” Mireles agrees, saying he hopes to use his experience in adult education to help make Madison a better place through the written and spoken word. “I’m a grassroots writer, in terms of trying to make my writing accessible,” he says. “Working with adults going back to school has helped me focus on that accessibility.” Mireles also plans to make appearances at local elementary schools, especially those in Latino communities. “When young people see a writer of color, someone who looks like them, they get excited,” he says. “It makes a difference.” He also expects to publish his first children’s book this year, The World’s Most Beautiful Piñata, in collaboration with the Madison Children’s Museum, and he’s excited about the challenge of bringing poetry to a broader audience. “Poetry has been with us for generations, but we’ve almost made it inaccessible to some people,” he says. “Poetry can bring intellect and emotion to an issue. Part of my role has to be helping people see how poetry is more than grammar and structure. It’s about having a voice.” n

Elvis Presley Was a Chicano

n STAGE

Sisterly tragicomedy Rumors of Truth is a world premiere by a Wisconsin playwright BY COLTON DUNHAM

Sometimes even during life’s most serious moments, it’s possible to find humor. That is what award-winning, Wisconsin-based playwright Marcia Jablonski implies in her tragicomedy Rumors of Truth, which premieres at the Bartell Theatre on Jan. 29. The show is the 2016 opener for Kathie Rasmussen Women’s Theatre (KRASS), a company that strives to give a voice to modern female writers and directors. Directed by theater veteran Sarah Whelan, the play revolves around three sisters — Brooklyn, Madison and Savannah — who come together after five years apart to visit their mother’s gravesite on what would have been her 50th birthday. “The three believe very different ‘truths’ about themselves, one another, their parents and what exactly happened the last time they saw one another,” says Jablonski. “They must decide to either let go of their version of the truth to resolve their differences or part forever.” Jablonski says stories about memory initially sparked her interest in writing the

play. “On NPR, I’ve been listening to a lot of discussions about memory and about how memories aren’t like tape recorders,” Jablonski says. “I just find it intriguing because people — like family members and friends — remember things so specifically, but it’s really unreliable.” Jablonski says she began to examine what she’s been holding onto in her own memories. After all, if you can’t be certain about what you remember, it’s hard to hold people accountable for things they may or may not have done. When asked if the concept of the play stems from personal experiences, Jablonski says with a laugh: “I don’t remember.” As it turns out, the idea for the play did come from real life. “My sisters and I were to meet at my mother’s grave, and I was late,” Jablonski says. “As I approached, they were comfortably waiting for me as if they were having a picnic. That’s when I thought, ‘Hmm, might make a good setting for a play.’” Jablonski, who lives in Mineral Point and works as a copy manager at Lands’ End in Dodgeville, has no formal educa-

tion in playwriting, but she has written a number of plays that have been produced over the years, including The Front Steps and The Great Jimmy Boyle. In 2009, Rumors of Truth was awarded a reading in the Wisconsin Wrights New Play Development Project, a biennial competition sponsored by Forward Theater. Jan Levine Thal, artistic director for KRASS, says she was struck by how funny yet emotionally charged Rumors of Truth is. “It’s one of those plays that sneaks up on you in terms of its depth, because it’s about family relations, but it’s also about families coming to terms with somebody important that died and how that sets up a lot of dynamics,” Thal says. Jablonski and Thal say they hope the play will spark audience discussions about their own families. In particular, they are hoping that “Sisters’ Night” on Feb. 4 will bring a large crowd of sisters — both biological and chosen — to see the show at a discounted price. “What we really want to encourage is that sisters come and have a chance to talk about sisterhood,” says Thal. Jablonski says those discussions may lead to

GILLIAN BLAKE

From left: Liz Light, Katherine Mitchell and Annie Jay play siblings who reunite at their mother’s grave.

deeper revelations: “I hope they embrace the concept of forgiveness and think about their relationships with their own family members.” n

big WA vo RN ice IN ins G ide 6th Annual

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 28–FEBRUARY 3, 2016

Madison BoyChoir Festival

Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016 Free concert at 12:30pm Madison West High School 30 Ash Street, Madison, WI Over 400 boys singing in a choral extravaganza!

Youth. Community. Music Education. 608-238-SING (7464)|madisonyouthchoirs.org

Hosted by Madison Youth Choirs in partnership with Madison Metropolitan School District.

&RFNWDLOV &RFNWDLOV LQ WKH Cocktails LQ WKH

n COMEDY

in&RQVHUYDWRU\ the Conservatory

&RQVHUYDWRU\ Featuring - DJ Uncle Ryan

EnjoyFeaturing the beats ofUncle local Ryan DJ Surf â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;nâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Turf - DJ

1RYHPEHU Friday, Jan. 29

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'RRUV RSHQ DW SP $8 admission at the door 'RRUV RSHQ DW SP

FRYHU &DVK RQO\ EDU Admittance into&DVK RQO\ EDU the conservatory starts at FRYHU 1R DGYDQFHG WLFNHW VDOHV

7 pm. Building doors open at 6:30 pm. 1R DGYDQFHG WLFNHW VDOHV

Limited capacity; first-come, first-served. Must be 21 years old.

MINDY TUCKER

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Donald Trumpâ&#x20AC;? (Anthony Atamanuik) and â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bernie Sandersâ&#x20AC;? (James Adomian).

Dream debate â&#x20AC;&#x153; Trump vs. Bernieâ&#x20AC;? features skilled improvisers as candidates

t XXX PMCSJDI PSH