For both locals and visitors, December offers an escape from the ordinary: Celebratory dinners, holiday get-togethers and sweet indulgences. It’s the month to dine out with family and visiting friends. From current favorite restaurants to a new pre-theater dinner option and a restaurant focusing on Florida ingredients, we’re keeping you up with the latest on Miami’s dining scene.
If Miami City Ballet’s “Nutcracker” is on your must-see list this holiday season, you have a new dining option: Teatro (305.613.6433), at Miami’s Arsht Center Ziff Ballet Opera House, 1300 Biscayne Blvd. This new concept is by Constellation Culinary Group, the culinary masterminds behind Verde at the Pérez Art Museum Miami, is open before select performances at the Opera House and Knight Center.
Executive chef Jose Danger’s prix-fixe menu offers a choice of one appetizer and entrée, or one entrée and dessert, along with sides. Appetizer options include the Red Carpet carpaccio, with heirloom tomato and mint tahini; Thai coconut curry mussels in lemongrass and coconut broth; and steak tartare “Big Mac,” chopped Black Angus beef with the house special sauce.
For mains, choose from cioppino, a fisherman’s stew with mahi-mahi, mussels and shrimp; risotto carbonara with pecorino Romano; butternut squash rigatoni; pan-seared salmon; slow-braised lamb osso bucco; or steak served with a crispy loaded potato. For dessert, choose chai coconut panna cotta with poached pear compote, or Key Lime meringue tart with Florida Key lime custard and burnt Swiss meringue.
The 12-seat bar offers an à la carte menu, beer, wine, Champagne, specialty coffee drinks and signature cocktails, such as the Espresso Martini, a combination of Grey Goose vodka, rich espresso, Cazadores Café and sea salt.
(Courtesy of Zucca)
Lamb Meatballs in San Marzano tomato sauce at Zucca.
Family-friendly Zucca (786.580.3731) in the St. Michel Hotel, 162 Alcazar Ave., Coral Gables, is owned and operated by the Da Silva Hospitality Group and it’s a perfect place to celebrate the holidays. Executive chef Manuel Garcia takes you on a culinary journey through Italy, from authentic Sardinian dishes to Tuscan specialties. Start with salumeria such as porchetta alla Romana or the antipasto plate featuring an aged-30-months Parmigiano-Reggiano, followed by appetizers like fried zucchini flowers filled with goat cheese and drizzled with truffle honey or lamb meatballs in San Marzano tomato sauce.
Pastas include tagliatelle with wild mushrooms, parmigiana fonduta and black truffle caviar, and a sumptuous paccheri tube pasta with lobster and cherry tomatoes. Entrées include grilled angus filet mignon with foie gras and truffle-braised potatoes, or black cod and mussel stew with Sardinian fregola and spinach. Great news for Italian wine and food lovers: Zucca has won a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for six consecutive years, boasting a wine cellar of more than 2,000 Italian labels.
OPENINGS & NEWS
(Jen Castro/Courtesy of Tropezon)
Tropezon is bringing back “Paella Sunday.”
Sushi Lucy (786.391.2668) has reopened at 1680 NE 123rd St. in North Miami. The restaurant specializes in Kaiten sushi: You sit at the bar as a conveyor brings you an enticing array of creations. You can also explore à la carte sushi rolls and traditional Japanese dishes. Try the crunchy crab salad with spicy krab mix, made with whitefish crispy onions and a drizzle of eel sauce, or pork gyozas, filled dumplings with ponzu sauce.
Choose from sashimi, nigiri, or maki rolls, and classics such as the Dragon Roll with crispy shrimp tempura, krab mix and creamy avocado with a drizzle of eel sauce, topped with sesame seeds. Don’t miss the house special, the Little Lucy Tower, which features spicy tuna mix, krab mix and creamy avocado, layered with sushi rice.
Tropezón (305.763.8523), at 512 Española Way in Miami Beach, is a charming Andalusian-style gin and tapas bar that’s bringing back “Paella Sunday” due to popular demand. Offered every Sunday during dinnertime, the “bottomless paella” menu features duck, squid, chorizo, fish and shrimp, and grilled presa (pork shoulder) and mushroom priced at $55 per person. Additionally, you can indulge in BOGO wine by the glass.
(Javier Hurtado/Courtesy of Adrift Mare)
Adrift Mare’s menu takes diners on a journey along the Mediterranean coastline and features such options as oysters with mignonette sauce.
A new Mediterranean restaurant is Adrift Mare (305.503.6400), located at Hotel AKA Brickell, 1395 Brickell Ave. in Miami. At the helm is chef David Myers, who, inspired by his travels, has created a culinary experience informed by the Mediterranean coastline, melding French Riviera chic with a Balearic Islands vibe and Greek Isles rhythm.
For appetizers, try the charred eggplant spread on sourdough, or a half-lobster roll with lemon aioli. From the raw section, choose a half-dozen oysters served with mignonette sauce, or aged beef tartare. Main plate standouts include arugula pesto bucatini, grilled king prawns, and whole grilled seabass served with braised fennel and harissa aioli. The wine list concentrates on the best terroirs around the Mediterranean Sea, including Ancient World labels from Greece, Super Tuscans and Provençal rosés.
(Courtesy of Mr. O1 Pizza)
Claudio, Star Luca and Coffee Paolo pizzas at Mr. O1.
With locations in Texas, Spain and Saudi Arabia, Mister O1 Pizza (786.886.3178) has opened its ninth Florida location at 1065 95th St. Bay Harbor Islands. Its artisanal pizzas are made with very light dough in a delicate, thin-crust style, with most of the ingredients imported from Italy. The stars of the show are chef Renato Viola’s signature crispy crust 13-inch star-shaped pizzas, with a pouch of ricotta cheese in each of the star’s points. Try the Star Luca pizza, with ricotta cheese, spicy salami Calabrese, mozzarella and Italian tomato sauce. Or choose the Coffee Paola pizza with mozzarella and gorgonzola blue cheese, honey, coffee, spicy salami Calabrese and Italian tomato sauce. The menu also offers calzones and salads, and there’s an antipasto and burrata bar.
EntreNos recently opened inside Tinta y Café, at 9840 NE 2nd Ave. in Miami Shores. Chefs Evan Burgess and Osmel Gonzalez’s seasonal menu focuses on local, Florida-sourced ingredients, and the menu lists their origin, such as Treasure Coast Shellfish, Bee Heaven Farm and Paradise Farms, among others. Small plates include spiny lobster with confit potatoes, and grilled Sebastian oysters with brown butter chimichurri. Featured entrées are grilled yellowtail with Surinam spinach; grilled pork with rice porridge and Christmas lima beans; and dry-aged HM Cattle ribeye with honeynut squash.
If visions of sugar plums are dancing in your head, head for Miami Beach, where two new store openings are enticing sweets lovers. Osmanlizadeler Baklava, at 618 Lincoln Rd., offers authentic sweets and desserts directly from Turkey. Try the baklava or the Turkish national favorite, lokum, in a variety of flavors such as hazelnut with honey, and pistachios with halva chocolate. Known as Turkish Delight in the U.S., this special treat isn’t familiar to the American palate, but in England, Turkish Delight is a popular Christmas treat.
It’Sugar, at 801 Lincoln Rd., is one of the world’s largest specialty candy retailers and offers an over-the-top sweet experience. Kids will love the extra-long Twizzlers and giant, five-pound gummy bears, and – just in time for stocking stuffer season – there are hundreds of varieties of other treats and beloved brands such as Swedish Fish, Skittles, Candy Corn, Trolli and Starburst.
Thinking of an extravagant year-end celebration? Think Papi Steak (305.800.7274), 736 1st St., Miami Beach, in the South of Fifth neighborhood. In addition to its namesake Papi steak, a 32-ounce, $250 glatt kosher tomahawk steak, the restaurant also offers the ultimate dessert, the Louis XIII Baked Alaska, at the ultimate price tag of $1000. This once-in-a-lifetime treat is served tableside and will capture everyone’s attention: three shots of Louis XIII cognac are lit aflame and poured on the bombe upon arrival. You will also enjoy two complimentary shots of Louis XIII served in custom Baccarat glasses.
Irene Moore is a Miami-based writer and certified sommelier whose vivid descriptions take readers through culinary cultures around the world. Her feature articles have appeared in print publications, travel guidebooks and websites in the U.S. and Europe.
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(Irene Moore for Biscayne Times)
Authentic chocolate lokum, known stateside as Turkish Delight, at Osmanlizadeler Baklava.
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(Courtesy of It’Sugar)
It’Sugar is a sweet lover’s dream come true.
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(Courtesy of GROOT Hospitality)
Papi Steak’s decadent Louis XIII Baked Alaska is served with two shots of Louis XIII cognac, poured into custom Baccarat glasses.