If there is a Hell on Earth for small-business owners, its name is Biscayne Boulevard. What’s amusingly termed “ongoing construction” (replace con with de for greater accuracy) has left stretches of Miami’s premier boulevard looking as if they’ve been hit by ICBMs, with surfaces so potholed that even driving over…
Let me start by stating that I am a fan of Whole Foods Market, and a firm believer in paying more for a tomato that tastes like a tomato. During two recent trips to the new South Miami branch, however, I was surprised to find that a number of items…
To paraphrase an old tag line for Levy’s Kosher Rye Bread: You don’t have to be Jewish to enjoy Fusion 41. But it helps. I say this not because of the restaurant’s menu, which features fresh fish prepared and presented in contemporary fashion; other than being kosher, it has little…
When a restaurant has been operating since 1975, as House of India has, it’s bound to garner faultfinders as well as fans. The most persistent criticism here has been spotty service — which was definitely at its lowest point one recent lunchtime, when a waiter called Coral Gables cops to…
David Bouley’s Evolution closed its’ doors “indefinitely” this past Thursday evening. Sources have it that the Ritz-Carlton South Beach, which had leased the space, evicted the restaurant owners due to a back load of overdue rent payments. Some of Evolution’s purveyors and employees are left holding the bag, too. Mr…
A trio of uniquely themed wine dinners are taking place in area restaurants this coming week. On Tuesday night, beginning at 6:30 p.m., Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar hosts Red Rapture: The All-Red 90+ Wine Dinner. The event highlights five red wines from around the globe that have been…
Critics, including this one, raved about Jeffrey Brana’s clean, fresh cuisine at his short-lived Restaurant Brana in the Gables. Now we’ll get another chance to sample his cooking at The Raleigh Hotel on South Beach, as Brana has been named the property’s new executive chef. His menu should be out…
American Food Writing is not a book to be put down lightly. At 784 pages, it simply can’t be done. It is a book to be put down with a thunk, picked up and read, put down with a thunk, picked up and read, again and again. The anthology serves…
Miami is a town of many charming, unique, evocative neighborhoods with very few charming, unique, evocative neighborhood restaurants. Why is this? We can venture a few guesses. Miami is a city with no real culinary tradition, at least if you exclude stone crabs and restaurants that shear tourists like sunburned,…
Samoas save the day (again) Finally, finally, finally: Somebody wanted to interview me. Receiving the request via email was a validation of sorts, a late-in-coming but appreciated recognition of my rightful place among Miami’s elite food critics. Admittedly there were colleagues who attempted to denigrate the honor — it’s astonishing…
What do a Russian kebabery, a student-run restaurant, and a Oaxacan taqueria on wheels have in common? Nothing except delicious food, which speaks a universal language. Lula Kebab House owners Sofia and David Shifrin are from Minsk (now the Republic of Belarus). Francisco Perez and his brother-in-law Moises, proprietors of…
Unlike its predecessor, the well-loved Japanese restaurant Tani Guchi’s Place, there’s nothing kosher about Maleewan Thai and Sushi. The specials board sports something that looks like a six-point Star of David, but it’s actually the six-petal vine flower from which Maleewan takes its name. Silk flowers are now a main…
Say cheese! Ink-stained media types mingled over glasses of Cypriot wine at “Bin no. 18 – European Bistro & Wine Bar” the other night. The occasion was a Cyprus Halloumi Dinner hosted by visiting dairy producers such as the Cyprus Dairy Association and Cyprus Association for the Promotion of Milk…
Serve with beans — free, if possible In October, 2003 I wrote a review of Arbetter’s Hot Dogs (8747 SW 40th St.; 305-207-0555) in which I mocked their offer of free baked beans to all customers if and when the Boston Red Sox won the World Series. My point was…
There are three sections to the 145-seat Ishq (pronounced ish): a row of tables lined up on the sidewalk of Ocean Drive, a thinly foliated rectangular outdoor courtyard that serves as dining area and link between street and recessed restaurant, and the interior, consisting of a bar inlaid with semiprecious…
Cancun Grill is everything that’s wrong with Mexican cuisine in South Florida. Most Mexican restaurants in these parts are about many things — cheap prices, expensive margaritas, quick service, raucous entertainment, faux SoBo (south of the border) ambiance. Rarely are they about the food. What sets Cancun Grill apart is…
Fire it up Every Friday and Saturday, things get ridiculously tasty at the intersection of SW 62nd Avenue and SW 64th Street. The vacant lot behind St. John’s African Methodist Episcopal Church in South Miami fills with the town’s unsung gourmands. In the distance, a yard full of dudes plays…
Korean cuisine can be a conundrum. Relatively few westerners are familiar with the culinary specialties of the isolated peninsular nation (shaped not unlike Florida), compared to that of, say, Korea’s higher-profile neighbor, Japan, which is often wrongly cited as the nation from which Korean cuisine is derived. The mystery of…
I was sitting alone in the spanking-new Rosa Mexicano dining room, finishing up my chicken enchiladita appetizer. Actually I was already done eating the two small, soft corn tortillas wrapped around succulent shreds of pulled chicken, chorizo sausage, and meaty red beans, and at the moment, using the tines of…
“Asturias is known the world over for its mountains, for its coal mines, for its fabada and its cider.” — writer Mario Vargas Llosa The latter two were on hand for Miamians to sample this past Wednesday at the great Spanish cafe/market/bakeryDelicias de la España (4016 S 57th. Ave., Miami;…
It used to be easy to differentiate between a fine-dining establishment and a neighborhood restaurant. The former’s tables would be draped in white linen, the patrons in elegant attire, and the host — referred to as “maitre d'” — would likely be wearing a tuxedo. Further clues might be ascertained…
It’s difficult not to sympathize with business owners along the stretch of Biscayne Boulevard between NE 67th and 87th Streets. Owing to seemingly endless construction, access to shops is greatly reduced and the neighborhood looks like a war zone. Local businesses have failed under similar circumstances; common sense suggests the…
