The Poetry of Interval
The notion that food can exist as art has been present in the American mind for a while now. Long enough, in fact, that the culture of dining has developed its own stereotypes, such as when one hears the utterance of, “Tasting menu,” or “Small plates.” Unfairly or not, diners are often eager to traverse directly to the most cynical part of their brain. Art is meant to be criticized, and living in a world where everyone has instant access to their own forum of amateur analysis, everyone seems to be a critic of equal authority. The austere affect and hushed solemnity that so many establishments have adopted has created a painful ‘sameness’ for much of what most consider to be fine dining. With so much working against the presumption of fine eating, it would take an iconoclast to disrupt that faulty expectation. As luck would have it, Milwaukee was gifted one late last year when Ryan Hoban, Owner of Pilcrow Coffee, and chef Travis Cook opened Interval.
Diagonal to the deservingly vaunted fine dining stalwart, Sanford, Interval’s exterior provides an interesting modern contrast to its classic counterpart. Opening to a casual, if not chic, coffee setting belies the ensuing elegance. A staircase leads to the main dining area. The mind begins to race. A flurry of adjectives: casual, refined, winsome, polished, idiosyncratic. Each descriptor as unsure of itself and unsatisfying as the next, none able to adequately sum up the ethereal vibe. Absent among those descriptors would be “confused,” because somehow in the hypnotic pearlescence of it all, everything still feels just so. Deliberate yet gentle.
Options of a la carte or tasting menu is up to the diner, but if you want to engage Interval’s full story (and you do), it feels almost mandatory to opt for the latter. Once chosen, a whirlwind of charisma and emotional exploration ensues. The trout with koji unfurled in bright defiance of the seemingly endless winter outside, and the carrot with coffee, lime and salt took the palate on a meandering journey of unprecedented flavor. Chef Cook’s confident anecdotes provided a charming intro to every course, even if it featured ingredients he found intolerable: the beet and all of its ubiquity is a loathsome entity in his mind. True to the restaurant’s novel spirit, it was accepted as a challenger and conquered thusly, rendered toothsome for the restaurant’s patrons. It’s worth mentioning that throughout the meal (and deserving of an article in its own right) the cocktail program, spearheaded by JC Cunningham and Josiah Brown, entertained brilliantly with pairings that were both unique and delicious in equal and enormous proportions.
Too often, in an attempt to break ground and trigger emotion, an artist becomes desperate and maudlin. An attempt at channeling nostalgia or a sentimental spark becomes precious, derivative and derisible. For a brief moment, what had been original felt at risk of approaching novelty. It’s not every day, after all, that you’re instructed to pocket a baby pinecone in your cheek like an animal preparing for hibernation. Then, just like that, I was the fool. Mirroring my incredulity, the pine resin activated and melted. The effect transports the mind far from the painfully adult world of sophisticated dining and back to the endurance of youth and the crisp purity of true and pristine nature. When simplicity intersects with brilliance in this way, it creates a connection that is profound and moving.
If we are at the aforementioned point of accepting food as art, then it feels fair to posit that a restaurant is like a gallery. A gallery is simply a lifeless vehicle that showcases talent. While it can be set up and tailored to an artist, its function is to be recycled and on to the next. At Interval, something more is happening. The design comes to life, assists in curating the night, provides flow to the playful nature of service. There is nothing utilitarian about the ever-changing menu at Interval. It has a distinct prose, a fierce but tender hold on its aesthetic and in the din of clinking glasses and seamless service, a story to tell. Go and listen.
