Milkweed

Many months ago, our friends Tim and Joy commented on a trip they did to the south of Wisconsin for the sole purpose of visiting a restaurant.  The place is called Milkweed and is technically not a restaurant.   Isaac Spicer (appropriate name for a chef), works out of his parents farm near Spring Green.  The experience is BYOB, quite possibly for legal reasons.  They serve a few tables by reservation only and arranges a set menu (adjusted for allergies and dislikes) for a suggested donation, which had grown since Tim and Joy went from $75 to $100 plus tip.

The place was reviewed by The Heavy Table including some pictures of the food. That along with Tim and Joys recommendation, made it a necessity for us to visit.  We organized a trip with a total of eight people from the building complete with passenger van rental and planned stops on the way.  The setup is nearly perfect.  Sitting outdoors by the house which includes a large window where you can see the chef cook.  The servers are family members and friends and create the perfect atmosphere with their knowledge of the menu, friendly personalities and close attention to detail.  In all, up to 60 ingredients for the meal came form the farm surrounding us.  Quite an accomplishment that did not go unnoticed.  

It has taken me so long to write this post that I have forgotten much of the details, so I will include the pictures I took and add a caption with whatever I can remember.

The dining gan: clockwise from the front: Clark,
John, Birdie, Kim, Sharon, me, Anita and Mike

By far my favorite: Tomato confit and goat cheese on tartlets

Melon soup with hot peppers

Croisants (really, why have bread when you have these flaky wonders)

Squash soup with ground cherries and other things I can't remember ;-)

Heirloom tomatoes with Mozzarella and a balsamic vinaigrette 

Another favorite: Halibut over vegetable slaw topped with ground
pork tongue with blue cheese.  We raved about the slaw for days.

Raspberry sorbet with strawberries, a palate cleanser

Chicken, sweet potaties and haricot verts

Molasses cookies and chocolate ganache pastries made by
the chef's wife Havvah (great name, eh?  A palindrome too.)

Apple tart over chocolate sauce 

Cheese course. Who remember what was served, really!
Probably a Wisconsin variety.

The Chef, Isaac Spicer

Also worth mentioning were the walnut burgers we had on the way back in Trempealeau, WI (across from La Crosse) at the historic Trempealeau Hotel Restaurant and Saloon.  This is alleged to be the birth place of the walnut burgers and I don't know it that is true, but they were pretty good.  Served with lots of sprouts and house fries.  Worth visiting if you are in the area.