The Sweet & Salty Pig in Fond du Lac undergoes interior, exterior facelift

Rich Palzewic

Staff

November 3, 2025

FOND DU LAC – When business partners and co-owners Allison Gossman and Janis Michaels opened The Sweet and Salty Pig more than seven years ago, they said they knew the restaurant’s building would eventually require upgrades.

At the time, Gossman said, they were only renting the space at 99 W. Pioneer Road.

“We rented for the first three years and then had the option to purchase [the building],” she said. “We knew all along we wanted to purchase, but we wanted to see how the location fit and see how everything worked before we decided to buy. That was in 2021.”

It was around that time, Gossman said, when she and Michaels began budgeting for future renovations.

“We knew we could only do so much financially every year with upgrades,” she said. “First, it was the furnace and air conditioning unit on the roof for both the kitchen and dining room. Then it was a new roof and then the old retaining wall between us and a residential neighbor. The wall was starting to crumble, and it was getting scary. Every winter, I was worried it was going to topple over when they plowed snow.”

In the years since purchasing the building, Gossman said they have gradually made improvements – from HVAC updates to a new roof and retaining wall.

However, the co-owners said the property still required attention, which led to the establishment’s most recent upgrades: a new parking lot and interior refresh.

“We were closed from Sept. 29 through Oct. 7 so the outside and inside work could be completed,” she said. “We thought it was best to close for [nine days] to get the parking lot repaved and do everything inside all at once.”

Gossman said the interior updates included covering the ceiling, which had previously featured an open-concept design with exposed wood beams and ductwork.

“The duct work was peeling and was very unsightly,” she said. “Our rafters were all black and dusty, no matter how much we dusted. It was hard to dust on our own because the cloth would stick to the beams.”

Given those challenges, Gossman said they ultimately hired a company to handle the ceiling work.

“They’d come in with an air compressor and Shop-Vac,” she said. “We also painted the ceiling a light gray, and that really brightened the place up. Obviously, we’ll still dust, but it will be easier and [the dust will be] much less noticeable now.”

Gossman said other interior work included repainting the walls and bathrooms.

“We also had a local company come in and wrap all of our table tops in a vinyl laminate,” she said. “That way, we didn’t have to get new tables. We replaced some of the bases and reupholstered all the booths and the chair seats. We were able to use a lot of what we had but just freshened everything up.”

Despite the earlier renovations and the most recent updates, Gossman said their work isn’t finished just yet.

“I’d say we’re close,” she laughed. “Our last little step is getting some new awnings outside. We’ve been slowly transitioning some awnings to a dark gray. When they did our roof a few years ago, they redid the gutters to a dark gray. [The new awnings] should hopefully be about it [for upgrades].”

Once those are completed, Gossman said they will be able to focus on other things.

“We do a fair amount of catering, but we’re looking to expand that even more next year,” she said. “We recently purchased a food truck, so that is on the horizon as well.”

Gossman said they purchased the food truck from a man in Sheboygan.

“It was called ‘Pork in the Road,’” she laughed. “We haven’t come up with a permanent name yet, but it’s a great little food truck. Maybe we’ll call it ‘The Sweet and Salty Piglet,’ or something like that. We’re very excited for the possibilities that will bring.”

From concept to reality

Gossman, a Fond du Lac native with years of experience in the industry, said when she and Michaels decided to open a restaurant, they envisioned one specializing in unique comfort food and sweet treats.

“Janis and I had worked together at a different restaurant in town for about 13 years,” she said. “When we opened The Sweet and Salty Pig, we tried to encompass everything. We focus on brunch with twists on comfort food. We also knew we wanted a bakery piece [to the restaurant]. Everything eventually fell into place.”

Gossman said they also share a passion for bacon and pork products.

“We always joke that [Michaels] is the sweet one and I’m the salty one,” she laughed. “Since opening in February 2018, we started with a pretty small menu, basic brunch items and sandwiches. Over the years, we’ve added in more dinners and recently expanded our brunch menu quite a bit – we do a lot of Eggs Benedict.”

Another popular food option on the menu, Gossman said, is the restaurant’s chicken waffles.

“Fond du Lac has some nice places but maybe not a lot of brunch spots,” she said. “With opening The Sweet and Salty Pig, we wanted to spice things up for Fond du Lac a bit.”

Hours for The Sweet and Salty Pig are from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.