Well known for its smoked meats, Heaven's Table BBQ, 2238 N. Farwell Ave., is spicing things up for Crossroads Collective Customers by featuring a short list of Jamaican-inspired dishes as specials on Fridays.
“This is really about me expressing my creativity," says Alston, noting that he's piloting the new dishes for potential inclusion on the menu for his forthcoming restaurant in Uptown Crossing.
"There's not much Jamaican food on the West Side since Irie Zulu closed," he adds. "So I'd like to be able to fill that void."
The menu includes vegetable-based offerings like jerk cauliflower, which is marinated for 24 hours, smoked and then charred on wood and served with a side of jerk barbeque sauce ($4) and curry veggies, a twist on the classic dish featuring charred cauliflower and other vegetables cooked in a spiced coconut curry and served with coconut rice ($14).
There's also classic jerk chicken featuring hindquarters marinated in a wet jerk marinade and smoked over cherry wood ($13); and housemade jerk chicken sausage made with a finely ground mixture of dark and white meat, peppers and spices ($14).
Guests will also find a twist on oxtail stew featuring tender stewed oxtails spiced with Jamaican curry, allspice and thyme and braised with vegetables ($18).
Heaven's Table BBQ is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Crossroads offers socially distanced dine-in service, carry-out, curbside pick-up and local delivery.
As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.