Diablos Rojos Restaurant Group announced that it has changed its names to the Lowlands Group, effective yesterday.
"Lowlands is a reference to the region of Europe that has inspired our focus on Belgian and Dutch 'grand café' culture," said Mike Eitel, co-owner of the Lowlands Group, in a statement. "The new name more accurately describes the focus of what we are doing and where we are going as a company."
Nothing about the group's ownership or management has changed. It continues to own and operate Trocadero, Café Hollander on Downer Avenue and in Wauwatosa, and Café Centraal.
The group plans to open Café Benelux at 346 N. Broadway, in the Historic Third Ward, in April.
In other Lowlands Group news, the restaurant group is currently soliciting feedback and running a "Be a Critic" ad campaign on OnMilwaukee.com and on its Web site. The campaign offers local diners the chance to review Trocadero and win gift cards.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
