New chef at Harley-Davidson's Motor wants to 'lean into' using the restaurant's smokers
Doug Stringer is the new executive chef at Motor Bar and Restaurant and 1903 Events at the 20-acre Harley-Davidson Museum campus.
From his early days as a short-order cook to culinary school in Chicago, Stringer has built a career with solid skills and a passion for cooking from scratch. That's taken him from kitchens in Lake Geneva to the American Club in Kohler, even a stint owning his own restaurant. It all started when he was a kid serving up scrambled eggs while playing restaurant.
In his new role with Levy Restaurants he’s diving into the world of smoking, looking to grow his repertoire and get the best out of two large smokers in the Motor kitchen. He’s also enjoying every moment on the expansive Harley-Davidson Museum campus, where he’s become a fan of the patio and outdoor spaces and brought in pig roasts. He cooks for everything from Motor's brunch and lunch crowds to large-scale events including the 120th anniversary bash this summer. Look for his updated menus this fall.
Stringer and his wife, Deanna, have two adult children and live in Port Washington. He recently shared his background and what he’s planning for Motor.
Motor Bar & Restaurant (motorrestaurant.com), 400 W. Canal St., is open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday to Saturday.
A childhood dream becomes reality
I’ve always loved cooking. I cooked as a kid. I’d make a pretend restaurant and I’d feed people. Scrambled eggs were my preferred menu item. ...
Eventually I started doing short-order cooking at a bar in Lake Geneva. ... It was very simple food — burgers, fries, sandwiches — but I was pretty good at it. That’s where I learned the pace of the kitchen. That’s one of the most important skills to harness.
Then I worked at Hogs and Kisses in Lake Geneva under Linda Chironis. I saw the finesse and care that could go into food, and all the steps you could take ahead of time to make the food just that much better. Cooking in-house and making your own vinaigrettes and sauces, that makes your food that much better.
Then I went to culinary school at the Art Institute in Chicago. ... That was the only one offering a bachelor’s program. I wanted that experience. At the time, Milwaukee’s food scene was fledgling. Chicago was very established. I still lived in Lake Geneva and commuted to Chicago for class several times a week.
Why culinary school was worth it
The biggest thing was really refining your processes and making sure everything is repeatable, an in-depth angle instead of making things taste good day after day. It has to be repeatable. That is one of the things I took away. Then working in a group of people you are unfamiliar with opened me to being more communicative and open to other ideas, styles of people who cook, act and live differently. It expanded my horizons.
Cookbooks are a cornerstone of his kitchen
I’m always looking at cookbooks. Right now it is more technical cookbooks about smoking techniques, expanding my horizons on the barbecue industry. We have two gigantic smokers in this kitchen, and it is a really interesting thing for me to explore. I love learning new things about food. I still look at the more high-end cookbooks to get ideas for inspiration, otherwise we’re not growing and creating, and the food will become stagnant.
The French Laundry Cookbook (Hachette, 1999) was hugely influential for me, that and the Noma cookbook. Now I have “The Noma Guide to Fermenation” (Artisan, 2018). I’m slowly working my way through that.
Bring on the bacon
I would like to start making our own bacon here. That’s something I’ve been crafting for a number of years (at home). I think there are a lot of great bacons on the market, but I like my bacon better. That may take a little while to implement those changes. It is high on my list of priorities, as I think the flavor speaks for itself when you make it in-house.
I don’t think that’s something a lot of people think about as an option, but a lot of people don’t have two gigantic smokers in their kitchen. I want to lean into that smoking element of things here. We have some nice in-house smoked products, but I think we can lean on that to separate us from others in the area. It also resonates with the Harley-Davidson brand.
Fridays mean fish fry and homemade coleslaw
We do still offer a brunch, and some daily specials like Bites and Brews on Wednesdays — those are fun, small plate options to try a couple things. Our Taco Tuesday is a lot of fun. Then we do a fish fry on Fridays that is phenomenal, a beer battered cod. It is Wisconsin, so you have to do a fish fry!
We make most of our sauces in-house, and we do make the tartar sauce in-house. We make our coleslaw from scratch. We’re very motivated to do anything in-house that we can; you have control over the ingredients. You never know when someone may have an allergy.
His go-to perfect pairing
I’m a non-denominational beverage pairer. Everything has its perfect love. I do love the idea of pairing a little bit of a really nice fish fry and a rye beer. They go well together. The same can be said for a rye whiskey. Think of a traditional fish fry where you get rye toast. Why not mirror that?
Motor isn’t just for bikers
We have this beautiful space and amazing campus, one of the most amazing outdoor patios in Milwaukee. Everyone should know about that.
We also have amazing scratch-made items, and we’re going to continue increasing that and rolling out a new menu change later this fall. We smoke our brisket for 14 hours, our pork shoulder for 10 hours. It is all meant to harness the best flavor. We want to do some beer and spirit dinners. There are so many exciting things in the works, and we’re doing them in-house and from-scratch.
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Price points that won’t break the bank
We’re definitely shooting to have everything at the $20 or below mark. We don’t want to by any means break anyone’s bank when they come out for lunch or dinner. We keep that forefront — how do we make something truly delicious, next-level cooking, without making it unbearable to pay for?
As much as I loved doing fine dining, it is very exclusive, not inviting for everyone. There is not a sense of inclusivity. What I would like to do is make amazing food everybody can enjoy and everybody can afford.
What he wants to be known for
I really just want to be known for making delicious food that is not pretentious and has an accessible feel. I don’t want people to think that really good food is only something that has to be expensive. You can make good food without having to use foie gras, Wagyu beef and other really high-end ingredients. They're all delicious, but they’re not the only way to make really delicious food. ... I think there is something to be said for being able to harness the good of more humble ingredients.
His favorite kitchen tool
My black steel pan is my most favorite thing. It is a hybrid of cast iron and stainless steel. You get the best of both worlds.
Where he eats when he’s not cooking
It depends on the day and the mood, but we love to go try different things and places. One we keep going back to is Momo Mee. He makes the best soup dumplings. We end up there more times than we probably should. For a special occasion, Sanford is always one of of our favorites. Otherwise Points East (Pub) is a favorite just for wings.
Fork. Spoon. Life. explores the everyday relationship that local notables (within the food community and without) have with food. To suggest future personalities to profile, email clewis@journalsentinel.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: New Motor chef wants to 'lean into' smoking meats
