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Maino Churrascaria and Italian Cuisine restaurant review. A selection from the salad bar of the new eatery. Photo: David Adame.
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What you said
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The Heaven for Carnivores in the Performing Arts District of Miami! I am a workaholic who hardly ever gets out the house for anything but I did go to Maino Churrascaria based on an article seen at the Biscayne Times that spoke very highly of the place. Boy, were they right in every detail and degree of praise, writers were right on the money with everything I had the pleasure of experiencing during my visit…I know the economy is bad for a $50 dollar per person dinner, but the caipirinha I drank over at Maino put me just at ease with feeling good about where my biz is going hhahahahahaha! The attention I got from the waiters is of far higher class than the competing steak houses. Let’s all support this new and upcoming venue that stands out so much in our Biscayne Corridor!... Read more
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Superb dining! These guys served me top shelf meat to me, my entire family and guess who else? Yes, my great dane! Never seen a steakhouse cater to litereally the entire family like this....These people are so family oriented it is almost like eating in your backyard the best meat in town! Go check them out... Read more
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Finished in impeccable taste, this newly constructed restaurant sits super well located at the NE corner of Biscayne and 22nd Street, about 2 blocks up from where I live at the Cite on Biscayne…Thought I’d give them a try since it looks marvelous from the outside and was surprised to see that inside it looks even better ….didn’t think that possible but at any rate, enough for the looks, let’s talk about what matters – the food! This is the closest thing to a breathless trip into a personalized carnivore “Mecca”- the experience is almost religious since the staff seems to take everything so seriously from the service to every last bit of detail in the table setting….The round of meats is simply unmatched by any of their bigger competitors like Texas de Brazil or Fogo de Chao. If you are driving around the Downtown/Design District Area , there is no finer place where to go and satisfy your carnivore buds than Maino Churrascaria.... Read more
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Overwhelmed at the “homy” feeling I sensed at Maino Churrascaria. By far the best “Passion Fruit Capiririnha” I’ve ever tasted in the States……real passion fruit is hard to see being used by restaurants… Their salad bar is impeccable with lots of greens, fresh cuts of Parma prosciutto & Muzzarella di Buffala…ooohhh how I love all this! Our meat carver was very professional and aside from presenting each cut of meat to us in English also went on to ask what temperature we liked in each and every cut served...heaven! Suggestion: try to leave space for the most amazing Petit Gateau you’ll ever taste in Miami! It’s like being in the South of France…. Overall, this restaurant is total slam dunk ladies and gentlemen… They’re here to stay!... Read more
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Strongly recommend for all of you carnivores. Maino Churrascaria is not like your typical grand production "corporate look" type of Brazilian churrascaria. It is family owned and family operated. This means you, much like I did, will feel intimate with the carvers and owners which will allow you to ask for exactly what you like best and always ensure that you get it. I wish my house looked this good! Never seen such attention paid to detail in everything in a restaurant ranging from the restrooms to the choice of stones from flooring, salad bar to columns....This is a must see folks!... Read more
The big review: Maino Churrascaría **½
Member rating:
By Victoria Pesce Elliott
The menu at Brazilian-Italian restaraunt Maino Churrascaría on the northern edge of the Performing Arts District is a cozy marriage of classic Italian dishes by chef Gaetano Alberto Pesce (no relation to the famed artist-architect or to me, as far as I can tell). The native of Genoa and veteran of South Beach's Paesanos produces pastas, including gnocchi blanketed with Gorgonzola sauce, that are satisfyingly rich and homey if a bit heavy.
It's worth a trip for his exquisite baby black mussels in a rich, wine-splashed sauce with a garlicky onion and red pepper bite. Ours disappeared in the time it took our waiter to uncork the wine. Still, I am stumped as to why every dish is garnished with piles of curry powder, cayenne and flecks of an indeterminate, once-green herb. Fresher greens can be found at the extensive salad bar, along with abundant platters of egg salad, chicken salad, olives, roasted peppers, cheeses, brasaela, fresh mozzarella over tomatoes and loads more. It's best at lunch when the salads have just been laid out, but there are good options throughout the day. Ask for a sliver of the beautiful half-wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano full of creamy-crystally intensity -- great with the basket of hot, puffy bread. Both are super with a glass of red wine from the young but respectable list, from a $26 Brazilian Assemblage to a $245 2005 Far Niente Cab. Nearly 100 bottles are well selected but unfortunately marked up three to four times retail in most cases. The temperature runs high, too, so ask them to ice down your bottle for a few minutes.
You'll want plenty of wine to go with the abundance of meat. As Maino searches for a regular customer base, it seems to be playing with pricing. One evening we were offered a mini rodizio with five cuts of meat plus fish for a mere $29.98. Another time, a larger selection was $45. Either version offers tableside carnage until you holler tio! The meat parade commences with the cheaper cuts, including chubby fingers of pork sausage and bacon-wrapped chicken. Then come stubs of somewhat dry but flavorful pork loin, juicy beef tenderloin still pink in the center and crusty, charred curls of picahna (a luscious rump cut) rimmed with a sliver of fat. Aggressively seasoned salmon cubes were overcooked for my taste. Just ask, though, and the obliging if novice staff will convey your preference to the chef.
The waiters are uniformly well-intentioned and courteous. One offered the kids a taste of Guarana soda and happily made conversation with my usually shy 6-year-old as she munched on puffy cheese breads. We were surprised and impressed to learn that kids under 12 eat for half price -- even more so on another visit when a waiter clarified that those under 7 dined on the house.
The dinner experience has its ups and downs, but desserts are smooth as can be. Our favorite is the delightfully refreshing papaya cream served with a dollop of whipped cream and a drizzle of cassis. It's enough for two or more to share. But then you might miss the tangy passion fruit mousse flecked with fruit seeds and planted with a jaunty mint leaf.
Maino Churrascaría, 2211 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-571-9044, mainochurrascaria.com; 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m. daily. Appetizers $11-$16, pastas $19-$21, entrees $22-$45, desserts $8-$14. Rodizio $29-$45 depending on time of day and size of offerings. Lunch specials beginning at $10
FYI: Full bar; corkage $15. Free private parking lot. AX, DS, DN, MC, VS.
Published: 9/08
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Valerie Nahmad, restaurants Blogger
