CASSIS Named Eater's Best New Restaurant of the Year

The Milwaukee restaurant is the only Milwaukee spot recognized at the 2026 Eater Awards, out of 15 honorees nationwide.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Dining Out

Screen-print poster illustration of a cream plate with a golden eclair beside a glowing arched doorway, in mustard, teal, and rust, evoking a warm local dining room. — CASSIS, a Third Ward restaurant opened by chef Kyle Knall and Meghan Knall, was named one of Eater's 15 Best New Restaurants of the Year. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Eater named CASSIS, a Third Ward restaurant at 333 S. Water St., one of its 15 Best New Restaurants of the Year. CASSIS is the only Milwaukee restaurant recognized at the 2026 Eater Awards.

Why it matters

The recognition puts a Milwaukee restaurant on a national list alongside honorees in Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco. For Milwaukee diners, it highlights a newly opened local option drawing outside attention to the city's dining scene.

The 2026 Eater Awards identified winners across 20 locations after editors scouted 44 cities nationwide. CASSIS, which opened in January at 333 S. Water St., is the only Milwaukee restaurant among the honorees.

The players

Eater

Eater is a food and restaurant news publication that compiles annual lists of notable new restaurants across U.S. cities.

Kyle Knall

Kyle Knall is a Milwaukee chef who co-owns CASSIS and Birch.

Birch

Birch is a Milwaukee restaurant at 459 E. Pleasant St. owned by chef Kyle Knall and Meghan Knall.

The details

CASSIS was opened by chef Kyle Knall and Meghan Knall, who also own Birch at 459 E. Pleasant St. The restaurant's design draws on turn-of-the-century European subway stations with a touch of Parisian bistro flair, and Bon Appétit named its foie gras eclairs one of its best restaurant dishes.

January 2026: CASSIS opens in the Third Ward on the Milwaukee River.
July 2026: CASSIS appears on Condé Nast Traveler's guide to where to eat in Wisconsin.
November 2026: Eater names CASSIS one of its 15 Best New Restaurants of the Year.

Culture Shift

CASSIS's inclusion among Eater's 2026 Best New Restaurants, drawn from scouting in 44 cities, places a Third Ward dining room alongside honorees in Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco. The recognition reflects how national food media now evaluates neighborhood restaurants in mid-sized cities against the same criteria applied to coastal hubs.

Milwaukee diners now have a newly opened Third Ward restaurant to try, with its foie gras eclairs singled out by Bon Appétit. The restaurant's recognition on a national list may affect reservation demand at CASSIS.

The takeaway

Readers planning a Milwaukee dining visit can add CASSIS, a newly opened Third Ward restaurant, to their list while also checking Eater's national honorees for other places to try.