The Cap Times • 22nd January 2023

Madison artist John Hitchcock honors Native roots in prints and neon

Installation artist, musician and printmaker John Hitchcock spoke with the Cap Times about his artistic roots, narrative resilience and what Native heritage means to him.

The Cap Times • 18th January 2023

This Dry January, nonalcoholic cocktails level up in Madison

15% of adults in the U.S. planned to sober up for Dry January 2023, a trend mostly driven by millennials. Madison is seeing new creativity in zero-proof cocktails at spots like Cordial, Blind Shot Social Club and State Line Distillery.

The Cap Times • 22nd December 2022

Salud! Awildan Distillery in Sun Prairie makes new, traditional spirits

Jeff Olson’s Awildan Distilling has released two spirits so far this year — genever, a botanical spirit similar to gin, and a spiced rum made from blackstrap molasses — in conjunction with small-batch Karben4 beers made with similar flavor profiles.

The Cap Times • 9th December 2022

Vitruvian Farms wants to reinvent the grocery store with new project

Vitruvian Farms near McFarland, south of Madison, is about to break ground on a 5,200-square-foot building that will include a farm store and event space.

The Cap Times • 23rd November 2022

It's popular. Is it art? 'Immersive Van Gogh' comes to Madison

For the past two years, immersive art — lately, shorthand for large-scale, digital exhibitions — has spread across the country. On Thanksgiving, Middleton gets its own bit of van Gogh writ large when the Canadian company Lighthouse Immersive opens “Immersive Van Gogh” at a former DSW shoe store.

The Cap Times • 10th November 2022

Cocktail hour gets an upgrade in Andre Darlington's 'Bar Menu'

Darlington’s latest book, “Bar Menu,” is his sixth, and it's a cookbook. Alongside recipes for classic and contemporary cocktails, there’s a semolina cake with boozy syrup, cocktail ramen eggs, Vietnamese chicken wings and potted shrimp.

The Cap Times • 6th November 2022

Q&A: At American Wine Project, Erin Rasmussen rethinks Wisconsin wine

To make this year’s 30 cases of Wisco Nouveau, Rasmussen harvested grapes from an odd, sandy little vineyard east of the Wisconsin Dells. There she found many of the kinds of grapes she often works with, hardy hybrids like Marquette, Frontenac, St. Croix and St. Pepin.

The Cap Times • 5th November 2022

Madison Opera stages Strauss' haunting ‘Salome’

Salome’s been dressing for revenge. Armed with seven veils and a look that could snap a soldier into action, the central character in Richard Strauss’ opera has a knack for spotting weakness.

The Cap Times • 31st October 2022

APT's Irish comedy 'Stones in His Pockets' is extra entertaining

There’s nothing nondescript about this highly entertaining two-hander, running in the Touchstone Theatre in Spring Green through Nov. 20.

The Cap Times • 26th October 2022

Cheesy, cynical 'Pretty Woman' musical never heats up

With a repetitive, schlocky score and a script that did not age well, the musical of “Pretty Woman” limps through nearly two and a half hours to a conclusion no one is waiting for.

The Cap Times • 8th June 2022

Harassment on State: Botanist Social staff describe a disturbing pattern

Seven former employees of the seven-month-old Botanist Social on State Street describe an ongoing, unchecked pattern of harassment at the downtown nightspot. “The Botanist is like a pretty little Venus flytrap,” Erika Pedersen said. “This industry is permeated with men who have money and means to do whatever they want, until women like us say something.”

The Cap Times • 11th May 2022

How Madison delivers: The rise of the ghost kitchen

For years, one of the best places to open a new restaurant was next to another restaurant. Then a global pandemic tossed everyone into the fryer, flipped some hot trends and threw others in the trash. Now, the best location for a new restaurant might be no location at all.

The Cap Times • 10th April 2022

The Ready Set is ready for date night and play dates in Oregon

Nobody wants to think too hard about Brussels sprouts and bacon, or steamed mussels with fennel and pepperoni, or pastry chef Jean Torija’s beautiful, quad-stacked, cream cheese-frosted red velvet cake. We can just eat them and be happy.

The Cap Times • 30th March 2022

Wisconsin invests in small-scale butchers as demand for local meat rises

Small-scale Wisconsin farmers and the communities they serve need people with butchery skills, particularly in rural areas. A recent infusion of federal and state money directed to meat processors and butchers aims to address a persistent gap between farm and table.

Feast and Field • 7th March 2022

Are women the future of farming? The Female Farmer Project thinks so

Audra Mulkern is a Washington-based documentary photographer, podcaster and researcher who founded the Female Farmer Project, a multi-platform documentary project that chronicles the rise of women working in agriculture around the world.

Feast and Field • 13th January 2022

Joy in a jar: Big Spoon Roasters’ nut butters celebrate a sustainable mission

Big Spoon Roasters president Mark Overbay has a list of 40 nut butter ideas he’s working on at any given time. These go beyond the Durham, North Carolina company’s rich lineup of nut butters, which already includes almond butter blended with chai spices, espresso, Fiji ginger and toasted coconut. What about pistachios? Figs? Pineapple and lime? That’s where the R&D club comes in.

The Cap Times • 15th December 2021

‘Madison Chefs’ tells stories of culinary change in Wisconsin's capital

“Madison Chefs: Stories of Food, Farms, and People” highlights nine local chefs who re-imagined what Wisconsin food could be, from New Jersey-influenced farm-focused pizza to Wisconsin-style bibimbap.

The Cap Times • 7th December 2021

Casetta Kitchen pop-up Lady Bird goes live on Saturday nights

Seanna Whalen and chef Nick Larke operate Lady Bird Dinner Parties, a pop-up operating out of Casetta Kitchen and Counter Saturday nights since mid-October. Lady Bird serves one five-course menu for one price ($50) to about two dozen guests.

The Cap Times • 3rd December 2021

New Farwell Gallery showcases 40 artists in McFarland

Farwell Gallery features work by some 40 artists in a variety of media, including glass-on-glass mosaic pieces by owner Kristin Ellis. She lives close enough to the gallery to walk there.

The Cap Times • 24th November 2021

Meet five Latinx artists changing the face of Madison

CultivARTE is one of several initiatives working to increase recognition, representation and funds for artists who live in Dane County and identify, broadly, as Latinx.