Vanguard Goes Wild With Sausages

The Vanguard. Photo taken Nov. 20, 2024 by Cari Taylor-Carlson.

If you want to upend your idea of a Wisconsin dog, be it a hot dog, brat, Italian sausage, or anything else that fits in a bun, come to Bay View and visit The Vanguard on Kinnickinnic Avenue. Here you will find a shortage of the expected in a menu bursting with creative ways to dress up the classic with unique and unexpected flavor combinations.

You may note however, there is a “classic” section on the menu where you will find a Bratwurst, a Hot Dog, and a Cheddarwurst, plus three vegan choices made with house seitan. You can dress these more traditional dogs with onions, sport peppers, kraut, giardiniera, relish, or vinegar peppers, or, you can move further down the menu to Sausage City.

That was where my companion and I landed when we ordered the Seattle and the Chicago. The Seattle Sausage came with cream cheese, cheddar, and fried onion, a rich, oozy, and delicious mess, that left no doubt about the successful marriage of these two cheeses when accompanied by fried onions. The Chicago Sausage had everything you would expect in a Chicago dog and that meant sliced tomato, celery salt, pickle relish, peppers, chopped onions, and mustard were all present. Like the Seattle, it was a finger licking mess.

From the Sides, do not overlook the Baked Potato Balls that we enjoyed along with house-made Cheese Whiz and bacon and sour cream toppings. At one time they were deep-fried, but they are now baked and allegedly somewhat healthier. Despite this minor update, we found them every bit as delicious.

For another side, Greek Green Beans, the chef lightly sauteed the lowly beans and combined them with Kalamata olives, a lemon vinaigrette, feta, and crisp fried onions. After my companion and I devoured the beans with our fingers, we used our spoons to scoop every drop of the remaining vinaigrette. It was that good.

Turn the menu over to find the list of Draft Cocktails such as the Space Monkey — Plantation Dark Rum mixed with Crème de Cocoa, lemon, Demarara syrup, and Grapefruit bitters. There are 12 draft beers, many domestic and international bottles and cans including the non-alcoholic Upside-Down Golden Ale that my companion and I thought perfectly mimicked an alcoholic ale.

The Styled Sausages are the entrees where the chef gets to play with flavors and unusual combinations to dress up the dogs which are, incidentally, all made in house.

For the Berlin Currywurst, a pork and beef hot dog flavored with curry, the chef included grilled onions, and drizzled mayo and ketchup over the dog. It sat on a bed of fries that were lightly flavored with curry dust. Everything about this dish said curry, but it was a gentle hit, not a blast of that strong flavor.

Another Styled Dog, my companion’s Thai Breaker, pork sausage seasoned with lemongrass and ginger, was reminiscent of a Bahn Mi. It included shredded carrots and lettuce, something unidentified that crunched, and Thai Peanut Sauce to combine the flavors into something special. There was a hint of spicy heat, but like the currywurst, it was gentle.

The Daily Soup, not to be missed, was a cup of Lemon Chicken, thick and filled with chicken and potatoes. We found it more like a chowder than a chicken soup.

If you want to get wild with the Styled Sausages, try the Buffalo Stampede, a sausage made with bison, bacon, and roasted green chilis, and topped with Pepperjack cheese sauce, chow chow, and cilantro. For something with lots of spicy heat, order the Nashville Hot Chicken, a chicken sausage topped with pickles, mayo, and hot, spicy or extra hot oil.

There are also Weekly Specials. On Monday, Wings are 10 for $14.00 or 20 for $25.00, and Tuesdays are Tofu Tuesdays with weekly vegan specials. If you are a longtime customer, you will notice the addition of table service which, according to our server, makes everything run more smoothly.

If you want just one word  that best describes the food at Vanguard, it would be “unconventional.” The chefs are having fun inventing creative toppings and we, the customers, are the lucky ones who get to sit at the table and relish all this crazy deliciousness.

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• Location: 2659 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.
• Phone: 414-539-3593
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Sun-Thu, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Fri-Sat
• Neighborhood: Bay View
• Walk Score: 94
• Website: http://www.vanguardbar.com
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/vanguardmke
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vanguardmke