Celebrity food products are all over the shelves of supermarkets these days. Some bear labels with Hollywood names such as Paul Newman and Paul Sorvino; others derive from TV chefs like Lidia Bastianich, Emeril Lagasse, and Giada de Laurentiis. Certain restaurants with national allure sell signature items, like Original Bookbinder’s…
The windows of Bar-B-Que Beach, the popular South Beach emporium of wood-smoked meats, are covered in somber brown paper. (Bar-B-Que Beach Two in North Miami folded a couple of years ago.) A posted sign thanks customers for their support through the years and announces that Hogzilla’s Inspired Barbecue will move…
Beautifully grilled steaks and equally exquisite vegetable dishes were our top two reasons for tapping 1500 Degrees at Eden Roc Miami New Times’ Best Steak House this year. But if there is one thing the Miami dining scene doesn’t lack, it is stellar steak houses. Here are our other five favorites:…
Labor Day weekend brings hamburgers, hot dogs, barbecued chicken, cole slaw, some baked beans, chips and salsa (and perhaps guacamole), ice cream, beer, lemonade … well, we can go on quite awhile with this list. Every one of these foods has a fascinating history (except for maybe the baked beans),…
Miami has breakfast chains such as Denny’s, IHOP, and the like. We boast a few two-bit diners and coffee shops too, as well as fancy hotel establishments that offer ostentatious brunch buffets on weekends. Michael’s Genuine serves cool breakfast items on Sundays, as do perhaps a couple of other restaurants…
City Hall offers popular food for the masses
A restaurant is like a lawn chair. It opens and closes, opens and closes, opens and closes until one day, for whatever reason, after closing, it never reopens (serves you right for buying it at Walgreens). A new chair takes its place.There were lots of restaurant openings in June, much…
Agreed that words like best and ugliest shouldn’t be thrown about too lightly, but have you been to Elie’s Cafe?It’s on the second level of the Galeria Internacional mall — every other business on the second level appears to have gone as bankrupt as Greece. The only real visuals are…
Bryan Underwood opened a tiny bakeshop/market called Bryan in the Kitchen this past May (written about here). He recently took over the larger space next door as well — where Pesen’s Breads & Panini used to be — and began serving lunch.The blackboard menu comprises smoothies, salads, panini, grilled cheese sandwiches, and…
Oliver’s Bistro has occupied the South Beach corner of West Avenue and Ninth Street for about eight years now. The occupation has been a quiet one — when is the last time you read about Oliver’s Bistro? — but residents of this mondo condo neighborhood (and a surprising number of…
“Each year for more than a decade, we have embarked on a dyspepsia-inducing quest for the finest flapjacks in town.” So goes the first sentence of this year’s Flapjack Flip-Off XI, which pretty much sums up the story thus far. This season we surveyed seven plates of pancakes and contributed…
Flapjack Flip-Off XI: Miami’s best pancakes 2011
Last week, we took a look at a slew of websites devoted to stingy celebrity tippers, and compiled our master list of the ten most notorious cheapskates. Now it’s time to cross over to the sunny side of the street, where the “haves” have not just money, but class. The…
Casablanca Seafood Bar & Grill was Miami New Times’ pick for Best Seafood on the River this year. We also honored Blue Door Fish with Best Seafood on the Beach, and my neighbor Sal was thrilled to receive the Best Seafood by Lee’s Neighbor award. Still, there are a few other fine…
Barbara Walters once infamously asked Katherine Hepburn: “If you were a tree, what kind would it be?” It is in that spirit that we attempt to figure out: If each Republican Presidential candidate were a food, what kind would he or she be?(Let us assure any Republican readers who may…
In the summer of ’09, the husband/wife team of chef Martin and pastry chef Charo Villacorta fulfilled a lifelong dream by opening Martini 28. For their location, they chose what is called “the Village,” a quaint outdoor minimall of restaurants across the street from the Miami Tower in downtown Miami.The…
Five Napkin Burger versus BGR the Burger Joint
A good restaurant name can help bring in business. It can reflect the specific type of cuisine being served (Prime Italian), the restaurant’s philosophy (Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink), or even remind people where the venue is located (11th St. Diner). In general, the moniker should be easy to remember…
For the past five years, chef Mauro Luise has been serving home-cooked Italian food in his Caffé di Mauro at the back end of Kafka’s Cybercafé (and used bookstore). Kafka was the largest and oldest cybercafé in Miami Beach, but as of August 1, it has relinquished the property.In the…
Hominy, Tater Tots, beef jerky, mac & cheese, pickled vegetables, Red Velvet cake…lots of classic (and in some cases forgotten) comestibles have come on strong in recent times. Menus pay such ubiquitous homage to our national dishes that it’s difficult to think of homegrown regional comfort foods that haven’t been…
TMZ reported that President Obama “dropped over $200” on a burger lunch for himself and a large group of campaign volunteers at Ted’s Bulletin Restaurant in Washington, D.C. — and that he “tipped more than 35%.”However, not all famous people are as generous. In fact, our elite tier of celebrities makes…
The Restaurant at The Setai was selected as the Best Hotel Restaurant in this year’s Best of Miami issue. The cuisine and decor there are stunning. Yet Miami is currently blessed with such an abundance of fine dining establishments within hotels that praiseworthy places such as Area 31, Azul, BLT…
