There were no Corn Flake fried grapes with blue cheese slaw and black pepper grape jelly last night at Strike Miami bowling alley. But some of the other items from David Burke's new menu, which we told you was coming last week, were unveiled in the glowy lights of the lanes at Dolphin Mall. "Most lane food is frozen food that's been processed and put into a fryer," says Burke. "We want to take it to the next level using fresh ingredients, a little imagination, and some ethnicity." Burke mentions dumplings as an example of the last. I had sampled a few earlier -- lumps of shrimp filled the dumpling, which was skewered with sugarcane and served lollipop-form. It was delicious, as was a chicken salad taco. Little hamburgers and mini crabcakes also made their way on passed platters.
Burke compares what Tom Shannon (founder of Bowlmor lanes, which owns the various Strikes) is doing with what they did in the casinos -- "hiring chefs to make better food so they could have a competitive edge. Everyone can buy the same balls, same pins, same lanes, but not all can put out great food." Meaning you're not looking to eat a Porterhouse while in the midst of bowling, "but you can still serve a great hamburger, a great grilled cheese sandwich." It's the same focus on food being found not only at casinos, but movie theaters, airlines...and, starting today, at Strike Miami.
