5 Festive Food Events For Thanksgiving Week
From pork chops to pecan pie, spend the week eating and repeating at these local spots.
Eric Zangara, Chef de Cuisine at Ash Heart & Bar. Photo taken Sept. 20, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.
While many home cooks take pride in pulling off a laborious feast for Thanksgiving, others are more than happy to leave the preparations to the professionals.
Ash Hearth & Bar is for the latter group. The Iron Horse Hotel‘s in-house restaurant, 500 W. Florida St., along with dozens of others across the Milwaukee area, will open to guests on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28, serving dishes such as hay-smoked pork belly, hearth-cooked lamb shoulder, wood-fired radicchio and pumpkin pie in a jar.
Paired with a house cocktail or a glass of wine, the fine dining experience may just make up for the lack of leftovers.
Reservations are filling quickly, though several spots remain for a mid-afternoon meal.
Beyond Ash, Milwaukee has no shortage of Thanksgiving plans for those celebrating — from traditional meals to turkey trots. See the list below for additional standouts.
Thanksgiving Pie Sale at Zocalo Food Park
Dessert is decided at Zocalo Food Park, which will host Naya Fine Pastries for a pop-up pie sale on Nov. 27 from 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
A limited selection of pies will be available day-of, including classic pumpkin, cranberry curd and coquito, the last with flavoring based on the festive Puerto Rican drink made with coconut, warm spices and rum.
The sale will also feature flavors like Dutch apple, caramel apple, banana pudding, strawberry, hot pecan, cherry, guava, baklava and German chocolate. Pies are available in miniature five-inch pans for $8 to $12 each and nine-inch pans for $30 to $40 each, depending on the filling.
Online pre-orders have closed, but walk-ups are welcome on the day of the sale, which will take place at 636 S. 6th St.
Von Trier Meat Raffle
“Have you ever gone out, gotten hammered and woke up with a free pot roast in your arms?”
Von Trier posed this playful question in a recent Instagram post, assuring guests that, regardless of their answer, a chance to do just that is on the horizon.
The East Side tavern, 2235 N. Farwell Ave., will host its first-ever meat raffle on Nov. 27, the day before Thanksgiving, beginning at 6 p.m. Winners must be present in order to redeem their prize.
For those unfamiliar with the mighty meat raffle, check out this primer before you go. Tickets are available for purchase at Von Trier, with sales continuing until the day of the raffle.
McBob’s Community Thanksgiving Dinner
There’s a seat at the table for everyone at McBob’s Pub and Grill this week, as the restaurant prepares for its annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner.
This year marks the restaurant’s first Thanksgiving under new ownership; however, Katy Klinnert and Sara McConville, who took over the business in February, are keeping the tradition alive.
The free feast, featuring turkey and “all the fixings,” is open to all from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 4919 W. North Ave.
Seven Swans Creperie
Crepes are the star of the plate at this cozy breakfast destination, which which will open Thanksgiving Day with a special, holiday-themed menu.
Featured dishes include the Thanksgiving Leftovers Crepe, filled with herb-roasted turkey, cornbread sage stuffing, fresh cranberry sauce and gravy, as well as the Sweet Potato Crepe, a riff on the classic casserole topped with torched, housemade vanilla marshmallows and spiced pecans.
To make things even sweeter, the restaurant is serving desserts like pecan pie with frozen custard and sticky toffee sweet potato pudding.
Seven Swans Creperie, located at 808 E. Chambers St., is open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the holiday, Nov. 28.
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