There’s a new food truck prowling the streets of Milwaukee this week, offering up delicious free tacos for the taking.
Sea Cuisine, one of the nation’s largest suppliers of sustainably raised frozen prepared seafood products, has custom designed a mobile Taco Bar that will be rolling into key cities across the United States. And Milwaukee is the first destination on the tour, which will also visit Minneapolis, Denver, Nashville and Cincinnati.
As part of the promotion, Sea Cuisine is partnering with local chefs to create exclusive recipes that highlight simple ways to prepare and enjoy the brand’s products through the hottest food trend, the fish taco.
Featured tacos on the truck will include the Baja Mama with tilapia, cilantro, red onion, lettuce, tomato, avocado and lime vinaigrette, along with the Oh My Cod!, a taco with potato crusted cod filet, cilantro, sprouts, and avocado.
The featured Milwaukee chef is Il Mito's Michael Feker, who has created a fish taco recipe using the brand’s tortilla crusted tilapia filets, along with a crisp slaw made from fennel, Napa cabbage and cilantro. His tacos will also make an appearance for the Milwaukee leg of the tour.
"Eighty percent of the questions I get as a chef are about preparing fish," says Feker. "And these products take the guesswork out of preparing fish at home."
He points to the tortilla crusted tilapia he’s using for his taco.
"Tilapia can be a really muddy tasting fish," he says. "But theirs is delicious. It’s made from the highest grade of tilapia available, and it’s flash frozen, so there’s no off flavors."
Feker says he is also a fan of the potato crusted cod, which is made from the cod loin, as well as the applewood smoked salmon, which he says makes a great stand-in for barbecued pork when it’s shredded and mixed with barbecue sauce.
"These fish are so easy to prepare," he says. "While the fish is in the oven, you can sauté some spinach and make a simple white wine caper sauce, and then dinner is on the table. It literally takes you 20 minutes."
Feker isn’t the only chef to be enamored of Sea Cuisine products. Top Chef Stefan Richter has been an ambassador for the brand, and he says it’s a go-to for him after a 15-hour day at the restaurant when he doesn’t feel like cooking.
"I'm creating recipes that take maybe 10 minutes to go with them," he says. "And, honestly, you should try the potato crusted cod. It's really beautifully done."
Feker concurs. "Make one of these simple recipes with their fish," he says. "It’s so good you’ll be saying ‘Where is Feker? I want to hug this guy!’"
The Sea Cuisine Taco Bar will be making appearances this week at Chill on the Hill on July 1, Roundy’s Corporate Downtown on July 2 and at Summerfest July 4-6.
Taco Bar customers and fans of Sea Cuisine can tweet and post about their experience using the hashtag, #UpgradeYourTaco, as they follow the truck from city to city.
For a full schedule, as well as a recipe for the Milliocke tilapia taco from Feker, visit seacuisine.com.
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.