{image1} Los Angeles chef Michael Feker says it was destiny that brought him to the "small big town" of Milwaukee, where he met his wife and established the Italian restaurant, Il Mito. And his passion for serving a superb dining experience carries on with the opening of Los Mitos, (780 N. Jefferson St.), where he'll grill contemporary Latin-Californian cuisine and bring in live bands to play music as vibrant as the décor.
Feker is a graduate of the California Culinary Academy and will practice the cooking styles he learned there at Los Mitos, scheduled to open Monday, Nov. 22. "My cuisine is the combination of classical French for the chemistry of the food, Italian ingredients and California flair." Feker says as an apprentice he learned "the simplicity and beauty of Italian cuisine."
And unlike his three restaurants in Los Angeles and Il Mito in Walker's Point, Los Mitos, which means "The Myths" in Spanish (Il Mito means "The Myth" in Italian), will be spiced up with a touch of the Argentine. "I took the influence of Italian and the culture of Argentina and put them together," Feker says.
"They love meat and potato type meals, except in Argentina," says Feker, "They're famous for the beef, and the closest thing we have here is the Black Angus beef, and that's what I'm going to be using in my cuisine.
"Everything is going to be done on the grill, even my pizzas and some desserts on the grill," he adds.
Feker claims that this ethnicity of food and method of preparation are nowhere to be found in Milwaukee. And not only will he wow diners with the food, "but the service, the attention to detail and the price consciousness," are priorities, too, he says.
"I am blessed with a passion for food and service, and I want to pass that on to my customers," says Feker. He says Brew City is the place to make it happen.
"After living the rat race of Los Angeles for many years, it gets to you after awhile," he says. "Milwaukee, you have everything in it, you just don't have the hustle and bustle of a big town. And I think Milwaukee is hungry for what I have to offer, and vice versa."
The menu is smothered with appetizers like empanadas, organic sea scallops and a celery-crusted tenderloin and a portabella mushroom platter. Main dishes include a collection of pastas, with toppings like grilled scallops, Angus porterhouse steak, tenderloin and rack of lamb, to name a few. And you can top it all off with sweet potato pie, crème Brule, chocolate raspberry torte and port wines. "Every palate will be satisfied," Feker promises.
He says he knows the feeling of going out to dinner, spending a fortune and leaving hungry. And that will not be the case at Los Mitos. The most expensive items on the dining lineup will be about $22, he says. And that'll be for things like the porterhouse, tenderloin and lamb.
Feker's intense focus on food is obvious, but so is his zeal to entertain. "I don't want to be a bar, but I want to be a great happy hour," he says. "I want people to leave the stresses of the day behind and come here and have a great drink, nice appetizers, listen to some music, unwind." Jazz, blues and acoustic musicians will liven things up, he says.
Los Mitos will be open seven days a week: Monday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 a.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Call (414) 271-1414 for more information. Their Web site is losmitos.com.
