If you want great food, get to the Inn in between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. otherwise you’ll be enjoying a nice yogurt lunch with all of the other people not “in the know” downstairs.

What I am about to do is unleash a big campus secret, that not even I knew about until a mere few weeks ago. There’s a little place on the third floor of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Union called the Kenwood Inn.

When the elevator doors open you will most likely be greeted with silence, as there is sort of a student lounge that, strikingly, had no students in it both times I visited the Inn.

Walk down the hallway and you will see a large menu. It instantly put a smile on my face.

Grilled Eggplant Sandwich, Crab Cake Sandwich and a Croque Monsieur are just some of the wow factors this place incorporates. They also have an entrée sized Grilled Salmon Salad and a Pear and Bleu Cheese Salad.

How amazing is this? I felt like I have been transported to a cute French Bistro yet, it was on the top floor of the Union.

I must say, I also felt a bit cheated. Almost four years at this institution and I am just finding out about this now? I pity my soy yogurt lunches and revel in the fact that yes, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Union does have edible, and, might I add, a bit sophisticated, food choices.

So, this is what I had the extreme pleasure of eating. First, I ordered the Pear and Bleu Cheese Salad ($5.74) with raspberry vinaigrette. Presentation was fabulous but I noticed immediately (and how could you not) that the pears had come from a metal can. I haven’t eaten pears like that since fourth grade but they were drizzled with the vinaigrette and so I decided not to turn up my nose.

For fewer than $6, the Inn sure does pile on the bleu cheese and in my opinion a little too much. The cheese is so tangy and sharp that it should be used as a slight flavor bonus.

This is why raw pears would have been delightful in this dish. I’m not talking about when you leave it on the counter for a few days and it gets nice and sweet and creamy. I mean when you get it home from the store and it is still hard; that would have been the perfect texture for this salad, giving it a sweet crunch that the walnuts (did I mention there are walnuts in this salad?) cannot supply on their own.

I was really excited to see pastrami on rye ($6.99) and was hoping it would be as good as any deli in Manhattan would serve up. In New York you usually get some sort of Idaho potato, whether it is a French fry or chip, with your sandwich.

At the Inn, however, patrons receive crispy sweet potato chips. For a little food shop in the Union, that is what I consider gourmet.

Back to the pastrami; it was OK. I asked for Dijon mustard with mine and when I opened up my bread to prove they added it, there was none.

I think no pastrami is complete without horseradish sauce and some Dijon. They did give me the horseradish, so I was not about to get difficult with the staff.

Speaking of the staff, they were on their A- game that afternoon. I noticed a woman, who was clearing tables, put out clean placemats and rolled silverware on every table. I never would have thought in my wildest dreams that there would be placemats and rolled silverware anywhere on campus, let alone the Union.

Also, this restaurant has one of the best views in the city. Polaris has nothing on the Inn’s view of downtown. Actually, Polaris has nothing on The Kenwood Inn’s food either.

The only downfall (and this definitely contributes to the final grade) they are only open three hours a day Monday through Friday. If you want great food, get to the Inn in between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. otherwise you’ll be enjoying a nice yogurt lunch with all of the other people not “in the know” downstairs.

A-

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