Ralph Pagano Takes the Stage at the South Beach Seafood Festival

The South Beach Seafood Festival offered a weekend of stone crabs, Chardonnay, and the return of Ralph Pagano to the stage.

By Laine Doss

October 23, 2017

Image: Click here for New Times' slideshow of the South Beach Seafood Festival.

Click here for New Times' slideshow of the South Beach Seafood Festival. Courtesy South Beach Seafood Festival

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The South Beach Seafood Festival offered a weekend of stone crabs, Chardonnay, and the return of Ralph Pagano to the stage.

Clad in a black shirt and pants and a bright-yellow sport jacket, the chef was greeted to thunderous applause as he addressed the thousands of people who came to enjoy food from local chefs such as Andre Bienvenu (Joe's Stone Crab), Peter Vauthy (Red the Steakhouse), Sean Brasel (Meat Market), and Bernie Matz (Bodega Taqueria y Tequila).

Pagano sustained serious burns in a gas explosion in Bimini this past June and spent nearly two months at Jackson Memorial's Ryder Trauma Center. The evening marked a return to public life since the accident. Pagano says of the evening: "Being back with my friends and seeing everyone throwing down onstage was way better than the operating room and not half as dangerous."

The Friday event featured the popular Chefs' Showdown — eight head-to-head competitions in which Miami toques cook for seafood-centric bragging rights. The big winners were as follows:

Battle Crab: Andre Bienvenu of Joe's Stone Crab
Battle Surf 'n' Turf: Sean Brasel of Meat Market Miami
Battle Taco: Bernie Matz of Bodega South Beach
Battle Tuna: Jim Pastor of the Rusty Pelican
Battle Shrimp: Nicolas Cabrera of Lure Fishbar South Beach
Battle Fish: Demetrios Pyliotis of Poseidon Greek Restaurant & Outdoor Lounge
Battle Sushi: Masatomo Hamaya of Dragonfly Izakaya & Fish Market
Battle Oyster Pit: James Versfelt of Shelborne South Beach

This past Saturday, thousands of revelers took to the beach to dine on stone crabs, smoked oysters, and jumbo shrimp as the festivities continued. Dozens of Miami restaurants, including Pagano's Naked Crab, set up minicafés on the sand. The chef held court for several hours, greeting fans and well wishers while sampling his own seafood offerings.

Laine Doss is the former food editor of Miami New Times. She has been featured on Cooking Channel's Eat Street and Food Network's Great Food Truck Race. She won an Alternative Weekly award for her feature about what it's like to wait tables.

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