It was exactly ten years ago today that Katie and Matt Wessel, owners of Milwaukee Pretzel Co., made their very first batch of soft pretzels.
At the time, they were living in a tiny apartment in Munich, Germany.
“We’d been eating pretzels for months and were so infatuated with them that we wanted to try to make them on our own,” says Matt Wessel.
The first batch didn’t turn out exactly as they hoped. But they were delicious enough that they fueled the Wessels’ hope of someday mastering the art of the snack they’d grown to love.
Even more – although they never would have imagined it at the time – that batch of pretzels marked the first step on a journey which would ultimately lead to the launch of a company that would bring the gift of soft, delicious Bavarian style soft pretzels to Milwaukee.
Watch Katie and Matt as they share their memories of that fateful day, as well as how far they've come.
You can also check out the blog post they wrote about that first pretzel experience (as well as more entries tracing their time in Germany).
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.
