Sergio's Restaurant, the old guard for Cuban comfort food in Miami, is adding to its skinny selections by adding craft beer and tapas to their menu.
Known as one of the neighborhood bastions of Cuban eats in Miami for almost four decades, the place hasn't changed much over the years. But Sergio's vice president Carlos Gazitua thought it was about time to appeal to the foodies as well as the "beeries."
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The Sergio's in Kendall, at 8807 SW 107th Street, is the first location to try the new menu. The other locations will follow shortly. Gazitua said that a trip to Spain inspired him to create a tapas menu, which as been in development for more than a year.
The new menu -- which goes along with Sergio's La Flaca eats -- will consist of hot and cold tapas plates and "tapas beers" or small pourings of beer, similar to the small bottles of Corona you see on the shelves of Publix. The plates includes cold items like Peruvian shrimp ceviche ($8), pan con tomate (like a bruschetta, but with ciabatta bread -- $3), ensalada rusa ($3), and rosemary olive plate ($3).
Hot items include barbecue guava sliders, frita sliders and meatball marinara sliders ($4 each); garbanzo and chorizo frito ($3.75), mac 'n' cheese with cantipalo (like a chorizo but a cold cut and a little bit of truffle -- $6), and bacon-wrapped guayaba dates with goat cheese served on top of a rum sauce ($7).
Right now Sergio's craft beer selection is limited, focusing strictly on local craft brews. They have Miami Brewing Company's Big Rod Coconut Ale and is working on getting Shark Attack wheat ale on tap. The tap line-up could include brews from Most Wanted Brewery and Wynwood Brewing Company.
There will be a tapas display unit at each restaurant that features the menu complete with pairing suggestions.
The carnitas beer prices will range from $1 to $2.50 for a six-ounce pour that will be served in a skinny, flute-like glass. They will also serve $5 pints for thirstier customers. By having the "tapas beers" as Gazitua calls them, he hopes to bring Latin American women into the craft beer fold. And having a smaller price point will be more appealing to the customer, Gazitua said.
Don't worry, Sergio's fans, the restaurant is keeping its original menu. Now they want to expand the market a little bit. By adding craft beer to the menu, rather than just simply Corona or Heineken, Gazitua is hoping to appeal more to the Cuban masses in Miami.
The craft beer market is something Gazitua has been wanting to tap into for awhile, but now feels like he finally has the resources. "We want to be the crossover into the Latin and American market," he said.
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