Address: 330 E. Menomonee St., Milwaukee
Website: bavettelaboucherie.com
Cuisine: Farm to table
Chef: Karen Bell
Mood: Casual and fun
Pricing: Entrees: $12-$26; Cocktails: $9-$14
Bavette La Boucherie is a butcher shop and restaurant based in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward. Inspired by her time working in Madrid, owner Karen Bell has developed a menu of Spanish-inspired dishes and locally-sourced meat. Bell encourages diners to share multiple dishes and take their time eating each one.
“My philosophy is when you start with a really great product, you don’t really need to do a lot to it,” Bell said. “You can allow the ingredients to speak for themselves.”
Bavette features both indoor and outdoor seating, as well as seating at the bar. With the restaurant’s open layout, customers are able to watch the butchering of the meats at the butchering table, located just beyond the bar.
- A frequently ordered lunch menu item is the Banh Mi sandwich. The Banh Mi can be made with chicken, pork or kimchi sausage and also includes miso-sriracha aioli and pickled carrots and cucumbers.
- Bavette combines aspects of old-time butcher shops with modern, chic restaurants. For example, the restaurant’s aqua wallpaper spotted with gold cattle heads fits in with the Third Ward’s aesthetic, but the open concept space that allows customers to see the butcher table and rolls of paper provides the charm of butcher shops. “What you see is what we have,” Bell said.