It's a beautiful Sunday morning. The birds are chirping, the sun is shining, and you have a long day ahead of you to do nothing at all. There's only one thing on the calendar -- brunch with friends. That also means a cold, spicy Bloody Mary.
The origins of the bloody mary are hazy, but most believe it originated in the roaring 20's as a morning-after remedy for hangovers. A base bloody is simple -- vodka, tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, a little lemon juice, but that's merely the canvas upon which a truly artistic bartender begins his masterpiece.
Bloody marys in Miami range from sophisticated martinis to something that mostly resembles a salad bar. GreenStreet in Coconut Grove won the 2011 BOM prize for best bloody mary. Here are ten others you should try. Think of it as ten Sundays worth of research.
10. Bourbon Steak
Sidle over to the backlit bar and ask your barkeep
for a bloody ($11) at this Turnberry palace of meat. What makes this
bloody so bloody special? Unlike many restaurants, Bourbon Steak makes
their own bloody mary mix, a blend of Worcestershire, olive brine,
Tabasco, smoked salt, fresh horseradish, and white pepper. This spicy
blend is then mixed with fresh tomato juice and premium vodka. A bloody
worthy of the 1%, but we like it too.
9. Van Dyke Cafe
There's
something about Lincoln Road on a Sunday morning before the throngs of
tourists, daytrippers, and mimes swarm the place. Green parrots squawk
and church bells ring in the distance, as you sip Van Dyke's ultimate bloody mary ($11) in the
shade. You check the weather on your iPhone. Sunny and 70 degrees? Just another day in paradise.
8. Rosa Mexicano
Yes,
it's untraditional, but we're adding Rosa Mexicano's Michelada to our
list. El Betabel is made with Pacifico beer,
beet juice, fresh lime and Cholula. It's refreshing, spicy, and some
consider it the bloody mary of Mexico, so it makes the grade.
7. Scotty's Landing
Scotty's Landing is the place you take your
cousins from the midwest when you want to either charm them or scare
them (depending on whether they have cleanliness issues). True, your
feet stick to the ground and you might be sharing your table with a
German Shepherd, but this is one of the few places in Miami where you
have a waterfront view without spending a car payment on your
meal. Cop a squat, order a bloody made with locally-bottled Captain
Rick's hot sauce ($6.99) and pick out the yacht you want to sail away
in.
6. Berries in the Grove
Berries in the Grove has a
perpetual wait for a table. so we suggest heading straight for the bar on a Sunday morning to order your $5 bloody mary made with L'Chaim kosher
vodka -- extra spicy, please. Served with all the required garnishes -
olives, celery, lemon and lime wedge, this bloody is satisfying and
thick with horseradish. And that's completely kosher with us.
5. Barceloneta
Leave
it to the guys behind the hottest trio of restaurants in Miami Beach to
combine a meal and a cocktail. Barceloneta's gazpacho bloody mary is a
creamy and refreshing hit of potent flavors. Fresh tomatoes, cilantro,
cream all combine with an adrenaline jolt of vodka. Guaranteed to wake
you up and fill your tummy at the same time.
4. Wynwood Kitchen & Bar
Craving
something more sophisticated than the traditional bloody? Maybe you've
just walked through a dozen galleries and need a savory cocktail? Leave it to the artistic minds at Wynwood
Kitchen to come up with the Clare Rojas, a mix of hand-crafted tomato
cilantro water, vodka, Tabasco and lemon. Served in a chilled martini
glass, Clare provides the savory flavor of a Mary without the heaviness.
Mary might be your girl, but we bet you'll cheat on her with Clare from
time to time.
3. Edge Steak & Bar
Edge Steak & Bar at the Four Seasons
Hotel is our special Sunday splurge. The brunch is extravagant
(and at $75 per person it should be), but it includes unlimited mimosas,
mojitos, and bloody marys. Not just any bloody, mind you. This mary
comes with more accessories to dress her up than Barbie! We're talking
pints of pickled peppers, smoked okra, blue cheese stuffed olives, jumbo
shrimp, house made pickles...and more. Mary's the best dressed bloody
in town. If brunch is too rich for your blood, head over to the bar for a
standard bloody (still finely crafted by the master bartenders at Edge)
for $12. Because sometimes a girl's gotta dress down.
2. The Forge Restaurant/Wine Bar
The
Forge's brunch comes in at a down-to-earth (for Miami) $55, which
includes a buffet, entree, mimosa, and do-it-yourself bloody mary bar,
which includes several different kinds of tomato juice (we like the
golden fresh pressed heirloom tomato water) and carafes of vodka
(including an extra spicy pepper-infused variety). We're particularly
enamored with the fact that we can load up our bloody with the dozen or
so olives and pickles that we desire without having to sheepishly ask
the bartender for yet one more skewer of cornichons.
1. Tudor House
Picture
your bloody mary on vacation. Would she go to a tropical Caribbean
island? Maybe she's more the Sonoran Desert type. Tudor House lets your bloody
fantasies run wild with their rose brunch bloody mary cart ($10). The
Caribbean bloody mary adds pineapple and coconut rum, while the
Southwest version brings corn, tequila, and avocado into the mix.
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Better yet, build your own bloody with an insane amount of choices that
include pickled cauliflower, Slim Jims, jalapenos, garlic stuffed
olives, and fresh herbs.
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