Downtown Dining picks, PBR cheese and a Taste of Juneteenth

As the weather warms up (any day now), the culinary scene often turns up the temperature as well — and that’s definitely the case on this very stuffed episode.

Taking things chronologically, we’re less than a week away from the start of Downtown Dining Week, which has been treating diners to deals at some of Milwaukee’s top restaurants for nearly two decades. This year’s event runs from May 29 to June 5 and offers discounts for lunch ($15 or $25 per person) and dinner ($35, $45 and $55).

With 29 eateries participating, we’re once again spoiled for choice. That’s why we decided to share a couple standouts to get you started:

• For your $15 lunch, consider Central Standard Crafthouse & Kitchen and the Café at The Pfister.
• At the $35 dinner level, Flourchild Pizza and Doc’s Commerce Smokehouse both jumped out at us.
• Jumping to the $55 dinner class, Bacchus and Aria at Saint Kate have enticing menus.

Because we’re a full-service podcast, we don’t stop at mere recommendations. We also include some pro tips in this episode, one of which is to reserve early because the prime slots on Friday and Saturday fill up fast. You’ll have to listen for the rest.

Speaking of the rest, here are the oh-so-many things we talk about on this one:

• Summerfest and Northcott Neighborhood House have added a ticketed tasting event called “A Taste of Juneteenth” to the festival’s first Saturday (June 21).
• Pabst Blue Ribbon has collaborated with NY-based cheesemaker Yancey’s Fancy on a beer-infused cheddar cheese.
• The EsterEv team is making the best of a flood situation by taking the restaurant’s food on the road for a series of pop-up dinners.
• Ann put together a profile of ElevAsian co-founder Erik Kennedy for her other gig with Milwaukee Magazine.
• The Ivy House will host the annual Botanical Battle Royale featuring Wisconsin’s top bartenders June 1.
• Nationally acclaimed food-truck brand Cousins Maine Lobster will bring their renowned mobile presence to Milwaukee this June.