By Jeff Sherman OnMilwaukee.com Staff Writer Published Nov 11, 2008 at 1:00 PM

Cleveland-born chef Michael Symon and the 2007 winner of the Food Network's "The Next Iron Chef" has been tabbed to open a new restaurant at The Residences at Hotel Palomar, a new development at 520 W. McKinley St. in Downtown Milwaukee.

Symon, who owns Lola and Lolita in Cleveland, was also recently named as the new host for the Food Network's "Dinner: Impossible" and one of the "Ten Best New Chefs in America" by Food and Wine magazine.

The 1990 Culinary Institute of America graduate will be in Milwaukee next week Tuesday for a promotional event at the Residences at Hotel Palomar Sales Center.

"Michael Symon is one of the brightest talents in the food world," said Marty Collins, CEO of Gatehouse Capital, the national real estate investment and development firm based in Dallas that's developing the Palomar project.

"Bringing Michael's expertise to Milwaukee is a great addition and will make the Milwaukee Hotel Palomar and Residences one of the hottest destinations in the city. We pursued Michael at the strong recommendation of our other chefs and we are elated to have him join us in Milwaukee."

The new restaurant and lobby bar will be operated by Lola, Symon's restaurant holding company and will feature approximately 8,500 sq. ft. of indoor and outdoor space located on the ground floor of the hotel. The restaurant is anticipated to seat up to 150 guests and will also have extensive catering capabilities to serve guests and residents in private dining rooms or in their residences. The restaurant and lobby bar have not yet been named.

"Milwaukee is another great city in the Midwest and I am excited to create a venue that offers a memorable menu and a remarkable setting," said Symon. "This is going to be a great dining experience for the people of Milwaukee and we look forward to working with Marty Collins and his team on this project."

The Milwaukee Hotel Palomar and Residences is a $150 million property just off of the Park East in a new Downtown neighborhood being branded as the McKinley District. The 500,000-sq. ft. development will pair 63 condominiums plus a penthouse floor with the Hotel Palomar, a Kimpton-operated, 175 room, luxury hotel brand. The development will also include a WTS operated spa and fitness center, a rooftop nightclub, an art-filled public park,  retail and a valet parking structure. 

Jeff Sherman OnMilwaukee.com Staff Writer

A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.

He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.

Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts.  He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.  

He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.

He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.