Fantasy Restaurant League



Some folks dig fantasy football leagues, some fantasy baseball (I'm trying it this summer myself, but am low man on the Totem Pole – and Corey Hart's still on the DL! – so nothing to cheer about just yet), but what I really want to join is a fantasy restaurant league.  Go and try a bunch of great restaurants around town, the state, the country, then keep tabs on them and see how they do with customer satisfaction of the very same menu you've tried yourself...well, an interesting idea anyway.  Next on my list comes from the back-of the mag section of Our Wisconsin, a short, state-bound publication run by a couple guys who got bored in retirement and decided to promote the 'underground-quaint' from around Wisconsin.  The section is called "The Unexpected Gourmet" and titled "For Dining That Shines, Riverstone Is a Gem."

Riverstone's located up in Eagle River, a city in Vilas County, population 1,398 and the county seat. Humble surroundings, but the chefs, both with CIA (Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, Napa CA) cooking degrees, now serve some of the best bread ("his breads are national award winners") and pasta, in the state.

When I get up there, I'd like to try:

Pot Roast of Veal with Root Vegetable Mash and Demi Glace' Slices of tender Wisconsin Provimi veal paired with an earthy blend of potato, parsnip, rutabaga, and carrot. $18.95

This great dish from a family restaurant experience that began with ice cream and frozen pizza served at their Pine Aire Campground in the 1970's. "That progressed to basket dinners in the 1980's.  By the late 19990's, it had evolved much further. Here we were, a white-tablecloth restaurant in the middle of an RV park," Ron laughs. "People who came for dinner the first time were a little wary when they approached.  There were kids on the merry-go-round...folks relaxing in lawn chairs...swimmers headed back from the lake..."  The campground was sold in 2003, and now the restaurant has evolved "thanks to executive chefs who prefer to avoid the bustle of the city and do a little fishing, hiking, and hunting in their spare time."  The Fantasy Restaurant League owner could go a long with this one.