In visiting family in Miami, I had three places I identified as a top priority to return to. Anything else I encountered would be a bonus. I was fortunate that I got to all three.
First was Etzel Itzik, an Israeli deli in North Miami. This tiny spot is as humble as it gets. They quickly placed four dishes on the table as my ‘salad.’ Chickpeas, carrots, pickled vegetables, and corn. All delightful.
It was Saturday, and I got the special of the day, cholent. This was a wicked good mess of food. A stew roasted overnight with lamb, potato, kishke, bone marrow, beans, and barley. The texture of the barley was fantastic. The stew had a spicy zip to it. Rich and tasty with a kick. I was in heaven.
Next up is the asado negro at European Corner, a postage stamp of a place in Coral Gables. Asado negro is pot roast in a sugar cane sauce. Dark and mysterious looking, very sweet but also with a deep burnt flavor from the sugary sauce. Served with the best black bean dish I’ve ever had, with onion, cilantro and garlic. Great firmness to the beans. And even the white rice here is exceptionally tasty. The only equal I’ve ever had was in a Cambodian restaurant in Long Beach, CA. I also got a slice of pan de jamon, a Christmas-time dish with ham, cheese, raisins and olives baked into a loaf of bread. You could order this ahead any time of year, but you would have to order a whole loaf.
Asado Negro:
The last of my triumvirate was delicious, but also a bit of a letdown. The pastel de choclo at Sabores Chilenos was sweeter than I remembered. It is like a beef stew topped with cornbread batter and baked, but the stew part was skimpy and the cornbread too sweet. Still, it comes out bubbly hot and very nice. Also ordered sea urchin and seared corvina, both ok, but not better.
I had two Cuban meals, one traditional at the famous Versailles and also at an upscale and modern place, Marabu. Marabu is in an airy complex downtown that has stunning architecture, and is a great venue. Had three dishes, the most impressive being the maduro tentacion. A whole plantain is split, stuffed with a bacon jam, and covered with smoked mozzarella. It gets cooked in a charcoal fired ‘josper oven’ which renders it all blackened and ashy on the outside. When the ashes mix in with a special sauce lying underneath, it becomes wonderful. The sauce is maple syrup with rum, cinnamon, and cloves. Another dish was tasajo over tamal in cazuela, a subtle dish of short rib meat and corn pudding that was a nice foil to the maduro. The disappointment was octopus cooked in the josper over with a slight char. It was nothing special for flavor or texture.
Maduro Tentacion at Marabu:
Versailles, was good, not great. I was disappointed by the croquetas and the fact that, even though I only wanted ham, you could only order them as a mix of ham, fish, and chicken. The fish is worthless, and the chicken had a cold interior. Other dishes were solid.
Hate Mondays Tavern in South Miami is located in an extra tiny space that is a real surprise. It’s in a business park, but once you open the door you are in a miniature country bar, darkly-lit with blaring twangy music. It’s almost comical how they can fit everything* they need in this space. They do 100% wood smoked bbq using post oak, and it comes out completely tender, crusty, and smoky. Hard to find better ribs anywhere.
*Thankfully the smoker is outside.
Ribs at Hate Mondays Tavern:
Lastly, Rakija in Miami Beach is a lively, thumping place with Serbian specials. Ate outdoors and ordered a dish you should try once in your life, the pljeskavica. It’s a very wide burger stuffed with cheese like a balloon inside a freshly baked pita. You can put on toppings of ajvar, a garlic sauce and chopped onions. It is enormous and delicious with spiced crispy meat, but also an insane mess; an explosion of melty cheese. Could feed three people. Even if I return, I doubt I’d order it again, but I’m very glad I had it once. Also tried the sandwich with grilled sausage which was very nice - without the mess.
