"There’s a kind of dour pretension generally associated with fine dining that’s become the subject of several cinematic takedowns as of late — think Ralph Fiennes as the executive chef from hell in the 2022 thriller The Menu. That narrative, however, falls away completely at EL ideas where chef Phil Foss and his team prove that there’s room for joy in avant-garde cuisine. Secreted away in Douglass Park, the restaurant exudes an unassuming Midwestern-ness (Foss is a Milwaukee native) with a well-lit dining room and wide-open kitchen where diners can sidle up for a mid-service chat. That sense of fun translates to the tasting menu in courses like tzatziki with sunchoke chips and piquant toasted garlic. It’s served sans utensils, which means everyone in the room is left to lick their plates with abandon. Foss is also famed for his French Fries & Frosty, a dessert inspired by his daughters’ habit of dipping fries into their Wendy’s shakes. A marvel of molecular gastronomy in a milkshake glass, it’s a hot-and-cold melange of crunchy potatoes, steaming potato leek soup, and nitro-poached vanilla ice cream." - Ashok Selvam, Naomi Waxman
