Hinterland Erie Street Gastropub

My third time here we did the chefs table.  You start with five courses for $75 though for $10 per you can add additional.  We landed at 8.

I'll get my nits (however slight) out of the way first.  For those of you who enjoy giant portions, this is your chance.  If we had just done 5 courses it would have been fine.  I made the mistake of assuming that if we ordered 8 they would scale the portions on all of the dishes appropriately.  Not so much, and it was really a lot of food.

Which leads me to my next nit, the pacing.  It was just too quick.  We were through 8 courses in like 90 minutes, which is just way too fast.  That should have been more like a 2 hour meal minimum.

The food shines though.  No low spots anywhere, and everything was of the highest quality, perfectly prepared, and inventively executed.  My favorite course was the stuffed squash.  I think it was stuffed with salmon, though I'm not sure, as it was so divine I suffered memory loss for the next 15 minutes and heard everything directed my way in the voice of Charlie Browns teacher.

This place is really great! Came here with my sis while visiting WI. Obviously the cheese appetizer plate was awesome. All of the main dishes we ordered were really good as well. Didn't get the chance to eat many other places in 3rd Ward, but would def come back to eat here. Also, weirdly the hot dog was really good. Cool vibe and all the servers were very nice.

4 stars?  YES.  For now, as I haven't done the whole Hinterland experience.  An update is required, me thinks.  

But on this occasion: I came...... for the PHO.
Pho-nomenal.  Most everyone else has already been over the fact that everything is already thrown in.  I dig that.  They are better cooks than I am and I like them telling me what to eat.  I also dig the homemade Sriracha.  Just a couple of squirts and my mouth was burning with deliciousness.  Ask for it.  I felt the Pho was a little light on the meat, but for $5 I can't complain too much.  

I also got the homemade bratwurst of the moment.  The name escapes me, but it was basically a brautwurst.  It came with homemade kraut and a tasty coarse ground mustard.  While thematically this probably didn't pair well with the Pho, it was super good.

Bartender was attentive but not overbearing, and the Nitro IPA was a great selection.  Color me impressed.  I'll need to get fancy the next time I come, but this place has potential to be a cornerstone for some scrumptious eats.