Racks Italian Bistro and Market
3933 NE 163rd St., North Miami Beach
North Dade
305-917-7225
The concise menu here is slightly more extensive than at owner Gary Rack's other venue, Table 42 Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar in Boca Raton (formerly Coal Mine Pizza). Both spots specialize in coal-fired pies but also offer starters, salads, and pastas; Racks adds a handful of fish, meat, and poultry entrées to the mix. Pizza isn't the official headliner, but it surely steals the show. The most basic version gets topped with tomato sauce, fiore di latte and Reggiano cheeses, olive oil, basil, and little crackles of sea salt. The dough gets baked in a fiery hearth; the resultant crust is crisp, lightly blistered, and slightly puffed around the edges. Same characteristics defined the base of a white pie lusty with smoked mozzarella and Reggiano cheeses embedded with spinach and delicate wisps of prosciutto. A grilled artichoke appetizer gets heaped with capers, tomatoes, roasted pepers, herbs, garlic, moistened breadcrumbs, and ricotta al forno - delicious. A selection of imported charcuterie and cheeses is tendered with the intent of guests composing their own combo platter from the five choices in each category - $6 per item or $24 for five. We loved the Sunday-supper-style rigatoni in a smooth, slightly tart "gravy" made with San Marzano tomatoes and laden with a large, flavorful meatball; Italian sausage; a tender square of moistly roasted pork; and a dollop of ricotta cheese. Starters run $9 to $14, salads are $10 to $13, pizzas $13 to $17, and pastas $16 to $19 (except the $23 Sunday supper). Veal or chicken parmigiana is $19, and other main dishes go for $24 or $25 (some fish specials fetch a higher "market price"). If you're looking for a better deal, head to Racks on Wednesdays after 5 p.m. for a big, beautiful $5 Harris Ranch Angus hamburger.
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