Mother’s Takes Up Residence in Former Ardent Space

1751 N. Farwell Ave. Photo taken May 9, 2024 by Sophie Bolich

With a playful cooking style that traverses global flavors—berbere, doenjang, gochugaru—Vanessa Rose thrives in the space between cultures and culinary traditions.

It’s no surprise, then, that the chef has found a temporary home at 1751 N. Farwell Ave., the former location of Ardent and the future site of Purslane.

In the interim between concepts, Rose’s pop-up, Mother’s, is taking up residence for January. Previously, it was available only on Sundays, while Rose served as Ardent’s sous chef the rest of the week.

Throughout the month, Rose will be serving both old favorites and new creations; extra service days allow more room for experimentation, she said.

“I’m excited to have four proper days of service, in large part because doing it once a week meant a lot of food waste and limited time to prep,” she said, also noting her enthusiasm for Sunday and Monday services, often billed as “industry days.”

“Much of the dining scene operates on the same Wednesday through Saturday schedule, and I wanted to offer something for the rest of the service industry, who I think can and will appreciate the playfulness and experimentation we bring to our dishes.”

Though it changes frequently, the Mother’s menu reliably features comfort-forward dishes with global inspiration. Tikka masala gnocchi, beet carpaccio, madeira mushrooms and more have found a place on past menus, alongside creative desserts from pastry chef Nick Hoover.

New additions might include chashu (Japanese braised pork belly) with aji amarillo and parsnip, and berbere hanger steak with olive oil, celery root puree and pecorino. Rose also plans to bring back favorites such as monkfish and aromatic rice with saffron broth and red chard.

“Not many people got to try that one,” she said. “It was just too much work and product to sell once a week.”

While she’ll run the concept largely on her own, Rose has a group of fellow chefs and industry friends eager to lend a hand. “It’s still very much a kitchen by committee,” she said.

The pop-up will operate Friday through Monday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Reservations can be booked by messaging the pop-up’s Instagram account.

The month will culminate in a collaborative event at Amilinda, where Rose will be joined by seven other chefs, all seeking to launch their own concepts.

Rose, Hoover and Chris Kowalewski will represent Mother’s during the 10 course tasting, which will also feature Mary Kastman of Purslane, Kristen Schwab of Phat Dumpling (current executive chef for Uncle Wolfie’s Downtown/The Wolf), John Levine of 72 Waverly, Ashley Turner of Bellestar BBQ (current executive chef for Milwaukee County Zoo) and Ethan Daugherty of Amilinda.

Guest bartender Jeff Kinder, owner of the upcoming Haven Cafe, and sommelier Joe Kane will handle the beverages.

Mother’s Moving Kitchen pop-up is scheduled for Jan. 26 at 5:30 p.m. at Amilinda, 315 E. Wisconsin Ave. Tickets are $200 each (add wine pairings for $125) and are available to purchase online.

As detailed in our past coverage, Mother’s is part of a broader vision for Rose’s larger entity, House of Bridges. She is currently exploring potential locations for the project, which seeks to provide an inclusive community space featuring live concerts and performances, a gallery, dinner theater and event venues for gatherings, weddings and tasting events through Mother’s.

“So far, people have only gotten to know us through what people call fine dining, but it’s our aim to offer dining at every level, from a humble grab-and-go muffin to tasting menus that rival anyone’s.”

“As excited as I am for what we’re preparing [at Mother’s], I’m more excited for people to find out who we are and our goals beyond food,” she added. “House of Bridges is really the goal here.”

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