Felicia N.
Yelp
Okay, I'm not vegan. I'm not even vegetarian. I am flexitarian, which mostly means I don't eat a lot of meat or dairy, but I'm less annoying at dinner parties. My best friend is vegan, so whenever she visits from NYC I try to take her to the latest and greatest vegan eateries in the Milwaukee. I had been hearing lots of good things about Strange Town. I mean, meatless+small plates= totally my jam.
The place is cozy, so I definitely recommend making reservations. The decor is off beat and visually interesting, so its small size is seemingly less noticeable. The staff is super cool and really laid back. They are also great at timing small plates. I loath getting tapas that all come out at the same time. Nobody wants to get an elbow in the hummus or realize how much food was actually ordered.
My husband joined us on our little trip, largely because there was East side driving and parallel parking involved, but he makes a the best third wheel. The waiter recommended ordering 4 plates for our party of three, but he clearly had no idea we all have second stomachs for plant-based yum yums. We started with the Indian snacks. These were a flavorful, crunchy, little bar snack. This was a great way to break things up between creamy, saucy dishes. Then came the Queso and chips. I don't know what vegan gods they sacrificed their children to in the kitchen for this recipe, but this was so convincing I was questioning if they were secretly melting down Velveeta back there. My husband is the least vegan person I know and wanted a second round of this stuff. DO IT!
Next came kimchi toasts and a creamy mushroom patar (spelling?) with pitas. Both were excellent! I prefer my kimchi to be more on the spicy side, but this had great flavor despite its lack of heat. The mushroom dish reminded me of a creamy curry. It was definitely one of those things that I wanted to lap up off of the bowl when only drops remained.
Then came the whole roasted cauliflower with tahini sauce. This was an absolutely stunning dish. The cauliflower was perfectly brown and surrounded by a citrusy tahini sauce and french fried onions for crunch. For me, the sauce was a miss, but the cauliflower and crunchy bits were so good on their own. I love tahini, but it can be a little on the bitter side, which I found off-putting. Shortly after this, our roasted brussel sprouts came. These were also fantastic. The sharpness of the sprouts was perfectly balanced by the balsamic and the hazelnuts sprinkled around the plate added a nice texture.
Finally, we had our last dish and it was the only dud of the night. We ordered the arancini, which are basically deep fried balls of rice with cheese holding them all together. These particular arancini had a very heavy liquid smoke flavor. I dislike liquid smoke because it gets overpowering really quickly. They did have a great crunchy exterior and good texture. A little lighter on the faux-smoke and these would have been rice ball perfection.
Of all the vegan eateries in Milwaukee, Strange Town is probably pretty tops on the list. One of the nicest things is that all of the dishes are vegan; they aren't just offering substitutions for otherwise meaty dishes. The kitchen managed to fully embrace the plethora of natural flavors plant-based dishes have and kicked them up 10 notches. I would definitely encourage everyone, vegan and non-vegan alike, to give this place a try.