My annual article, 52 Restaurants for your Bucket List, was originally created to provide readers with an easy way to explore the wealth of restaurants in the Milwaukee scene over the course of one year (52 weeks). Today, as we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, it provides a fun and equally compelling guide for folks who’d like to bring variety to their weekly meals while providing vital support to some of our finest local restaurants.
Here's the featured restaurant of the day, plus five dishes to try!
Ca’Lucchenzo
6030 W. North Ave., (414) 312-8968
calucchenzo.com
Among the newer restaurants in the city, Ca’Lucchenzo has demonstrated a commitment to both attentive service and beautifully prepared fare, most notably housemade pasta. Their ever-changing menu pays homage to the regional dishes of Italy with offerings including antipasti, housemade pastas and seasonally appropriate entrees. The flavors are fresh and each dish is made with an attention to detail that truly sets Ca’Lucchenzo apart.
Ca’Lucchenzo is currently offering curbside pick-up. Be sure to grab a bottle from their fabulous Italian wine selection or one of their cocktails to enjoy alongside.
Five dishes to try:
- Goat Cheese Crostino: sautéed bitter greens, spicy calabrian honey ($10)
- Arancino al cuore di formaggio: stracchino-filled risotto fritter, warm fall vegetable salad, brown butter vinaigrette ($13)
- Girasole di erbette: whole milk ricotta and swiss chard-filled pasta, walnut pesto, brown butter, parmigiano-reggiano ($22)
- Tagliatelle verde al ragu bianco della casa: spinach ribbon pasta, white veal ragù, parmigiano-reggiano ($23)
- Spaghetti di nero: squid ink pasta, steamed mussels, crab, tomato, white wine, and Calabrian chili ($23)
Watch for: Sardinian gnocchi. If you spy it on the menu, be sure to order it; an early iteration of the unique pasta was served with lamb ragu, bitter greens, anchovy breadcrumbs and pecorino. And it was fantastic.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
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