Jas McDaniel
Share appetizers like the Belgian Big Board, and try a few new beers.
Cafe Hollander is the current “it” spot at Hilldale, and likely the whole west side. The spacious, even cavernous, space has been packing them in since the restaurant opened in mid-October.
The Belgian-inspired beer bar is part of a small chain of Milwaukee gastropubs that pay homage to the Benelux countries (Belgium, Luxembourg and Holland) in concept and, to some extent, in cuisine, although the overall menu is an exercise in American indulgence.
This is not the place to go small. Sure, you can order a half grilled cheese sandwich and a cup of soup. I did once. The grilled cheese, called “The Kulminator,” features four cheeses, thick-cut bacon and an oven-roasted tomato on thick nine-grain bread. It’s definitely tasty, especially the tomato, even though the bread arrived a little soggy. Consider choosing the bright, creamy tomato basil soup over the dark, smoky chorizo chili, unless you are a really big fan of cumin. And consider ordering something more interesting.
If you’re still inclined to pick a modest entree, a great choice is the Quiche Lorraine — egg properly cooked, flavorful bacon and a lush Hollandaise sauce, along with a very fresh, generously apportioned side salad of mixed greens.
But restraint is not in the spirit of the place. I decided to go for the most indulgent item on the menu: I picked the “Duck Duck Egg” burger, though it has plenty of competition. All of Cafe Hollander’s burgers ($10-$15) start with a half-pound of beef; from there, the sky’s the limit. The Belgian Butter Burger, for instance, is topped with bone marrow butter, “foraged” mushrooms and brie, and served au jus.
The Duck Duck Egg burger comes with strips of duck bacon, duck confit, a duck-fat-fried egg and pepper jack cheese. The server informed me that the beef patty is also fried in duck fat, at which point my tablemate expressed regret that she had not brought along a portable defibrillator. I upgraded from the frites to a side salad, because, well, health. And also because the side Benelux salad (greens, candied walnuts and blue cheese) is better than the frites, which are not crisp enough for true frites and are also marred by a flavored seasoning.
Good news (or, possibly, bad news): The Duck Duck Egg burger is delicious. It’s not like you can really pick out the flavor of the duck confit, but it adds an extra level of fatty goodness. The duck bacon could be left out (too chewy). A burger is a weird spot for a Belgian-themed place to hide its duck confit — there’s no duck confit salad, for instance. Which is also odd because the salads here, big salads, are quite good, with varied greens and a roster of great vinaigrettes (lime, balsamic, honey lavender, pomegranate beet).
Other good choices: The blackberry turkey sandwich combines deli-style turkey with a hot giardiniera and sweet blackberry jam to good effect, and the roasted vegetable and hummus wrap is also a sweet/spicy hit, with housemade red pepper hummus and excellent roasted vegetables.
Doubtless, though, many visitors to Cafe Hollander will want to spend their time trying Belgian beers and sticking with appetizers, and that’s a perfectly fine way to go. There are 38 beers on tap, some true Belgians, some American. Four beers are brewed specifically for the cafe’s parent company, the Lowlands Group: an IPA, a Dubbel and a Wit (these are brewed in Belgium) and a quad (brewed by Central Waters of Amherst, Wis.) A beer bible describing the taps and bottled options lands on the table along with the menu, and it’s best to make good use of it if you’re wondering what a saison is, the difference between a dubbel and a tripel, which are the official Trappist brews made by actual monasteries, and so forth.
Appetizers include sharable pots of steamed mussels in various sizes; a colorful “Belgian Big Board” selection (with pepper jack deviled eggs and wonderful little cornichons, but not a big focus on the charcuterie); and Dutch bitterballen (potato croquettes with added oomph from peppers, Hook’s cheddar and sausage).
All menu items are listed with a suggested beer pairing, but these beers are not always available. Whatever you do, skip the PBR.
Sigh. And here, I must admit that, even with several trips to Cafe Hollander, I haven’t made a true dent in the lunch/dinner menu, much less the large breakfast/brunch menu. Early morning fare is also paired with a raft of Belgian beers — beignets with a Kasteel Blonde, anyone?
726 N. Midvale Blvd. at Hilldale, 608-237-3168
8 am-midnight daily, $5-$21
