Food for Thought | Mac & Cheese
So here’s a question. How far would you travel for good food? Here’s another question. How far would you go to support someone you love? My current answer is 186 miles. I’m sure I’d go further, especially for the latter, but up until this point, this is how far I’ve gone.
My cousin Kim works in marketing for a company called Roaring Fork Restaurant Group in Milwaukee. They own 54 Qdoba locations across Wisconsin, Illinois + Iowa. That in + of itself is no small feat. But last night they opened Grate Modern Mac & Cheese, a concept restaurant + the first of its kind in the Milwaukee area. According to Kim, if you’re in Wisconsin, you have to drive all the way to the Dells if you want food like this + it’s not even that great. Tell me how you really feel! In my opinion, the coolest thing about Grate is how “authentically Wisconsin” it is. All of their dairy products come from farmers in Wisconsin. It’s a fantastic way to support local businesses + they in turn support Grate by providing their quality + local products so Grate can churn out its best possible product. Knowing about Grate’s cyclically sustainable business plan makes it a company you’re excited to support.
When Kim first told me about this “Grate” concept at her kitchen table months ago, I couldn’t help but feel excited. Who wouldn’t love a restaurant lovingly devoted to mac + cheese? I know, I know. Lactose intolerant people like myself. In the last eight months, I’ve basically completely cut dairy out of my life with the exception of cheese. Almond milk does just fine for drinking, protein shakes, cereal + coffee. I don’t eat sweets so not eating yogurt, froyo + ice cream doesn’t phase me anymore. But I have such a soft spot for cheese that I’m willing to put up with the repercussions. But the most exciting thing was seeing how passionate Kim has been about her job + this restaurant. It comes through so clearly through all the social media marketing she does for this company as the self-proclaimed “abstract concept of mac + cheese.” When she invited me to the opening on Facebook, I knew I had to come.
Since this is the first restaurant of its kind in the area, locals + people from great distances alike could not wait to get their mac + cheese on! I can’t say I blame them. Waiting through a whole day of work, driving home, picking up my mom, driving two hours to Menominee Falls + the 52 minutes it took for our food to finish. But I can’t be mad at the 52 minutes. According to Kim, people were lined up before the doors were even open + they were the busy you hope to be on a first day all day. By the time we arrived at 7:30 PM, we were politely warned that our food would probably take about an hour + that they’d love to have us but understand that not everyone has an hour to wait for fast casual food. It didn’t matter to us. I’d been waiting months to try their food + we’d drove two hours. We were getting out mac!
Grate is set up like most fast casual restaurants like its adopted sibling Qdoba or in others like Blaze Pizza or Greek Kitchen. You order, you see your food get made, it’s cooked, you pay, it’s yours! One of the many unique features of Grate is their Woodstone oven, completely custom to their establishment. Your ooey-gooey goodness cooks in your own cast iron pan making for a delightfully unique presentation. Everything is freshly made in front of you so you know you’re getting the highest quality that can be offered.
So what did I order + how did it taste? Well with 12 options to choose from, a desire for protein + a dislike for blue cheese, I had quite a tough time. Even with the blue everything sounded so delicious. Kim assured me that everything is delicious which we knew she genuinely meant but it didn’t make our decisions easier. I couldn’t decide between the Wisconsin (mozzarella, cheddar, bratwurst + caramelized onions) or the Pizza (mozzarella, cheddar, pizza sauce, pepperoni + oregano) but eventually settled on Wisconsin + I was not disappointed! Mom ordered the BBQ (mozzzarella, cheddar, pulled pork, bacon, crispy onion tassels + BBQ sauce) which she very much enjoyed as well. My only wish was that we’d had a table beforehand so that ours would have been served in the cast iron skillets, but the aluminum “to go” tins served us just fine. A few bites in, Kim was given word that they’d sold out of mac + cheese! I think this is what you hope for on opening day! Thank goodness it was already 8:30, an hour + a half until closing, rather than around noon. Mom + I had just asked Kim how they knew how much pasta to order for today when we found out. I think our meals tasted even better knowing that we were one of the last few to have our orders completed.
If you find yourself in the Milwaukee area, take a side trip over to Grate in Menominee Falls! Seconds from the highway makes it easy to get to + there are newly open stores in the same plaza in case your mac is going to take a little extra time. It’s totaly worth the wait. I can’t wait until they’re able to expand this concept + I hope one comes to Chicago. Until then, I have 11 more mac + cheese dishes to try that are two hours away but they are definitely worth the drive. Pizza is on deck next! Happy eating!
xo.
