Venture out to Viroqua for a visit with Mat and Cate Eddy of Ridgeland Harvest. The pair started farming with just a half-acre, but quickly grew their business through Community Supported Agriculture and the help of local chefs. James Beard-nominated chef Luke Zahm helps them pick produce for a farm dinner featuring Hillsboro Brewing.
Visit Paoli to tour Anna Thomas Bates and Anna Landmark’s cheese and specialty shop. Next, head to Uplands Cheese to pick up milk from Scott Merika and Andy Hatch, and visit Cedar Grove Cheese to meet master cheesemaker Bob Wills. Finally, Anna Landmark explains the process of making Landmark’s Tallgrass Reserve.
Visit a farm in Pulaski, where farmer Chris Jaworski grows a highly sought-after variety of organic soybeans. Next, James Beard-nominated chef Luke Zahm travels to Milwaukee to visit Simple Soyman, Wisconsin’s only tofu manufacturing facility. On his way back to the Driftless Café, Zahm stops to pick fresh watercress that he incorporates into a show-closing dish.
Travel to Prairie du Chien to meet Mike Valley, a fourth-generation commercial fisherman who is as much at home on the river as he is back at his unique shop. A master decoy maker and a resourceful conservationist, Valley invites us to spend two days with him as he catches, smokes and samples some of the finest fish the Mississippi River has to offer.
At Big City Greens & Gourmet, Bryan De Stefanis and Deb Diaz cultivate and forage small treasures that bring big flavor to some of Wisconsin’s premier kitchens. Travel with De Stefanis to Kohler, where he delivers mushrooms, vegetables and other delights to the Blind Horse Winery. There, Kyle Cherek is introduced to winemaker Thomas Nye and chef Brent Davis.
Visit a Milwaukee warehouse that’s a creative hub for food and drink innovators. Johnny Stallion of PhiloÇoffia takes coffee to new highs; MOR Bakery and Café’s Traci Morgan-Hoernke cooks up gluten-free goodies; and Mary and Noah of Top Note Tonic boil a new batch of ginger beer. Finally, visit Twisted Path Distillery and meet owner Brian Sammons.
Step into the cranberry marshes of Cranmoor, where Mary Brazeau Brown and her company Glacier Lakes Cranberry cultivate Wisconsin’s state fruit. Brown’s brainchild, Honestly Cranberry, is a dried cranberry free from sugars and oils. The day wraps up at the Driftless Café, where Chef Luke Zahm incorporates Mary’s cranberries into mouth-watering duck and pork sausages.
Dip into the coastal waters of Lake Michigan and search for the freshest whitefish with Henriksen's Fisheries. Then visit Hidden Acres Farm for a tour; meet with chef Matt Chambas and his partner Jamie Mead of Door County Underground; and join Ryan Castelaz of Discourse as he mixes up unique cocktails.
Celebrate the art of mobile cookery. First, meet TrueMan McGee, owner and operator of Funky Fresh Spring Rolls, who is feeding the community healthy fast-food alternatives. Next, host Jessica Bell heads to a food truck festival at the Blind Horse Restaurant & Winery in Kohler and samples everything from cowboy fries to gelato.
Visit Algoma, where two hot spots are making a name for themselves. First, host Kyle Cherek stops in at Skaliwags tavern, where chef Marshall Wiltfang is bringing down-home tastes up north. Next, host Jessica Bell visits Von Stiehl Winery, which uses Door County fruits and grapes aged with the unique Wisconsin terroir found in Von Stiehl's cellars.
Travel to Wausau and meet Will Hsu of Hsu Ginseng. Wausau is known for its abundance of American Ginseng, both wild and farmed. Take a behind-the-scenes look at the world of ginseng and learn what makes it so popular, how it’s cultivated, and the different ways to incorporate it into your recipes.
Host Kyle Cherek meets chef Joe Muench, co-owner of Milwaukee’s popular restaurants Blue’s Egg, Maxie’s and Story Hill BKC. Muench offers a tour through all three restaurants, sampling dishes along the way. Each restaurant not only focuses on comfort foods but also on sourcing quality ingredients while transforming and expanding Milwaukee's palate.
In this episode, we meet up with award-winning Chef Tory Miller at Sujeo, his Korean inspired restaurant. Host Kyle Cherek and Chef Miller head to the woods with hunting guide Keith Warnke and friends to learn about hunting a turkey for their dinner. The group heads back to Sujeo, and Tory prepares a fresh turkey in multiple ways while utilizing the whole bird.
