Milwaukee Specialty Food and Coffee

Editorial: Low-information Signaling

Much has been made of Sen. Barack Obama's recent confrontation with the need for low-information signaling in American politics.  However, such signaling is a part of the 30-second snippets in which we digest our environment, mostly through the mass media.  I've been struck by how Archbishop Timothy Dolan, who has a doctoral degree, drops his "g"s and always refers to cities in terms of their respective football teams--at least when he appears in the newspaper, radio or evening news.  I have no idea what he's like in person.  I'd argue that the information being signaled here is "I'm not a high-culture you-know-what like the last Archbishop."

As someone who's definitely on the high-culture you-know-what end of the scale, I crave to be talked up to.  Arguably, Sen. Obama has been one of the few politicians to do just that.  I notice that in his podcasts, he uses colloquialisms like "you guys," but not in his speeches, which are decidedly more formal.

Restaurants--and perhaps even coffeehouses--are no exception to this signaling.  I believe, for example, that corporate logos and advertisements targeted to women use all lowercase letters (example: noodles & co.), while those targeted towards men use all uppercase (example: Jimmy John's).

C'mon, Maw, the Farmers Markets are Startin'

Here’s a short list (via JSOnline) of Farmers Markets that begin this weekend and run all summer long:

Cudahy Farmers Market
4723 S. Packard Avenue
Fridays 10AM-4PM
May 2-October 31

Sherman Perk Farmers Market
Sherman Perk Coffee parking lot @ 49th Street, Roosevelt Avenue and W. Keefe Avenue
Saturdays and Sundays 8AM-2PM
May 3-September 28

West Allis Farmers Market
1559 S. 65th Street @ National Avenue
Saturdays 1-6PM; Tuesdays and Thursdays Noon-6PM
May 3-November 29

Brookfield Farmers Market
Civic Plaza, 2000 N. Calhoun Road, next to the Brookfield Civic Center
Saturdays 7:30AM-Noon
May 3-October 25

Delafield Farmers Market
In the city parking lot on Main Street, one block west of Genesee Street (Highway C)
Saturdays 7AM-1PM
May 3-October 25

Hartford Farmers Market
Hartford Recreation Center parking lot, 125 N. Rural Street
Saturdays 7AM-1PM
May 3-November 15

If Ya Can't Blame the Economy, Who Can Ya Blame? Oh, Right.

Before y'all get bent outta shape because I am once again blogging about Starbucks, I wanna say that I try my level best to be choosy about the stories I bring to your discerning attention, particularly those concerning the java giant, okay? Okay. I mean, you should see the mind-boggling amount of pointless prattle I don't bother to blog about--truly frightening, man. And, you're welcome.

Now that we have that out of the way, we can get on with the news that NPR's Wendy Kaufman filed a short business report with Morning Edition today, highlighting the mega corp's growing struggles. She managed to get a brief interview with CEO Howard Schultz as well as two industry watchers who offered up some rough but fair analysis of how the company has done itself major damage over the years.

Link

Snapshot: Pizza Shuttle

I'm at Pizza Shuttle drinking a beer and eating pizza.  The beer here is cheap, the pizza not so much.  They have free Wi-Fi, but have switched from an open-access system to one in which you obtain a receipt with login information from the cashier.  You're also limited to 30 minutes.

Snapshot: Rare Alterra Disappointment

A rare Alterra disappointment, as a mug of Colombia El Castillo Cauca Reservo does little for me, either black or with milk.

Stevens Point Goes Totally Nude

Lenses up, paparazzi! Wisconsin craft biermeister Stevens Point Brewery is launching a new seasonal specialty brew on May 1 called Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat--the beer that's all nude, all the time.

Ya can't really blame 'em for wanting to cash in. What with 15 year old Miley Cyrus baring her back and shoulder for a recent Vanity Fair photo shoot, causing parents of Hannah Montana worshiping kids to sputter, click their tongues like Victorian snobs with their own dirty little secrets and shout, "Tramp!", it only made good business sense for this nubile 150 year old to jump on the naked bandwagon.

Link

A Java Bean in the Sun

On Saturday, the Examiner reported on a Pueblo, Colorado coffee company that roasts its beans with solar power. Brothers David and Mike Hartkop moved their Solar Roast Coffee Company--a business with very humble kiosk beginnings--from Oregon to downtown Pueblo in December 2006 and installed the Helios 4 Solar Coffee Roaster atop a rural mesa five miles away.

It's a pretty great story of going green and winning over skeptical locals by creating healthy community relations.

Link (via Coffee Talk)

Snapshot: Grind (UWM Union)

Lately, I've been getting drinks several times a week from Grind in the UWM Union.  I've always like their espresso, and last week, I had a double that was almost Alterra quality (indeed, they use Alterra coffee).  A la Starbucks, they've started placing random advertisements and public service announcements on their java jackets (a little more low-tech--they're actually stuck-on labels).  Today's "Java Jacket Journal" featured a short piece entitled "Undone" by our MySpace friend, Lisa Gatewood.

Thinking With Your Butt

The economy's pretty bad.  I think we're past the point where I need to link to a news story or something to substantiate this.  Milwaukee is blessed with a wide variety of Darwinized independent business who have weathered the last decade and a half.  After that feat, lean and fit, they are well poised to survive and thrive through this recession.  Meanwhile, large corporation, municipalities and a smattering of local businesses exhibit the kind of terminal cluelessness that can only result from thinking with the left and right cheek rather than the left and right hemisphere.  Just in the last twenty-four hours, I've come across a multitude of examples.

1) Shorewood: There aren't enough businesses on our main shopping street, and the ones that are there aren't doing well enough.  I know--let's tear that street (N. Oakland Ave.) up for a year.  That'll help!

2) Jean Pierre's, then Juan Pedro's, now JP's (I think--I'm having a hard time keeping track):  Our business isn't doing well enough.  I know--let's keep changing the name until more people come!

3) Starbucks, N. Farwell and E. Brady: Neil Young is awesome background music!  I don't deny the man's talent, but let's face it, background music he ain't.  (I think there may be a hidden agenda here, as lots of people have been in and out during my stay, very few of them paying customers.  The Neil Young might be employed for its fingernails-on-a-chalkboard effect.)

Holy Gobbler, Batman!

I just got back from a beer run to Tina's Food Market and what did I see crossing N. Franklin Place? That's right, astute headline readers, a wild female turkey! Moving with an easy strut onto N. Warren, she took absolutely no notice of the copious numbers of slack jawed gawkers--such as myself--who watched her proceed along her path, all the while shouting, "What is that?" and "Is that a turkey?" and "Holy sh*t, it is!"

Fortunately for you, I didn't have my phone with me, so you will be spared a blurry, barely discernible snapshot of the bold and stoic bird.

Since I was sans mobile, I hope someone called Animal Control so she won't get hurt. Although I did see a chef walking out from behind The Pasta Tree, into whose backyard she had wandered and disappeared from my sight, and he was wiping his hands on a kitchen towel. No!!!