Lori Fredrich
Lori Fredrich is a senior food and dining writer at OnMilwaukee whose coverage turns the city’s restaurant beat into a guided tour of where and how to eat. She combines service-driven recommendations with deep familiarity with the local culinary scene, positioning herself less as a critic and more as a dining concierge for readers. Her work focuses on connecting people to restaurants, dishes and culinary experiences through clear, practical guidance and storytelling about the industry behind them.
Dining concierge for the local restaurant scene
At OnMilwaukee, Fredrich anchors extensive series that map out the city’s dining landscape in concrete, usable ways. Her “Must Try Milwaukee” coverage spans 20 distinct categories, from brunch to BBQ, laying out curated lists of spots that define each slice of the scene.
Within that framework, she produces targeted guides to specific segments such as coffee shops, sandwiches, food trucks, soul food, Thai and Lao fare, Levantine and Middle Eastern restaurants, and regional Chinese options. Each guide is built around named venues and practical recommendations, giving readers an at-a-glance way to navigate choices while spotlighting variety across price points and neighborhoods. Throughout these pieces, she is described as a passionate champion of the local dining scene who has reimagined the restaurant critic’s role into that of a trusted dining concierge.
That framing accurately reflects the tone of her work, which emphasizes discovery, hospitality and the people behind the food rather than scored reviews or detached critique.
Burger Trail and focused feature series
Beyond broad guides, Fredrich runs focused series that drill into single themes or dishes, most notably “On the Burger Trail.” In that work she assembles and updates lists such as her current top ten favorite burgers, drawing on repeated visits and comparisons to distill a cluttered category into a manageable set of standouts. The Burger Trail pieces move beyond simple listings to describe style, composition and context, helping readers understand not just where to go but what differentiates each burger experience. She applies a similar approach to other features like her roundup of more than 20 rooftop patios to explore, where atmosphere and occasion are as central as food and drink. These focused series reinforce her role as a guide who translates an overwhelming number of options into themed, well-organized paths through the city’s dining and drinking spots.
Restaurant news and industry coverage
Fredrich also handles day-to-day restaurant news, including openings, closings and shifts in the local hospitality landscape. Her reporting on the closure of a long-running downtown restaurant after nearly 12 years illustrates how she documents key inflection points for well-known establishments, noting timelines and the impact on regulars and the wider dining scene.
In these news pieces she situates individual moves within broader trends, reflecting an understanding of how chefs, owners and staff navigate a changing industry.
Her work often foregrounds chefs, bartenders and other passionate industry figures, aligning with descriptions of her as a champion of the people whose stories entwine with every dish. That human focus means her coverage of restaurant developments tends to highlight the labor, creativity and risk behind each concept as much as the menus themselves.
Books, recipes and food media beyond the masthead
Fredrich’s authority on food extends well beyond her regular coverage at OnMilwaukee.
She is the author of two books on the regional food scene and farm-to-fork cooking, including “Field to Fork: Farm Fresh Recipes from the Dairy State” and “Milwaukee Food: A History of Cream City Cuisine.” The latter traces the rise of the city’s culinary landscape from agricultural and industrial roots to its current status as a destination for dining, weaving history, chef profiles and restaurant stories into a single narrative.
She develops recipes for industry organizations such as Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and the American Butter Institute, translating local ingredients and traditions into home-cookable dishes. Her recipes and writing have appeared in outlets including Cheese Connoisseur, Cooking Light, Edible Milwaukee, Milwaukee Magazine and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, extending her reach into both enthusiast and general-audience food media. Fredrich also co-hosts FoodCrush, a podcast “for people who eat,” which gives her a platform for long-form conversations with culinary professionals and deeper dives into trends, challenges and innovations in hospitality.
Her work has earned journalism recognition from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club and a “Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch” honor from the Wisconsin Restaurant Association, underscoring her standing within the industry she covers. Taken together, these books, recipes and media appearances reinforce that her coverage at OnMilwaukee rests on sustained engagement with the region’s food culture and the people shaping it, rather than on occasional restaurant visits alone.
4 more food journalists.
Aaron Guerrero
Aaron Guerrero is head of the digital department at Miami’s Community Newspapers, where he pairs restaurant coverage with community-facing content. He focuses on how Miami-area restaurants evolve, celebrate, and experiment through new concepts, menus, and neighborhood-focused dining experiences. He reports on restaurant openings, such as an Italian food hall at Plaza Coral Gables, new executive lunch menus, and wood-fired Latin steakhouse brunches, explaining what sets each venue apart. He also covers awards, like a Wine Spectator honor for an Italian chophouse, and events that turn dining rooms into social hubs. His bylines extend to features on sports-themed gatherings, civic renamings, local visits to restaurant programs, sponsored community pieces, and official notices. His work is straightforward and descriptive, helping readers and local businesses connect around specific openings, promotions, and dining experiences.
Aarron Fleming
Aarron Fleming reports on how courts, jails and public safety systems work over time. He is a reporter at The Daily Memphian covering public safety, the local court system, suburban news and business developments in North Mississippi. His work follows trials, sentencing, appeals, plea deals and judicial decisions, including major cases tied to Tyre Nichols and rapper Young Dolph. He also covers jail conditions, inmate deaths, crime data, prosecution units, trafficking, shootings and public-order incidents. His suburban reporting examines cannabis businesses, restaurant openings and how commercial growth affects communities such as Olive Branch. Fleming previously covered education in the same newsroom. He uses clear, unadorned prose to explain legal steps, deadlines, institutional problems and the political, commercial and community effects of public-safety decisions.
Alana Al-Hatlani
Alana Al-Hatlani is a food writer and editor who treats recipes, restaurants, and food features as ways to explore culture, community, and the business of eating. She works on the food team at Southern Living, overseeing and contributing to print recipes and reported features. Her pastry-focused, restaurant-tested perspective comes from time in restaurant and bakery kitchens. She helps plan and write monthly food packages, including “The South’s Most Treasured Desserts,” and wrote “8 Summer Recipes Our Editors Make Every Year.” She also writes recipe tips, ingredient explainers, restaurant guides, and reported stories about workers, owners, and communities. Her subjects include regional specialties, dining scenes, kitchen basics, and food industries. Her work has appeared with OpenTable and Yahoo. She reports on the ground, explains techniques clearly, and connects specific dishes and places to larger stories about food and livelihood.
Alana Edgin
Alana Edgin is a business reporter whose strongest focus is food, restaurants and consumer-facing businesses. She works at the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and has also had work syndicated across AOL and Yahoo News. She covers new openings, closings, expansions and franchise growth, along with retail, health, services, corporate news, data incidents, business support programs and sponsorships. Her reporting includes detailed roundups of new restaurants and businesses, coverage of El Pollo Loco’s opening, and stories on burger trucks, dessert shops, Vietnamese sandwich restaurants and gourmet markets. She also contributes to food and drink reviews, including fall coffee and jerky comparisons. Edgin reports with practical “what, when, where” details, structured comparisons and clear explanations of how offers, partnerships and business changes affect consumers and the local economy.