We just came back from a nearly perfect weekend in Lake Geneva, and there is far too much to cover in one blog, so I’m going to break it up into three.
One of the things I adore about Lake Geneva is that it is so accessible from Milwaukee and yet it seems like you are miles and miles away from home. The fresh lake air, public beaches and friendly passersby make it a charming place to visit, and it just seems to be one of those destinations where you almost forcibly relax as soon as you set foot outside of the car.
We stayed at a bed and breakfast called Bailey House in Williams Bay, 372 W. Geneva St., which has a beautiful garden with spaced out intimate seating areas and a lovely pool. The hosts at Bailey House are quick with dinner recommendations, and our Friday evening destination was a place called Latimer House in Delavan, 523 E. Walworth Ave.
Service at Latimer House was excruciating, but the food was good, and the atmosphere was amazing. The restaurant doubles as a dinner theater, and is housed in a lovely Victorian Mansion steeped in history and lovely turn of the century accessories, including a stunning staircase and a natural fireplace swathed in green ceramic tiles and capped with an antique mirror.
We tried a Caribbean game hen ($21) with Jamaican jerk seasoning and fruit salsa, and a pan-fried rainbow trout with pine nut butter ($18) that was served whole and butterflied with broccolini and a parmesan risotto that was more like a basic rice dish cooked in chicken stock. Dinner was surprisingly reasonable, and we really enjoyed the entire experience of dining in a converted mansion, which, according to the menu, also spent time serving as a hospital and a sanitarium prior to becoming a restaurant.
We capped off the evening by heading back to our B&B, where we nestled into a comfortable bed and slept soundly until our 9am breakfast was served Saturday morning.
Amy L. Schubert is a 15-year veteran of the hospitality industry and has worked in every aspect of bar and restaurant operations. A graduate of Marquette University (B.A.-Writing Intensive English, 1997) and UW-Milwaukee (M.A.-Rhetoric, Composition, and Professional Writing, 2001), Amy still occasionally moonlights as a guest bartender and she mixes a mean martini.
The restaurant business seems to be in Amy’s blood, and she prides herself in researching and experimenting with culinary combinations and cooking techniques in her own kitchen as well as in friends’ restaurants. Both she and her husband, Scott, are avid cooks and “wine heads,” and love to entertain friends, family and neighbors as frequently as possible.
Amy and Scott live with their boys, Alex and Nick, in Bay View, where they are all very active in the community. Amy finds great pleasure in sharing her knowledge and passions for food and writing in her contributions to OnMilwaukee.com.
