I posted on Miami somewhere on here.
Walrus Rodeo was excellent (from the Boia De crew).
Havanna Harrys for Cuban.
And you probably know this one La Natural for Pizza.
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Went to Macchialina last night. Amazing, very highly recommended.
Surf Club was great…a lot like The Grill…
Vibes galore and the food and service were great too.
Best meal was Israeli food at Motek (in aventura but there are a few of them). Insanely good oven baked pitas, hummus, meats…
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great to hear. haven’t been in a few years and would like to go back.
Reservations made for Phuk Yea, Stubborn Seed and Leku. Also booked tickets for comedy show at Miami Improv and a show at Faena with good reviews.
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Leku is on Inkind!
thought stubbon seed was kinda meh but not awful. have you been before?
for deep wine list, dirty french steak is pretty incredible.
i’ll be down there this week - looking forward to tam tam which looks awesome.
I think Phuc Yea is on InKind as well. Haven’t been to any of these 3 restaurants… a little disappointing to hear on Stubborn Seed! What are your favorites for a pescatarian/omnivore (doesn’t eat meat)
well leku is legit terrific without the necessary miami qualifier. and an amazing physical space. arrive early to check out the gallery.
stubborn seed to me was trying too hard. when i’m down there, i absolutely alter my expectations and go for more atmosphere and safe food.
that said, another favorite and miami classic is Mandolin Aegean Bistro. lots of fish and veg and surpsringly good list (and i believe they allow corkage as well). i rarely go to miami without a least one visit.
For fish, Itamae is great, and plenty of options at Uchi. Our friends loved Tam tam.
an upgrade is in process:
It is with both emotion and excitement that we share the news that Itamae has moved out of the Palm Court in the Design District as we prepare to open in our new form as AO, a 12-seat tasting menu in the jewel-box space next to our sister restaurant, Maty’s. In the meantime, join us at B-Side, our fast-casual nikkei concept in the Miami Design District, in the former Itamae space. To learn more about AO and to be the first to know when reservations go live, sign up for our newsletter.
Oh, that’s like a bummer man.
The space in design district wasn’t ideal (entire storefront was basically the kitchen and they didn’t have as much back or house space), but the courtyard was a nice place to dine surrounded by gauche shopping galor.
I’m not a fan of the Maty’s space 
I haven’t been in a couple of years but I too have heard that Stubborn Seed has slid down in quality lately. It used to be the best restaurant in Miami. I liked it more than l’Atelier.
Thanks - I will drop the Stubborn Seed. Any suggestions for something “special” and not Italian (we are flying down from NY and I think there is plenty of Italian in the city we don’t indulge in). Stubborn Seed seemed to fit the “special occasion” bucket of “special”. Any other ideas? Something “special occasion” but not too stuff… or some other special vibe? Also… if it matters… I’m already locked into 10:30PM show of Allura at Faena. I made a backup reservation at Macchialina, but would prefer against Italian, and in favor of something more unique (but not necessarily ethnic… we are doing Phuck Yea and Leku other days, and I’m thinking lunch in Little Havana one of the days).
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again, it’s miami. and you’re coming from NYC. expectation management is the name of the game. a lot of the better places are outposts from NYC (cote, pastis, dirty french, etc.).
Cote miami was not as good as Cote nyc the one aTime I went
What are good vibe spots? Like a special Miami vibe?
Carbone
HaSalon
KYU
Pastis (probably)
Dirty French Steak
Chateau ZZ
Kyu has slipped quite a bit, pretty dissapointing experiences the last few years.
Miami vibe spots are generally not in the beach. Beach spots tend to be tourist trap with some notable exceptions like Macchialina.
I would suggest an early table at Mandolin and a drink at Lagnjappe or Branja for “Miami Vibes” before heading to Faena.
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few updates from a recent trip
mandolin conitnues to be a classic. the location and physical space would be more than enough, but the service and surpringly excellent list (very tight, but lovely and interesting options in all price points) with a passionate wine staff makes it a destination.
los felix in coconut grove. very cool, small mexican place focusing on heirloom corn and the cooking is quite elevated in its technique. list is more natural leaning but not annoyingly so. def recommend as an extra meal if you’re in the general area.
chateau zz in brickell. mexican, but through the MFG lens; luxury ingredients (think a light as air tostada with wagyu and black truffle; jamon with fried quail eggs, etc.), family style, extremely tight cooking and bold flavors. cocktails here are unsurprisingly terrific. the house martini made with del maguey single village chichicapa was a revelation in balance. the wine list is of course great with all the cool shit you’d want to drink. the space is an old mansion that was refurbished. of course, amazing vibe. would go here with a minimum of 4 people for sure.
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I really enjoyed Byblos when I was in Miami Beach in December. Great manti!
Continue to love Mandolin. We had our baby shower there and they handled wine and food with aplomb. Really enjoy their list vs the modal shitty wine list down here.
I’ve been disappointed at Los Felix of late, which is a shame as we are locals in the grove. Mainly the portion sizes are just so meager. If their food were as elevated as Boia De or zitz sum that would be one thing, but I find the place a head scratcher.
Chateau ZZ is an IT spot for sure.
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