Delicious things to eat and drink in Wisconsin
America’s Dairyland features wonderful wines, tart cranberries and sweet cherries. Here, we offer food tours in Wisconsin’s Milwaukee, Door County, Wisconsin Dells, Wausau and more
Duration: 5 Days
Available: Year-round
Ideal For: All ages
Best things to eat in Wisconsin:
- Milwaukee fish fry
- Cheese and cheese curds
- Handcrafted beer
- Door County dried cherries
- Door County fruit wines
- Amish baked goods
- Wisconsin-grown cranberries
Day 1: Sturtevant and Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Start your visit to the Eastern Shores of Wisconsin’s Culinary Trail with a visit to Apple Holler in Sturtevant to enjoy delicious down-home cooking and farm-to-table goodness where Ag-venture appeals to the kid in all of us. Farm tours include the Apple Pickin’ Tour, Holler Bingo Bonanza, Orchard Farm Tour and Peaches and Cream Farm Tour. Head to Milwaukee and book a tour with Milwaukee Food & City Tours to discover the city’s most delicious neighborhoods, hidden secrets and exclusive tastings. Choose from the Pizza Bus, Tacos & Tequila, BBQ Bourbon & Beer, Progressive Ethnic Meal, Cedarburg Sweets & Treats, Milwaukee’s Fish Fry and many more. They are fully customizable with a side of history. After all that sweetness head to the West Allis Cheese & Sausage Shop to learn how to pair the apples with cheese; find out what makes a perfect grilled cheese and how to create the perfect Wisconsin cheese basket. Take time for lunch so you can build your own fantastic sandwich and Bloody Mary (a Wisconsin favorite). Now it’s time for another legendary Wisconsin tradition – beer! Lakefront Brewery offers an array of beers from organic to gluten-free to root beer. Your tour covers the 25-year history of the brewery, a souvenir pint glass, the crowning of a queen and a classic sing-along.
Day 2: Things to eat in Wisconsin’s Kiel and Door County
Country Ovens
Take a ride through the rural countryside of Wisconsin to Henning’s Cheese in Kiel, where some things get better with age. Watch the famous squeaky cheese curds being made and then taste them fresh. Be sure to take some home with you. Then head up to the Door Peninsula. First stop is Country Ovens – the makers of the original Door County dried cherry. A local favorite is the dark chocolate-covered Cherry De-Lite. With over five different wines to be tasted at one of two tasting bars, all your senses will be engaged as you learn about the rich and flavorful history of the Door Peninsula Winery. You’ll find wine accessories, gift sets and products made with wine from ciders to jellies to mustard and fudge.
Tonight enjoy several entertainment options including a show at America’s oldest resident summer theater nestled in a fragrant cedar forest overlooking the waters of Green Bay, the Peninsula Players Theatre in a Garden. Enhance your groups expeirience with with pre or post show discussions. Or be inspired by promising young musicians who are immersed in a professional and mentoring environment at the Birch Creek Music Performance Center.
Day 3: Central Wisconsin and Wausau
Now head to Central Wisconsin, which incorporates four cities with itineraries that will tantalize your taste buds from Spud, Berry & Dairy Tours to Farm Tours to Brewery, Wine & Distillery Tours. Make a roadside stop to pick up some homemade Amish baked goods. Wausau is home to three craft breweries featuring German pilsner, vanilla or citrus-infused ales. Local chefs incorporate many regional ingredients in farm-to-table meals. Experience the spice-of-life variety this destination offers in the heart of Wisconsin.
Day 4: Warrens and Tomah
Wisconsin Cranberry Discovery Center
Smell, touch and taste Wisconsin’s top fruit crop at the Wisconsin Cranberry Discovery Center in Warrens for a fascinating day of learning adventures at the museum that features all things cranberry. Leave time for a stop at the Ice Cream Parlor with a 1930s marble soda fountain counter where the featured flavor is (guess what?) cranberry. Take a self-guided tour of the marshes from Tomah to Warrens where this tart fruit is harvested. Make time for a stop at the award-winning barbecue restaurant.
Day 5: More things to eat in Wisconsin Dells, Middleton and Monroe
Paul Bunyan’s Cook Shanty & Dells Lumberjack Show
Head over to the Wisconsin Heartland for a special treat at Paul Bunyan’s Cook Shanty & Dells Lumberjack Show. A unique combination of restaurant (all-you-can-eat homemade donuts, pancakes and sausage), gift shop and bakery, Paul Bunyan’s is a well-known Midwestern favorite. Enjoy log rolling, speed climbing, action-packed comedy and competition at the lumberjack show.
The Dells are also home to the Palace Theater, which stages Broadway and Disney classics in a state-of-the-art theater that offers dinner and a show packages for groups.
Middleton, known as “The Good Neighbor City,” is home to a world-famous brewery. Tour a museum where all things are dedicated to mustard. This Madison suburb boasts group-friendly lodging and restaurants. Try cheese fondue and other cheeses imported from Switzerland at Alp & Dell Cheese in Monroe. Take a Cheese Tour, where you can watch Roth cheese being produced first-hand, sample specialty cheeses and listen to the yodelers. They even carry the stinky limburger cheese.
Contact Dairy State Tours to plan your next trip to Wisconsin. This receptive tour operator offers packaged agricultural tours, Frank Lloyd Wright experiences and customized itineraries of Wisconsin attractions, hotels and restaurants.
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