Keeping a Watchful Eye Over the Cafe
John Miller has been coming to brunch at the Pfister Café every Sunday with his family for the past eight years. It’s a post-church tradition that has continued to grow, along with with his family.
Henry Miller (the superhero-in-training, not the author) is 16 months old and Max is an outgoing and precious four. Superheroes are all the rage in their household. His brother Max led the way with his Spiderman fixation. “He pretty must just does what his brother does,” says John.
All the waitresses were cooing at Henry, playing with his wiry curls that…
Chef Brian Selects: New Items in the Café at the Pfister
Winter is knocking, and the temperature is dropping. What better way to keep the pulse going at the Pfister than introducing a new menu in the Café. With over a dozen new delicious options, we’re hoping we can please any palette that stops for lunch at the Café this winter. Check out Chef Brian as he introduces two of his favorites in the videos !
The Café at The Pfister’s NEW Fire Sugar Pork Finger Wraps (Tacos)
Featuring braised pork, delicious fennel & blue cheese slaw and some of our house-made Pfister pickles – these finger wraps are…
Elevated
When people wax poetic about “the good old days,” it’s not often that they’re referring to the 15th century.
“Artists had it best during the Medici period,” my table mate says to me. She’s referring to the Italian dynasty famously credited for ushering forth the Renaissance. Their patronage of promising new artists such as Botticelli, Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo da Vinci, Michaelangelo, and even Galileo launched a trend where arts patronage became one of the ultimate status symbols for wealthy families.
“If there were a tax break, patronage might have a comeback,” she says. “We do need patrons…
Get them While You Can: Summer Menu Items at Cafe Pfister
Sure, summer is coming to an end, but while they’re available, you can still enjoy the delicious tastes of summer that Chef Brian has put together for the Cafe Pfister’s menu. Including two of Chef Brian’s favorites, the WELLspa Caprese Salad and the incredible Floribbean Panini.
WELLspa Caprese Salad
featuring: fresh burrata, heirloom tomatoes, torn basil, cracked pepper, Skyhawk cold pressed olive oil & herb grilled bread
Floribbean Panini
featuring: Sofrito roasted pork, sliced ham, melted swiss, sliced pickle, mango mustard…
The New Café Pfister CinnaBar
Who doesn’t love a cinnamon roll? For generations they have been a staple in kitchens in Northern Europe and North America.
There are few things that can beat the wonderful aroma of cinnamon and freshly baked, buttery bread. Then you finally get to taste the warm, sweet and gooey creation that pairs so perfectly with a cup of coffee or glass of milk.
It’s a classic for a reason.
For years, the Café Pfister has offered classic cinnamon rolls, but executive Chef Brian Frakes and his team decided to put their own, delicious spin on the classic.
He…
Pink Frosted Dreams
I sensed them before I saw them. A carbonated excitement that pushed aside the steady hum of the front lobby. It was a gaggle of girls, perhaps 10 or 11 years old. They had tote bags on their shoulders and duffle bags dropped to their feet. Their small group, roughly a half dozen, tittered blissfully, gazing up to the ornate ceiling, pointing to the chandeliers, looking around at the austere paintings on the wall. Nearby, two mothers are digging in their handbags and collating paper printouts, waiting to check in. A third woman stood with the girls. Her smile seemed…
Joe, The Rookie
“I’m going to be 22.”
That was Joe’s answer when I asked how old he was. His response was shared with a grin in that adorable way that only people up to a certain age are excited to tell you how old they’re going to be.
Joe started with the Pfister as a busser at the ripe young age of 18. After time spent cleaning tables Joe moved on to being a food runner and from there he has become a bartender. Joe bartends upstairs in Blu on occasion but most nights you can find him downstairs…
The Secret
A young girl
tells her grandfather
she’s learning to write.
She explains
the yellow pencils
and blue lined paper
She tells him she’s learned
how to write her name.
“Well that’s magnificent!”
he exclaims,
“I’d love to read your handwriting.
Will you write something for me?”
She shakes her head,
“But Grandpa,
you can’t read it yet,
“I’m just practicing.”
Her grandfather smiles
and leans down to whisper
gravelly grinning decades next to her face
“My dear,
that is the great secret.
Even when…
Travel By Association ~ or ~ Travel Lite
Travelers. Travelers everywhere. Transient folks of every stripe walking, running, sitting, working, swimming, eating. Carrying luggage. Grabbing a cup of coffee. Adding sugar to their tea. En route toward somewhere. Arriving from someplace else.
Ah, airports. All of humanity distilled to a small area becoming a sudden, immediate culture. Unique and specific to that individual moment. The energy of not knowing what awaits on the other side of the tarmac touchdown chirp. I haven’t seen an airport in awhile but all the travelers inside this hotel make me feel as though I’m spending my time in a…
Part 2: The Talking Piano of Dr. Jeffrey Hollander
As mentioned in an earlier post I’ve put considerable thought toward how to chronicle Jeff, his playing, and more specifically his playing at the Pfister Hotel. There are several occasions when I’ve left the hotel and driven home in silence because after hearing him at the piano anything on the radio sounded like a frivolous muck.
Different ways to “capture” Jeff battled with one another in my head. Photographs, photographs of his hands, photographs of his facial expressions while playing. Brief videos of the way his hands dance across the keys. Recording the audio of him playing…
Cup of Joe with Joe
“French doors.”
That was the first thing out of his mouth when I mentioned I’d been shopping for a house.
“French doors can brighten up any space. If there is no doorway, build a doorway. Anything can be done. Of course, it’s easier if a house is exactly how you want it when you first walk through but that’s not realistic. Floor plans can be changed, walls can be built or removed, it all depends what you’d like to do. But the first most important thing is whether you like the house and whether you like…
Summer in the City. . . of Festivals
It’s summer in Milwaukee. Finally. We know the calendar has said it’s summer for some time now, but the weather simply hasn’t cooperated, as evidenced by the city’s wavering between the wet, cold of March and the hottest, most humid dog days of August. Not only has the mercury risen and the sun come out to tan the hides of hundreds of folks cavorting on Bradford Beach, but the clearest sign of the season has begun: the fireworks have been shot off, PrideFest has passed, the festivals are here!
Boasting large cultural fests like the Lakefront…
