It was by sheer accident that we stumbled upon a newly opened Il Grissino Ristorante in Coral Gables. Just more than a week old, the Italian restaurant occupies the space that formerly housed La Gastronomia and an adjoining shop. There’s one thing the new place has certainly done well: transformed…
Kwanzaa, celebrated from December 26 through January 1, celebrates the seven principles of self awareness: unity, self determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. It’s a Pan-African compilation of harvest festivals that uses corn (to symbolize children) on a mat along with a seven-candle holder called…
After nine years of packing them in at 1223 Lincoln Road, AltaMar’s Claudio Giordano has partnered with chef Simon Stojanovic to open a sister venture ALTAMARE just steps away. The restaurant, due to debut sometime around the middle of next month, will be triple the size of the current space…
A fun time was had by all at the Jonathan Eismann restaurant tour last week. The event was held in cahoots with Friends of the James Beard Foundation as a means of raising funds for the organization as well as to showcase new developments on the west side of the…
Chef Gonzalo Rivera says Miami is on its way to becoming a real food city. The well-traveled Michael Mina protégé from Northern Cali says, “Homestead is the new California.”Rivera is from Chico, “about an hour north of Sacramento, a real small town.” But after graduating from California Culinary Academy in…
A snippet of the New Times restaurant review for next week.Pamela’s Delicatessen is a combination mini-market/bakery/cafe/full service Chilean restaurant. The first three are housed in the front room: dry food imports on the shelves, breads and wines in wooden racks, a smattering of tables clustered before glowing display cases of…
It’s all about The U. It’s a Canes thing. Miami loved the Hurricanes more than the Dolphins. Sloppy Jose, glass bottle Coke.Miami’s own Billy Corben, from Dade County’s own Cocaine Cowboy producing Rakontur, premiered his new ESPN Films commissioned The U about the University of Miami Hurricane football teams of…
There’s something about Wish that seems to make culinary dreams come true, and its latest superstar, Executive Chef Marco Ferraro, appears to be skipping along the same path as a long line of extraordinary talent. First was Gary Robins, who eventually ended up at The Russian Tea Room, then came…
D-Rod Cuba, as we like to call it, opens in the Hotel Astor on South Beach tonight. Dinner starts at 6 p.m. daily, and through the month of December all first-time diners will get choice of mojito or daiquiri on the house. Tapas encompass traditional bites such as ham croquetas…
His new Q and Fin restaurants in the Design District are getting set to open. Short Order be taking a peek tonight and reporting it tomorrow, but we wanted to at least find out one or two things about those new ventures beforehand, and Jonathan obliged.New Times: Could you give…
Stone Grill 95 in Surfside has a rocky start
This past Sunday, more than 500 voices rang out strong in Lakeland at Publix headquarters. Students, farm workers, religious leaders, and concerned citizens came together to protest the supermarket company. It has refused to align itself with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) in protecting against human rights abuses and…
“We’re doing great. Everything’s totally perfect and organized” says Chef Jonathan Eismann with a sly smile. “Look. The last week before opening a restaurant is really frantic, and we’re three weeks away officially. We’re actually gonna be doing a special private event here in a week, but the idea of…
Ivy at the Grove, which has taken over the 535 seats of the three-story former Christabelle’s Quarter, is being billed as “British-style” — not a very nice thing to say about a restaurant! (More specifically, it will feature “modern American and British comfort food.”) The ground floor will feature a…
The Brickell neighborhood now has another reason to pig out on tasty burgers and dogs with a Latin twist: The Munchies at Brickell. Down the street from Colombian restaurant La Moon, which has held a monopoly on this cuisine on SW Eighth Street, the Munchies opened Saturday night. It offers…
A short preview of next week’s New Times Cafe review:There are certain things that rookie restaurateurs can do to increase their odds for success. For instance, having a workable phone number can be surprisingly helpful. When we dialed the month-old Stone Grill 95 in Surfside in order to make reservations,…
The Clever Collective is an art consortium from Brooklyn who we saw set up in the driveway of a house on 29th Street between North Miami Avenue and NW Second Avenue selling cookies, lemonade, and custom bags.The bake sale benefits the Clever Collective and the girls procured their prime real…
Recognize the name? Chef, caterer and restaurateur Ken Lyon is the force behind the Design District’s Fratelli Lyon, catering company Lyon + Lyon, and the new Cape Cod Room in The Bath Club. He’s served up three decades worth of food all over the eastern United States, but Lyon started his career as…
The Biltmore Hotel’s Palme d’Or swept the Top Food, Decor and Service honors in this year’s just released Zagat 2010 Miami/So. Florida Restaurants guidebook ($14.95). That’s the Triple Crown baby — and a well-deserved accolade. We like the way chef Philippe Ruiz cooks too.Hakkasan nabbed the nod as top newcomer…
Tarry at Mai Tardi in the Design District
Last night, MOCA North Miami teamed up with Vanity Fair magazine to kick off Art Basel Miami 2009 with a big time opening party for their “Reach Of Realism” exhibit. The show examines and questions realism in the age of digital manipulation and staged reality. It was sponsored by the…
Chef’s Fest by Carbonell, “Spain’s favorite olive oil”, will take place December 9th to 19th. This translates to Carbonell olive oil running through various three-and-four course fixed-price menus ($35 to $45) served for this special occasion at the following establishments: Au Pied de Cochon; Casa Juancho; Graziano’s Brickell; La Cofradia;…
