Speak up!
Kobe Club: Iced hamachi with jalapeno, pineapple and scallion is one of six Miami Spice appetizers. Photo: Peter Andrew Bosch
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I celebrated a friend's birthday at Wish on a Sunday night. The service of the staff was excellent from the first person we met. It was raining that night. The host took our umbrella...offered us a towel. The room temperature was a little chilly. I heard a woman across the room jokingly ask if her "chilled corn soup could be warmed." The appetizers were excellent: Melon carpaccio & chilled corn soup. The little fish appetizer, compliments of the chez, were excellent. However, the main dishes were average: Maine lobster ravioli & roasted chicken breast. The desserts were excellent: plum crisp & chocolate cake. The staff was attentive. Always there filling your water glasses. I made the reservations online -- Open Table. I mentioned I was celebrating a friend's birthday. The waiter brought out dessert with a candle and happy birthday written in chocolate on the plate. A little gesture that made my friend's night. When the waiter brought the check he said gratuity was added. The bill came with fruit tart cookies. We had a lovely evening but probably would not go back. ... Read more
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For the past couple years I have attended a variety of excellent restaurants during the Miami Spice Months. I cannot list ANY of the participating restaurants in which I have had a bad experience. This event is a MUST for anyone who enjoys a night out with good food and drinks! Not to mention that the atmosphere of the restaurants are as exciting as the presentations of your meal.
It is completely worth it!!
Bon Appetit!... Read more
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My recent visit to Inka, a Peruian resturant was incredible. The service was special. My friend and I felt like the honored guests at a banquet.The food was exceptional!!!
It was better than mines and my mothers.I hope my mother does not read this! I loved the the experience. It will be one of my most memorable experiences. Thank you and the restuarant chefs for having the Miamispice menus and the oppuntunity for everyone to enjoy them. ... Read more
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On a recent lazy Thursday evening, two friends and I ventured out to Emeril's Miami Beach to try out their Miami Spice menu.
Overall, the experience was a fine one.
First and foremost, I have to mention that the service was VERY attentive and professional, never leaving our water glasses empty and even stopping in regularly to make sure our party was satisfied. If for nothing else, I would absolutely return to Emeril's based on the level of service alone.
We all decided to start with the Duck Hash after mulling over the 3 appetizer options. The general sentiment was although it had good flavor, the hash as a whole was a bit greasy. I believe it to be the combination of the duck (an already oily meat) and the Sunny Side Up egg. Nevertheless, a tasty mixture of flavors and textures.
I chose the Grilled Top Sirloin of Beef. A bit tough to chew but it had a very fresh, hearty taste. I enjoyed the dish nonetheless. The Mushroom Duxelle added wonderful flavor and texture while the Puff Pastry could have benefitted from a little more "puff". :-) Maybe it deflated during the trip from the kitchen to our table...
The dessert, I must say, was a little disappointing. 2 of our 3 ordered the Chocolate Molten Lava Cake - myself being 1 of the 2. Anything listed as "molten" should be at least warm is my thinking. Ours actually arrived at the temperature of recently taken out of the fridge. Suffice it to say, most of that dish was left on the plate. Our 3rd diner decided on the Summer Berry Bread Pudding which I tasted and envied her that I did not make that selection myself.
Like I said, overall the experience was enjoyable and piqued my interest as to what the regular menu at Emeril's must be like. I wouldn't mind returning, either for the Miami Spice menu or a regular meal at the restaurant.... Read more
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North 110: We went to dinner at the restaurant, not because of Miami Spice,but because of hearing and reading good things. Our experience started off badly and improved slightly...then the bottom fell out!
I ordered a Grand Margarita, and was advised the restaurant did not have Grand Marnier. What supposedly high end restaurant does not stock this liquer?
The appetizers were excellent -- the lettuce wedge was served crisp and cold with an excellent dressing and the gorgonzola risotto fritters were delightful. The pork shoulder entree was very good, but the skirt steak entree (ordered rare) was overcooked so badly and was so tough that it was inedible. Of the two desserts, the apple cobbler was very good, but the rice pudding was a disgrace to serve -- not cooked, totally liquid and tasteless.
To finally add insult to injury, I ordered coffee, American, black. I received hot tea instead.
Despite the fact that there were only 4 tables occupied in the restaurant, the service was inattentive.
There is an old saw in the restaurant business that if you have a good meal, you tell 4 people, but if you have a bad meal, you tell 40. I am halfway through my personal list of 40. I hope this review reaches more than that!!!!... Read more
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A group of eight friends inaugurated our 2008 Miami Spice adventure Sunday night at Chef Allen's Restaurant in Aventura. We had been looking forward to visiting the famous chef's restaurant and we weren't disappointed.
The restaurant itself is very nice, simple, elegant and inviting. We were seated immediately and waited as everyone arrived. For an additional $25 Chef Allen's offers a wine pairing flight for the Miami Spice menu which almost all of us ordered.
Usually the Miami Spice menu offers an appetizer, an entree and a dessert for $36. Chef Allen's, however, started us off with an amuse bouche comprised of some crudite and a delicious Romesco dip which was followed by some crusty bread and crispy bread sticks. Keep in mind, the restaurant changes the Miami Spice menu often.
For appetizers we sampled the three options. Three of us had the Duck Confit, served with home-made macaroni and a light cognac sauce; it was delicious, the shredded duck was tender and flavorful. Two of us had the Roast Beet Salad with feta cheese, baby arugula and a sour orange and thyme dressing - after tasting it I can officially say I have learned to love beets. The remaining three had the Conch Ceviche, which despite having scotch bonnet peppers wasn't too spicy at all. The wine for the appetizers was a Charles Krug Sauvignon Blanc from Napa; now I'm not a sauvignon blanc fan and even I liked it, however those among us who do enjoy sauvignon blanc said it was very good. The appetizer was followed by a watermelon sorbet intermezzo - very nice!
Sadly, for the entree we were less original, and wound up all ordering the same thing! DUH! But what we ordered was fantastic. We all had the Black Grouper with rock shrimp fricassee, leeks, mango and coconut rum sauce - everyone agreed it was delicious, with the fish prepared perfectly and the flavors blending beautifully. For the entree wine pairing we had a choice between a Cabernet Sauvignon by Heller Estates in Carmel Valley, California - or Argentina's Trumpeter Chardonnay, we tried both and everyone was very happy with their choice.
For dessert they had three options and we tried them all. Three of us enjoyed the Lavender Infused Panna Cotta with Honey - again, I don't usually like panna cotta, but this one was really good with a lot of flavor. Three ordered the Ricotta Cheesecake with an oatmeal cookie crust which was yummy! And two of us went with the Espresso and Chocolate Profiterole. Hello! Chocolate and espresso, what's not to love? And OHMYGOD - the dessert wine pairing was a fantastic Ferrari-Carano Eldorado Noir, which is a rich, sweet black muscat from California's Russian River Valley -everybody raved about it!
While we were enjoying our dessert, a very nice lady came to our table and started chatting with us. It turned out to be Judy Susser, Chef Allen's wife! She was absolutely delightful, chatting about wine, about the restaurant's exciting re-launch, and how Miami Spice seemed to be a success thus far.
Chef Allen's Miami Spice menu was a bona-fide success – providing a wonderful selection of quality dishes. Most importantly, it made us want to come back! ... Read more
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Has anyone heard of this new place called Kitchen 305? I am borned and raised in NYC, since I came to Miami, been very disapointing in finding nice affordable places that has over the top food and an amazing prices...not to mention the BEST atmosphere withouth the south beach bullshit....truffle fries I still crave!... Read more
Dine-o-mite: tips for Miami Spice Month
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Miami Spice is stuffed this year -- bursting at the seams with more than 100 restaurants participating -- and choosing well can have you feasting on 50 percent savings. More often, it amounts to a free dessert or appetizer. At the very least, it's a reason to get out on the town despite a depressing economy.
Lovers of short ribs and salmon are in luck, judging by the menus posted so far, while meatless Miamians will have to look hard for pastas, risottos and salad options. With top Miami restaurants and promising new entrants on the roster, it's a real treasure hunt. The trick is to study the website, ilovemiamispice.com, and call in advance to verify posted menus. Many places -- including stalwarts Pascal's on Ponce, North One 10 and Talula -- change menus weekly, even if the GMCVB webmaster doesn't. Also be sure to note which days the specials are offered. Some restaurants exclude weekend nights -- though fewer, it would appear, than in previous years.
HIGH-END OPTIONS
One tried and true Spice strategy is to target places with the stiffest checks in town -- Palme d'Or at the Biltmore, Maison d'Azur, Azul, Chef Allen's or DeVito South Beach, for example.
Most impressive high-ender has got to be Kobe Club adjacent to China Grill, with five and six options for appetizer and entree plus a dessert sampler platter. Reasonably priced upgrades include 4-ounce tastes of their incredibly rich namesake Kobe (Wagyu) beef from U.S., Australian and Japanese suppliers ($30-$80 extra).
Govind Armstrong's Table 8 also puts out for this party, especially for lamb lovers, who can find crispy lamb sausage with stuffed green olives and pickled jicama to start followed by spiced lamb loin, bulgur wheat salad, kalamata olives, piquillo peppers and organic arugula.
With only one appetizer (a blue cheese, bacon and avocado salad) and two mains (short ribs and snapper), Bourbon Steak has the stingiest Spice menu I have ever seen. Still, it's an affordable way to enjoy a place where ordering from the à la carte menu would cost you way north of 100 bucks.
Doug Rodriguez offers his incredible cuisine seven nights a week at a super discount at OLA, now at the Sanctuary Hotel. Menu highlights include octopus ceviche with oven-dried grape tomatoes, lime juice, caper berries and crispy shallot espuma as well as gazpacho blanco topped with cantaloupe sorbet.
COMELY NEWCOMERS
Miami Spice is also a great way to scope out new restaurants. Tops among them are the reincarnated Pacific Time, where Jonathan Eismann is offering a Mediterranean menu, Joley in The Hotel Astor and Por Fin, the Spanish sensation in Coral Gables. Badrutt's Place and 1 Bleu in the Regent Hotel also beckon.
In the category of unknowns, the most alluring is The Trapiche Room at JW Marriott Hotel on Brickell, where chef Eric Sala gets huge marks for a drool-inducing Spice menu with super high-end products including Niman Ranch rack of lamb, Point Reyes blue-cheese mousse and Sweet Briar Farm organic pork tenderloin stuffed with Maine lobster.
B.E.D. and Soyka are among the veteran restaurants new to Miami Spice this year. Notably absent are past participants Touch and Neomi's Grill.
Favorites I have not yet mentioned include Timo, Ortanique on The Mile, Cacao, Sardinia, Michy's and The River Oyster Bar, which is offering delectable and thoughtfully farmed Loch Duart Scottish salmon.
It should go without saying that customers taking advantage of this program must not ask for special preparations or substitutions. Also, tip as if you were paying full price. I only skimp on the gratuity when restaurants don't graciously offer the Miami Spice menu to guests without being asked.
Have you Miami Spiced somewhere? Leave a review!
Published: 7/08
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Solange Reyner, See & Do Blogger
