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00:00Help steer this country boy into some fine cuisine.
00:03I'm in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
00:05And while it's been known historically for its beer and cheese.
00:09This is the heart and soul of Wisconsin right here.
00:11Today, it's got a lot.
00:13This is out of control.
00:14More.
00:15Oh, my God.
00:16Going on.
00:17I have goosebumps.
00:18This is beautiful.
00:19Bon appetit.
00:21Everything is just good, good, good, good, good.
00:24That might be my favorite so far.
00:27My name is Braun Strowman.
00:29I make a living wrestling for WWE.
00:31One, two, three, so big.
00:36If you can't tell, I like my carbs.
00:38It's time to feed the monster.
00:39It can be a tough job.
00:41The ring just exploded.
00:43But it has its perks.
00:44Gonna need a bigger table.
00:45Because when you're a monster like me, I know my way around to kissing.
00:48I didn't get 350 pounds by accident.
00:51There's no better way to see a new town than to eat your wild weight.
00:56Holy cow, this is good.
00:57Threw it.
00:58Come on.
00:59From hidden neighborhood gems.
01:01What's something that I have to have?
01:02To legendary, world-renowned kitchens.
01:04I have goosebumps.
01:05This is beautiful.
01:06You can't fully appreciate a restaurant unless you try it all.
01:10I'm supposed to pick a favorite, and y'all ain't making that easy.
01:14That's why I order everything on the menu.
01:18Ryan as a kid, when my friends talked about dream vacations,
01:22they'd be talking about theme parks, beaches, maybe even a safari.
01:30But for me, it was always something more exotic, Wisconsin.
01:36Cuz even though I was born and raised in North Carolina,
01:38Wisconsin to me meant family.
01:41So I'd go whenever I could, and it's the same way today.
01:45Wrestling in the WWE keeps me very busy.
01:48The European portion of this road to WrestleMania moves on to London.
01:53Look at this scene at the O2 Arena, Strowman at night for the title.
01:57It's a very demanding schedule.
01:59So between shows, I decided to steal a day.
02:02See some family, and hopefully find some incredible food.
02:06Whether you're looking for upscale dining or
02:08classic comfort food with a twist, Milwaukee, Wisconsin brings the flavor.
02:16Behind me is a Milwaukee institution known as Lakefront Brewery.
02:22Home for their amazing draft beers and world famous cheese curds.
02:27As you can see, it's cooling off here in Milwaukee.
02:29So let's get inside.
02:30To the cold beer, hot cheese curds, and let's have some fun, like the Wisconsinites do.
02:40Often called the brew city, Milwaukee is serious about its breweries.
02:44But this one in particular has become known not just for its delicious brews, but for having mouth-watering food that keeps locals and tourists coming back for more.
02:54I've been coming to Lakefront for about six or seven years.
02:57The cheese curds here are my favorite.
02:58Cheese curds are the go-to.
02:59I love that the inside is nice and gooey, the outside is crispy and light.
03:04You need to have that draw.
03:06Once you try it, you'll know what it is.
03:09Now in Wisconsin, deep-fried cheese curds are a staple.
03:13And today, I'm determined to find out if Lakefront Brewery's award-winning curds truly deserve all the hype.
03:19Kristen, how you doing?
03:20Braun Strowman.
03:21Nice to meet you.
03:22So, I heard you're the magic maker that's helped make these cheese curds so amazingly famous.
03:26Yeah, these cheese curds are going to warm you up.
03:27What's the chance you can show me the process of making these beautiful little golden nuggets?
03:29I'm all ready to go.
03:30All right.
03:31Got the whole setup ready here.
03:32Oh, those are big cheese curds.
03:33You have a local cheese processor that you guys use locally here?
03:35Yeah, yeah.
03:36It's actually one of the only urban creamers in the Milwaukee area.
03:39Dairy capital of the world right here.
03:41We're standing in it.
03:42What makes a good fried cheese curds?
03:44How are you doing?
03:45How are you doing?
03:46Braun Strowman.
03:47Nice to meet you.
03:48Nice to meet you.
03:49Thanks for having me.
03:50Wait a minute.
03:52What makes a good fried cheese curd?
03:53Oh, there are so many things.
03:54First off, the freshness.
03:55They come in on Wednesdays, so we're getting them in really fresh.
03:58We hand batter them, and we also hand dredge them and fry them to order.
04:04But we have a couple of few sneaky tricks.
04:07Mmm.
04:08One is that we toss them in cornstarch.
04:10Okay.
04:11Also, beer, because this is a brewery.
04:14Of course.
04:15And beer is great to cook with.
04:17Exactly.
04:18Yeah.
04:19Much better flavor.
04:20Yeah.
04:21Much better flavor.
04:22Are you ready to get started?
04:23I'm ready.
04:24You're going to get the big whisk.
04:25That's a big whisk.
04:26You're going to help.
04:27First thing we're going to make is the batter.
04:28We've got egg whites.
04:29You're going to whisk those away.
04:31You're going to maybe add this to your workout regimen.
04:34Right?
04:35Look at that pump I'm already getting.
04:36Look at those bicep veins coming out.
04:38All right.
04:39That looks good.
04:40All right.
04:41That looks good.
04:42We've got salt, pepper, garlic, and baking powder.
04:45Then's coming the beer.
04:46We are using our gluten-free Nugris, which is a pilsner.
04:50It's not going to take over the curds, which are a mild cheddar.
04:55And then flour to get us into the full batter.
04:58I mean, look at that arm.
04:59I know.
05:00Look at that.
05:01She's giving me a round of my money.
05:02Next time we have a Mixed Match Tag Tag Challenge, I'm going to call you up, right?
05:05Yeah.
05:06The following is a semifinal contest in the Mixed Match Challenge.
05:12This is one semifinal matchup as Bond is now tagged in.
05:15What would be your wrestling finish move?
05:17I think I'd have to take maybe a piece of our fried fish and, like, throw it down.
05:23Take another look at this.
05:24A headless fish.
05:26Friday night fish fry smackdown.
05:28If you were to ask my staff, I've already mastered this move when I get upset on Friday.
05:33All right, so watch out.
05:34If she gets hot, she's going to hit you with a fish.
05:36Yeah.
05:37Nice coating of the batter right on there.
05:39So the wet batter first.
05:40Next step's going to be breading.
05:42This is the monster order.
05:45Make sure everything's nice and breaded.
05:47All right, you told me a couple of ingredients.
05:49That's not just regular flour.
05:51No.
05:52There's something secret in there, isn't there?
05:54There is something secret.
05:55I can tell by looking at it.
05:57I was like, that's not plain flour.
05:58I was trying to get away from it.
05:59There's about 10 different seasonings in there, not 11, because we're not that one place.
06:05Herbs and spices.
06:06I'm getting hungry.
06:08Well, I can get these cheese curds going.
06:10Dump them in that fatty jacuzzi.
06:12Let's go.
06:13Uh-huh.
06:14Down they go.
06:16All right.
06:17All right.
06:18All right.
06:19All right.
06:20If you're on the road as much as I am, you quickly come to appreciate the comfort foods that remind you of family.
06:25And what could be more classic Wisconsin than locally brewed beer?
06:30Prost.
06:31Appreciate it.
06:32Prost.
06:33Thank you, sir.
06:34All right.
06:35And some monster cheese curds.
06:37Time to put these beauties to the test.
06:39Here we are.
06:40All right.
06:41That was fresh.
06:42Holy cow.
06:43Piping hot, ooey-goey Wisconsin cheese curds.
06:45All right.
06:46The curd aficionado.
06:47Oh.
06:48Kristen herself.
06:49All right.
06:50So I heard one of the tricks here is to see how far you can get the curd to stretch, right?
06:54Yes.
06:55I bet picking the right cheese curd also makes a big difference.
06:57That's part of it.
06:58Let's see.
06:59I'm gonna go with this one because it's kind of long already.
07:00Dip it in the ranch.
07:01Oh, these babies are hot.
07:07Not too bad.
07:08Not too bad.
07:10Oh.
07:11Full pull.
07:12Come on.
07:13That's a full pull.
07:14That's a good one.
07:15That's a good one.
07:16Oh, my God.
07:17Mm-hmm.
07:18The cheese is unbelievable.
07:20Real stringy.
07:21Nice pull on.
07:22They're just gonna snap when you bite through them.
07:24The batter's so light and frothy.
07:26You can see the pull and the cheese in there.
07:29What do you think, little girl?
07:30How's the cheese curds?
07:31Yummy.
07:32Yummy?
07:33Do the pull.
07:34Grab this side.
07:35Let's see how far we can stretch it.
07:36Go slow.
07:37Whoa.
07:39Hot, hot, hot.
07:40Hot?
07:41All right, I got it.
07:42So hot.
07:43That was a good one, huh?
07:44Yeah.
07:47We encourage playing with your food.
07:48This is my goddaughter, Brindley Jo, joining me here today.
07:55Are these good?
07:56What do you think of these cheese curds?
07:57Do you like them?
07:58Yum, yum.
07:59Wisconsin, you can't have cheese curds without a cold beer.
08:02So this is one of their in-house brewed beers.
08:04I mean, this is it.
08:09This is the heart and soul of Wisconsin right here.
08:12This is what I think of when I think summertime when I used to come up here as a kid, hanging out with my parents, watching my parents drink beer, getting to eat the cheese here and stuff.
08:20Now full circle, here I am as an adult, getting to experience this with my family over here, getting to meet such amazing people.
08:27After finally getting a chance to experience this iconic institution, I can see why people love it so much.
08:34It's hearty, it's down home, and it's nostalgic.
08:38It's exactly what most people think about when Milwaukee comes to mind.
08:42The beer, the people, the overall vibe, and yeah, those cheese curds.
08:48You better believe I'll be back for more.
08:52But it doesn't represent everything that this city is.
08:56Milwaukee's food scene is blasting off faster than a rocket ship.
09:01Breaking boundaries and prioritizing flavor.
09:04And tasting them curds just made me hungrier.
09:07Behind me is Loopy and Iris, home to legendary Milwaukee chef Adam Siegel.
09:13Loopy and Iris is known for some amazing dishes like their Dover sole, their veal chops, and I heard they have a 44-ounce porterhouse on the menu.
09:22You know, I gotta feed this monster, so I need to see what chef Adam has for me to get these hands on today.
09:28Chef Adam Siegel is a James Beard award-winning chef cooking up a mix of French and Italian dishes inspired by the Mediterranean.
09:38He's a local legend on the food scene, and he doesn't exactly believe in a small menu.
09:43So I want to talk to the people dining here to figure out what's good.
09:47Sorry to interrupt if you don't mind.
09:49I'm walking around trying to figure out what I want to order off this menu.
09:53Are you all been here before? Locals? Any recommendations?
09:56Well, I'm one of the owners.
09:58Oh, we'll go right to the horse's mouth then.
10:00Help steer this country boy into some fine cuisine.
10:03I think you should get this. This is our corsetti.
10:06Homemade pasta with our logo on it.
10:09This lemon pasta, it's delicious.
10:12I see a lot of smiles on people's faces. I know something good's going on.
10:17I've had lemon pasta.
10:19Okay, so I had a suggestion over there of that.
10:21So that's two for the lemon pasta.
10:23I would do the pork chop.
10:24Pork chop?
10:25Pork chop.
10:26Yeah.
10:27How are y'all doing today? Are you guys locals here in Milwaukee?
10:30Just kidding. I know you guys are my family.
10:33That's my cousin, my aunt, my uncle, Bobby, Dale, Mary, and my little dude Spencer right there.
10:39Is that the lemon? Is it lemony?
10:40Okay, so that's the third one.
10:42We started with the tartare.
10:43No, that was when you're dancing.
10:45The tartare.
10:46That looks like, is that the lemony pasta?
10:47Yes.
10:48Okay, so that's the fourth person that's had that.
10:50So I'm definitely gonna have to try that one out there.
10:51Very good.
10:57I'm in a different city, different state, sometimes a different country every week to wrestle.
11:03This guy's a monster.
11:04Look at the size of him.
11:05So I take any chance I can get to sneak in a visit with my fans.
11:09Between matches.
11:10And when they can recommend great food, well, even better.
11:14Loopy and Iris, headed by Adam Siegel, is the real deal.
11:19And it's setting the bar high.
11:21To say it's world-class fine dining is probably an understatement.
11:24And because they don't believe in small menus, I've really got my work cut out for me.
11:29And now it's time for the big man to dive into this big menu and order.
11:37Bron, the menu's quite extensive.
11:39Yes, it is, sir.
11:40There's always questions.
11:41I mean, everything looks unbelievable on here.
11:44The big, uh, porterhouse steak.
11:46Oh, my goodness.
11:47This is always the problem.
11:49I want to try everything on the menu.
11:52Everything.
11:53Awesome.
11:54Yeah, I want to try absolutely everything.
11:55Yes, sir.
11:56To fully understand what Loopy and Iris is all about, I've ordered everything on the menu.
12:01Today, that's about 21 items.
12:04The wood oven roasted veal chop is one of their most popular dishes.
12:08The Dover sole and handmade pasta also highly recommended.
12:12At first glance, I'm most excited to try their 44-ounce porterhouse.
12:17But the only way I'll be able to pick a favorite is to try them all.
12:25And now that I've got my order in, I'm going to sneak into the kitchen to meet Chef Adam
12:30to see if I can get him to teach me how to make one of their famous pastas.
12:34Oh, my goodness.
12:35Look how good everything looks.
12:36Chef Adam, how you doing, sir?
12:38Wow, it's really beautiful in here, Chef.
12:42We got an official Loopy and Iris apron for you.
12:44Oh, it's going all right.
12:45So you don't get too dirty.
12:47Fits like a glove.
12:49The counter height's for somebody my size, so sorry about that.
12:52It's all right.
12:53I'm used to it.
12:54We're going to make some corzetti.
12:56And this is a very unique pasta because the dough is made with white wine and eggs.
13:01Corzetti are little pasta coins, and we stamp them with these after we roll them out.
13:07And this is very unique.
13:08Not many people do it.
13:09It's delicious.
13:10I think you're going to enjoy it.
13:12My mouth's already starting to water.
13:13So I'm going to show you how we roll out some pasta.
13:15All right.
13:16Anything special on the flour?
13:17Semolina?
13:18Semi?
13:19This is double-zero flour.
13:20Double-zero flour.
13:21We got our machine right here that we roll with, and we roll it out to a certain thickness,
13:27and we do this every day in the restaurant.
13:29We serve pasta as an appetizer.
13:31Most people, you know, when they go to a restaurant, they like to have it as an entree.
13:34But in fine dining, we go the other direction.
13:37See, fine dining is something I'm, this is new to me.
13:40I grew up in Sheryl's Fort, North Carolina.
13:42We had butcher boys.
13:43It was a mom and pop, soul food restaurant, and that was it.
13:46And waffle houses, right?
13:47And waffle houses, yeah.
13:48So we're almost done here rolling this out.
13:50See, we got it nice and thin at this point.
13:52Go ahead and give that a feel.
13:54Oh, wow.
13:55Very nice, malleable.
13:59It comes with its own neat little thing, and you just punch it out.
14:03So why don't you go ahead and punch out?
14:05Punch out our little coins.
14:06And then once we have them punched out, we put it right here like this, and give it a little press.
14:13That's beautiful.
14:14I'm probably not going to do it anywhere near as good, but let's see.
14:17Put it on the top, and let's give it a little.
14:20A little press.
14:21There you go.
14:25Now we need you to do about 2,000 of those.
14:27All right.
14:28And then just throw her down there.
14:29There you go, just like that.
14:32I'm pretty good at beating people up, but I might be better at making pasta.
14:35I think we found a new calling for you, bro.
14:37Let's see, right?
14:38Beating people up makes you hungry, right?
14:40Very, very hungry.
14:41Tell you this, when it comes to these three, they're hungry for an opportunity.
14:44And only one of them will get one in Toronto.
14:47All right, Chef.
14:48All this talking, the pasta, making the pasta, seeing how it's done smelling this.
14:51What I've heard, the hype, I'm ready to experience it.
14:54Well, we can't wait to cook for you.
14:55Do I get to keep this?
14:56You get to keep that.
14:57Let's go.
14:58Here.
14:59We.
15:00Go.
15:01Here.
15:02We.
15:03Go.
15:04Here we go.
15:05I had to begin.
15:06The bistecca.
15:07You go straight from my heart with the first dish.
15:12Wow.
15:13What a beautiful cut of beef.
15:18Let's put the dover sole.
15:21Lamb, some duck.
15:23Swordfish.
15:24The roast chicken.
15:25That's an airline-style chicken breast.
15:26Exactly.
15:27That's the corsetti pasta that we made.
15:28Handmade by the monster of all monsters.
15:29This is out of control.
15:30Raviolis with squash.
15:31Scallops.
15:32Tartare de boeuf.
15:33Oh, my God.
15:34The veal chop.
15:35So just a few plates of food in front of you.
15:37Wow.
15:38This is one of the largest menus I've ever tackled.
15:39And while I'm in no way complaining, I do have my work cut out for me.
15:45I have goosebumps.
15:46This is beautiful.
15:47Hope you're hungry.
15:48I'm going to get down to the easy part now.
15:49What happens to you?
15:50What happens to you?
15:51What happens to you?
15:52That's the cornetti pasta that we made?
15:53That's the cornetti pasta that we made?
15:54That's the cornetti pasta that we made?
15:55Handmade by the monster of all monsters.
15:57This is out of control.
15:58Raviolis with squash.
15:59Scallops.
16:00Tartare de boeuf.
16:01Oh, my God.
16:02The veal chop.
16:03So just a few plates of food in front of you.
16:05Wow.
16:06Bon Appetit.
16:09Bon Appetit.
16:11I live my life on the road.
16:17And just like anyone else, I have good days and I have bad.
16:23But it's hard to have a bad day in Wisconsin.
16:26And I'm thinking it may be impossible to have a bad day at Loopy & Iris.
16:31I ordered everything on the menu.
16:34And I've never been more excited to dive in.
16:38So starting off with the Dover sole, flown in fresh.
16:43Oh, my goodness.
16:47That is one of the absolute best pieces of fish I've ever eaten in my entire life.
16:51Really soft, meaty taste to it.
16:53Then you get this beautiful olive oil on it, the parsley, the lemon on top of it.
16:57Everything, the charred grill from the fire that they cooked it over.
17:00It's got a very light hint of smoke to it.
17:03The steak is calling my name.
17:05Cooked medium rare.
17:06Unbelievable tenderness, cooked to perfection.
17:22Then you get the sauce on the back end of when you exhale.
17:25It's light on your palate.
17:26It's called persia.
17:27I'm going to go to next.
17:28I'm going to try this tartare.
17:29And then there's some parsley, some chives.
17:33Mmm.
17:34Like, that's nothing like I've ever eaten before.
17:36Veal chopped.
17:37Let's drizzle the lemon over it.
17:40Mmm-hmm.
17:41My taste buds are like, wow, because it's never had anything like this.
17:44And it's calling me back for more bites, more bites, more bites.
17:47Wow.
17:48Mmm-hmm.
17:49You should have your corsetti that you made.
17:51Oh, that's right.
17:52Handmade corsetti.
17:56Mmm.
17:57Right off the bat, get that toothiness, the snap of that pasta being the fresh pasta, and the walnut.
18:02Holy cow, it comes on so strong.
18:04Parmesan cheese on it.
18:05Gives it that tart tang to it.
18:07And it's neat, too, because I've never seen pasta like this before that are stamped out.
18:11And you made it.
18:12Maybe that's why it's so good.
18:14Oh, my God.
18:17Oh, my God, that really is phenomenal.
18:19You guys have a spare room in here that I could take a nap in?
18:22I'm trying another pasta dish.
18:25This was the lemon-based pasta, right?
18:27So it's lemon and ricotta and pecorino cheese with some basil.
18:36Super, super rich.
18:38Heavy on the lemon, but wow, the tartness of the lemon.
18:40It really makes your taste buds kind of go, whoa, what's going on right now?
18:45You're right, I kind of like the idea of the, you said your pasta's are more of like an appetizer thing,
18:50because like, this is good, but if I eat a giant plate of it, like, I'm not going to want to do anything afterwards.
18:54All right, let's try this duck.
19:00Wow.
19:02That might be my favorite so far.
19:04That's something special.
19:05Get the really nice reduction of the kale.
19:07The ducks that get the duck.
19:09Tell them the monster sent you.
19:11All right, where are we at now?
19:13I'm at a loss for words, honestly.
19:15Like, I'm trying to think of cool ways to describe this other than, like, holy shit, this is good.
19:21We have the scallop.
19:22It looks like we've got a little roasted cauliflower in there.
19:25What's the puree?
19:26Is that minced up capers in there?
19:28It's a caper vinaigrette with brown butter.
19:30Mmm.
19:31All right, that might have just changed my opinion.
19:33One of my favorite dishes.
19:34I love scallops.
19:35Scallops are one of my favorite things to eat on Earth.
19:38It's overwhelming how good everything is.
19:41Everything is just good, good, good, good, good.
19:43Oh, this was the egg.
19:46Oof mole over the pork belly.
19:48You know it's fine dining these times when they're serving whole eggs.
19:58Chef, I'm blown away.
20:01Well, thank you.
20:02We appreciate that.
20:03So to know that, like, this is in my home state an hour from my house,
20:06if I could ever find a beautiful lady to go out on a date with me,
20:09I know where I'm bringing her.
20:14If I have to pick a top three for my favorite,
20:17the fish was phenomenal.
20:20Of course, the steak.
20:21The duck.
20:24It's all good.
20:25I mean, my eyes were bigger than my stomach.
20:29You got a doggy bag?
20:30We can make that happen.
20:36Milwaukee's food scene is clearly in very good hands.
20:40And I'm already making plans to come back
20:42to get these hands back into this menu.
20:4510 out of 10, Loopy and Iris.
20:47If you don't come here, you're going to get these hands.
20:50Because even though I couldn't pick a single favorite at Loopy and Iris today,
20:54I think Loopy and Iris may be my new favorite.
20:57And whether you're looking for Dover sole, duck, or porterhouse with a cocktail,
21:03or fried cheese curds and a local beer from the iconic Lakefront brewery.
21:08Milwaukee's got it going on.
21:11Now I know what I'm eating tomorrow on that charter flight to Italy too.
21:15I'm going to whip out this bag and everybody's going to be like, what the hell?
21:17I'm going to pick up and get that bit of a dessert.
21:18I've got nothing on it a lot today.
21:19It's done with the hill.
21:20the hill has gone sitting down.
21:21Let's come here.
21:22Let's expand it.
21:23In my chanas we go to the hill with the hill.
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