Bavette La Boucherie - Milwaukee

Bavette may be the first ever butchery fit for the cover of a CB2 magazine. It’s a kind of cafe where class and carnivorousness collide, where you stuff a napkin under your collar so your tie doesn’t get grease stains, where you eat french fries out of a brown paper bag and drink scotch out of a crystal Glencairn glass. It’s the kind of place that serves a corned beef tongue reuben with cheese, spicy sauerkraut, and pickled mustard seed aioli with a side of beef fat fries for 17 dollars. When I ordered this mouthful, I fully anticipated a sandwich with an isolated spotlight on the meat. This place, at its core, is a butcher shop, and three of the four words that make up the name of this sandwich are designated solely to the description of the meat – corned, beef, tongue. I was pleased to discover how wrong I was. The beef tongue was masterful, of course (how could it not be? , but every element of the sandwich made a choice to stand out. I’ve praised sandwiches before for their ensemble-nature of blending into a unique collaborative flavor, but this one was special for its ability to complement without combining. The bread was crisp and distinctly rye, appearing in flavor waves as I chewed. The sauerkraut was almost citrusy and herbal like an alcohol and made for a perfect contrast to the rich oils of the beef fat. Even the cheese was unique enough to inform me if one bite had more or less of it than the last. It felt like every bite was a new take on the same reuben. I finished the sandwich without noticing and began to munch on the beef fat fries. They were unexceptional next to its companion on the plate, but they made for the perfect mindless snack while I zoned out in a euphoric trance recalling the flavors I said goodbye to only 60 seconds prior.

Service: Dine in Meal type: Dinner Price per person: $50–100 Food: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 5 Recommended dishes: Seared Hokkaido Scallops

Everything we had was done very well. The textures and flavors were fantastic in every dish we tried. Great dining experience all around. Service: Dine in Meal type: Dinner Price per person: $30–50

We had an extraordinary experience at Bavette. Connor gave us exceptional service, and our entrees were top-notch. Service: Dine in Meal type: Dinner Price per person: $50–100 Food: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 5 Recommended dishes: Smoked Trout Deviled Eggs

Phenomenal dinner, attentive staff and nice ambiance Service: Dine in Meal type: Dinner Price per person: $50–100 Food: 5 Service: 5 Atmosphere: 5