Three Brothers Restaurant

Had an episode of $40 A Day with Rachael Ray not reminded me about Three Brothers Restaurant, an amazing Serbian place tucked deep in the heart of Bay View, I might have gone yet another week without eating there. And that would have been a shame.

While I sometimes question the places Rachael selects for that show (C’mon Rach, couldn’t you have chosen some better places in Dallas, Austin, and Denver??), I had to mumble a bit of thanks when she popped up at Three Brothers in Milwaukee, because although I’d heard numerous recommendations for the place, (one Los Angeleno blogger called it a “perfect foodie destination restaurant”), I’d almost forgotten about it.

With rain pounding down on the car and a sad set of directions that I dashed off (turn left, turn right, etc.), Scott and I drove south over the bridge and after quite a few u-turns, pulled up in front of a building oozing with old world charm.

I shook my umbrella and leaned it against the coat rack, then took a seat near the dark, lengthy bar. We started with a half-carafe of the house white wine, which was a little sweeter than I prefer, but much needed after the aforementioned u-turns. We also received a basket of rye bread and kajmak, a Serbian goat cheese spread, as well as a small plate of hors d’oeuvres which arrived on a charming plate that looked like it came straight out of my great-grandmother's china cabinet.

While noshing on the black olives, salami, cheese, and tomatoes, I wondered why my plants didn’t look as good as the gnarled and oversized aloe vera plants haunting the front windows and I also tried to figure out how in the world Rachael Ray manages to look so comfortable eating in front of the camera in places like Three Brothers, which is somewhat small and almost always full.

(Okay, so sometimes I’m not such an exciting dinner partner...!)

Anyway, after the appetizers, we had a small salad followed by entrees. While we really wanted to try the burek, a large round concoction filled with layers of beef or a cheese-spinach mixture tucked between paper thin sheets of phyllo, we simply couldn’t wait the 45 minutes to an hour that it takes to prepare the thing. Instead, Scott ordered some moussaka, and I had goulash, which I was surprised to find a little thinner than the version I make; here, big chunks of beef were simmered in a paprika-seasoned sauce and accompanied by two large potato dumplings.

For dessert, we shared a slice of grandma’s torte, a delicious dessert made with chocolate and hazelnuts, which was delightfully flavorful, without being too rich or too sweet. I also couldn’t resist having a little bit of slivovitz, a slightly sweet plum brandy that always reminds me of some college friends. Cheers to you guys, wherever you are, and to you, Rachael Ray, for reminding me and countless others about the excellent ethnic cuisine available at Three Brothers.

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Find it here:

Three Brothers Restaurant
2414 S Saint Clair St
Milwaukee, WI 53207
(414) 481-7530

Comments

[wayne]

I love moussaka. I've never been to Three Brothers. I like the building. Very Old World.

[Lynn]

I love Three Brothers. The Burek is worth the wait.

[Kelly]

There's a lot of love going on here. What is Serbian food? Is like Polish food?

[Blue Dawg]

That building a Schlitz tied house. From the mid-1800's right up until prohibition, selling draft beer in saloons and taverns was the brewing industry's biggest retail outlet. Bottled beer accounted for only a fraction of sales. Saloon sales were critical, and the Milwaukee breweries set up thousands of barkeepers in business by supplying them with everything they needed: glassware, advertising, decoration, furniture and backbars, on the condition that the tavern could only serve his benefactor's beer, thus becoming "tied" to the brewery.