THE TEN BEST SOUTH BEACH RESTAURANTS
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
THE TEN BEST SOUTH BEACH
RESTAURANTS
BY CARLA TORRES THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 2015 | 20 DAYS AGO
OoOooOoOoOoO
Courtesy of Ool
Yes, South Beach is filled with tourists wearing "I'm in Miami, Bitch" T-shirts. And drug-and-
beer-beseeching bums lurk in alleyways. But that's only one side of the Ocean Drive and
Collins Avenue fence.
The greener, South of Fifth neighborhood boasts South Pointe Park, with sweeping views of
the Magic City, as well as one of the area's most iconic and longest-standing eateries, Joe's
Stone Crab, which turned 102 this year. (Disclaimer: We've left Joe's off this list so others can
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 1/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
have a chance. Complaints start here.)
Our choices make pasta from scratch and infuse it with rabbit, source masa from small
Mexican farms to produce handcrafted tortillas, fly in fish from Greece daily, and cook an
entirely gluten-free menu without compromising flavor. That's just some of the labor put in
by the top ten restaurants in South Beach.
Hmmm. Biscuits.
Courtesy of Yardbi
10. Yardbird
Have you had the chicken liver toast at Yardbird? What about the fried Everglades frog's legs
with sweet-and-sour jelly, bacon bits, and escabeche mayo? Or the beef sirloin tartare, served
with fried cornbread, barbecue sauce sorbet, and frisée lettuce, which happens to be one of
the best renditions of steak tartare in town? These might not be the greatest hits or most
popular items at John Kunkel's ridiculously popular Yardbird, but they are the most
underrated dishes at this eatery with Southern roots. So next time you're tempted to order his
grandmother Lewellyn's fried chicken, chicken 'n' watermelon 'n' waffles, or Mama's chicken
biscuits, stop being a chicken and try something different.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 2/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
Quality Meats
billwisserphoto.co
9. Quality Meats
In a short time, newcomer and New York transplant Quality Meats has beefed up the
offerings on Collins Avenue with a modern interpretation of a steak house. What, exactly,
does that entail? House-cured slabs of bacon get a peanut butter and jalapeño jelly treatment,
steak tartare is made tableside, braised veal shank comes atop a bed of black truffle
pappardelle, and sides include a corn crème brûlée and cheese-slathered gnocchi. To bring it
full circle, the owners (who started the Smith & Wollensky empire) have put just as much
emphasis on desserts as they have on their touted cuts of meat. To see what we're talking
about, simply order the sticky toffee pudding with fig ice cream.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 3/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
Here, fishy, fishy.
Valeria Nekh
8. Estiatorio Milos
As former critic Lee Klein best put it, Estiatorio Milos has exquisite Mediterranean
New Times
food — if you can afford it. Not for the common folk, Milos fits right in its SoFi digs and easily
serves the freshest and most pristinely cooked seafood in town. Your experience here
includes a walk to the icy-cool display in the back of the restaurant, where the morning's or
midday's catch (fish is flown in multiple times a day and transported in a Mercedes-Benz
refrigerated van because, well, it's Miami) is beautifully and vibrantly on view. But you never
know what you're gonna get — other than glistening fish eyes (a sign the sea creature hasn't
been dead long) and a high bill dropped at the end of the meal — because not even the kitchen
staff knows what seafood is coming in till it arrives at the airport. Luckily, the restaurant
offers a $49 tasting menu during the summer. In other words, the time is now to visit this
place.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 4/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
Where pigs go to die.
Courtesy of Pubbe
7. Pubbelly
When chef Jose Mendin and partners Sergio Navarro and Andreas Schreiner opened Pubbelly
in 2010, Sunset Harbour was a sleepy enclave. Fast-forward five years, and not only have the
kings of swine taken over the neighborhood with Barceloneta and PB Sushi, but also the trio's
first-born, Pubbelly, has been credited as being the progenitor of Sunset Harbour's movement
toward becoming a hub for foodies. Yes, the food is heavy. Yes, there are lots and lots (and
lots) of porcine dishes on the menu. But there's also — during season — Florida stone crab
pasta with jalapeño, ginger, bok choy, and miso citrus butter. And there's a handful of
dumplings packed with everything from duck and pumpkin to pastrami and sauerkraut. Plus,
it doesn't hurt that it's all coming from a James Beard Award semifinalist and Food & Wine
People's Best Chef nominee.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 5/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
Let's taco about it.
billwisserphoto.co
6. Taquiza
Taquiza is the little taco stand that could, and does. Eating House and Gastropod alum Steve
Santana is grinding day and night — literally grinding house-nixtamalized corn and blue masa
from small farms in Mexico to produce enough tortillas to meet not just the demand for
beachgoers and Miami Beach residents but also for Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Michael
Schwartz, who use the amazingly crisp yet fluffy taco shells at their restaurants. Go ahead, order
a taco or seven (that's how many types are offered). From al pastor and carnitas to barbacoa and
lengua (beef tongue), there's plenty to satisfy your authentic Mexican craving. Whatever you do,
don't ask for a quesadilla, or whoever is at the cash register might crucify you. Do, however, ask
for carne seca (made with meat from Creekstone Farms) and a choco taco (a dessert waffle cone
taco with horchata ice cream dipped in chocolate and crowned with pistachios). You're
welcome.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 6/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
Love at first pie
billwisserphoto.co
5. Lucali
Sure, topping your pie at Lucali with artichokes will add $8 to the already-high $24 price tag,
but not doing so would be pizza blasphemy. Or you can order the fresh artichoke hearts
appetizer and then feast on a pie that's a blank canvas brought to life with red sauce like no
other. Want more red sauce? Order the calzone. At only $10, stuffed with massive amounts of
ricotta and served alongside a pool of red sauce, it'll make your cheesiest and sauciest dreams
a reality.
Do you like your lobster with pasta?
Courtesy of Lu
4. Lure Fishbar
It starts with the cheddar-scallion biscuits and a shrimp-and-deviled-egg bloody mary mixed
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 7/10
It starts with the cheddar-scallionThe
7/15/2015
biscuits and a shrimp-and-deviled-egg bloody mary mixed
Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
by one of the city's most capable barkeeps, Rob Ferrara. It continues with a bacchanal of raw
delights that range from a bounty of impeccably shucked oysters dressed in pineapple salsa
or jalapeño ponzu to Japanese imports like uni, toro, fluke, and kanpachi. Then there's the
bucatini with butter-poached lobster and lobster uni crema. There's also the Burger Bash-
winning burger (yes, a burger at a seafood restaurant). But don't skip Lure Fishbar's
quintessential South Florida dessert: key lime pie. It's a result of 120 days of testing, traveling
to Key West, and tasting as many pies as possible.
Bazaar things happen here.
billwisserphoto.co
3. The Bazaar
What's not to love about Spanish celebrity chef and dynamic personality José Andrés'
gastronomic wonderland? Dinner at the Bazaar is like a trip down the culinary rabbit hole.
Your palate will never experience a dull moment — from liquid nitrogen caipirinhas (that
drink like adult sorbets and rouse and throughout the under-the-sea-like white
oohs ahhs
dining room) and the onion soup with foie gras cappuccino to the airbread cubano ($12),
chock full of Swiss foam and topped with house-made pickles and Ibérico pork meat that
literally explodes in your mouth. Try a bevy of fusion tapas that pay homage to the
Caribbean, Asia, and the Americas while still keeping a Miami taste and feel. Take, for
instance, the coffee with foie gras, yuca churros with peanut butter and local honey, and
conch fritters with a liquid center.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 8/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
Pasta heaven
Courtesy of Macchiali
2. Macchialina
They say the way to the heart is through the stomach, and in the case of Macchialina, that
maxim couldn't be truer. Not only can you feel the love that business and life partners Jen
Chaefsky and former Scarpetta chef de cuisine Michael Pirolo have put into the cozy and
quaint space, but you can also taste it in every bite of Pirolo's house-made pastas and creamy
polenta loaded with sausage ragu ($14). (It will become your new point of comparison for
polenta.) Perhaps you'll want the beet-filled mezzaluna crowned with hazelnuts or the butter
ricotta salata or the parpadelle Bolognese with rabbit and sausage fonduta. And on a good
night, you might be offered à la minute risotto, making Macchialina the best Italian restaurant
not only in South Beach but in the entire city.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 9/10
7/15/2015 The Ten Best South Beach Restaurants | Miami New Times
OoOooOoOoOoO
Courtesy of Ool
1. Oolite
An offspring of Mango Gang member and James Beard Award nominee Kris Wessel, this 284-
seater happens to be gluten-free (although you'd never taste it). The salubrious and tropical
Florida-inspired fare is crave-worthy whether you'll be lounging in a bikini or completing a
post-doobie munchies session with Anthony Bourdain and Iggy Pop. If the duck gumbo,
lechón with sour pork and orange, and Wessel's famed barbecue shrimp ($14) are good
enough for the globetrotting host of CNN's and Miami's resident rock legend,
Parts Unknown
as well as good enough to win Oolite ' Best South Beach Restaurant, they're good
New Times
enough for you.
Follow Carla on Twitter and Facebook.
AROUND THE WEB Newport Bay Restaurant
©2015 Miami New Times, LLC. All rights reserved.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/restaurants/the-ten-best-south-beach-restaurants-7705822 10/10You can also read
