Pastiche Bistro to open at KK & Rusk

Michael Engel started in the restaurant business as a dishwasher. That was some 30 years go. In early 2010, he plans to open Pastiche Bistro & Wine Bar at 3001 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.

The 47-year-old chef boasts wide-ranging culinary experience-from Hotel Metro and Bartolotta Catering Company to Quad/Graphics and numerous Lang restaurants in Delafield-and is bringing his passion for fine dining to an 1,800-square-foot vacant Bay View storefront on the corner of KK & Rusk.

“I was getting farther and farther away from cooking, which was why I became a chef,” Engel said. Opening up his own neighborhood restaurant is the realization of a lifelong dream.

According to Pastiche’s website, the menu will vary seasonally, inspired by Mediterranean dishes. Engel said the menu will include fish and seafood. One selection he was excited to describe was a sautéed duck dish, garnished with fresh orange slices. He will offer traditional bistro fare including steak frites and osso buco and praised the incredible flavor of the Heritage Berkshire pork he gets from a Missouri farm. Engel will also make his own desserts.

“Whenever possible, we’ll use locally sourced, locally produced ingredients to support Wisconsin farmers and artisans, focusing on quality and a passion for authenticity,” Engel wrote on the website.

He’ll be joined in the kitchen by sons Andrew, Nick, and Bobby Engel, 21, 19, and 15 respectively. Engel plans to employ an additional nine or 10 staff. At press time, he had not yet obtained the licenses necessary to open. Engel plans to be open for dinner every evening except Sunday, serving lunch for special parties of up to 30.

Engel currently lives in Wauwatosa, but he hopes to sell his house and move to Bay View to be closer to the restaurant. In the process of investigating the area, he discovered that his father actually grew up in Bay View, and his father’s uncle owned a butcher shop almost next door on KK. So opening Pastiche will be a sort of homecoming.

“Truly in my heart I want to have a neighborhood restaurant and that’s the way I’ve been approaching it.”

pastichebistro.com