This fall, The Standard Spa, Miami Beach {40 Island Avenue, Miami Beach; 786.245.0880} will bring together food, art and activism with its Chefs Stand Up series! Partnering with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), these chef dinners are designed to highlight immigrants and celebrate their contributions to and prowess in the hospitality and service industry.
Spread across three cities, this series will include nine dinners: three each in New York City, Los Angeles, and of course, Miami Beach. Every chef is actively socially conscious, and are recognized as either emerging or established in their field. Past chefs in the Miami installment have included Angela Dimayuga, The Standard’s new Creative Director of Food and Culture; Sarah Hymanson and Sara Kramer (Kismet, Los Angeles); and Nina Clemente.
Specifically in Miami, the 2018 dinners will highlight emerging chefs with Caribbean influences. Here are the three chefs guests can get excited about seeing at The Standard Spa, Miami Beach:
Tuesday, September 25: Devonn Francis (Yardy, NYC), a Jamaican-American chef and performance artist who was named one of “Eater’s Young Guns 2018”
Thursday, October 18: Gerardo Gonzalez (Lalito, NYC), a Mexican-American chef from San Diego known for his Caribbean-style cooking
Thursday, November 8: Anya Peters (Kit an’ Kin, Brooklyn), a Jamaican-Chinese-Trinidadian chef who shares her family’s cultural heritage through a series of pop-up dinners across the country
Can’t make one of the dinners? Don’t worry. As an added bonus, one dish from each participating chef will stay on the menu until the next Chefs Stand Up dinner.
These dinners are priced at $95 per person and include all food, drinks, tax, and gratuity. Reservations are required and tickets are non-refundable. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. Tickets can be purchased here.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor
Florida Stone Crab Timbale from Seaspice
serves one
Ingredients
Citrus Dijon vinaigrette:
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp whole-grain mustard
1 c lemon juice
1 tsp thyme, chopped
1 tsp shallots, chopped
1 1/2 c extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 c safflower oil
1/2 c water
1 1/2 tsp salt
Avocado pesto:
1/2 bunch basil
2 avocado
1/4 tsp garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds, toasted
2 Tbsp safflower oil
1/4 c lime juice
2 Tbsp olives, pitted
2 Tbsp olive juice
Salt and pepper, to taste
Red quinoa:
1 c red quinoa, rinsed
1 1/2 c water
Florida Stone Crab Timbale:
2 bunches mache lettuce
Method
For the vinaigrette: Whisk ingredients together in a bowl until emulsified.
For the pesto: Place all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.
For the quinoa: Cook as rice.
For the timbale: In a bowl, mix three and a half ounces cooked and chilled quinoa, one tablespoon Citrus Dijon Vinaigrette, a half teaspoon salt, and one teaspoon chopped parsley. Set aside. In another bowl, mix three and a half ounces shelled stone crab meat, one tablespoon Citrus Dijon Vinaigrette, one teaspoon chopped parsley, and a half teaspoon salt. Set aside. In a third bowl, drizzle mache lettuce with extra-virgin olive oil. Season the lettuce with salt. Set aside.
To serve: Spoon one tablespoon of avocado pesto on the center of a plate and smooth into a circle. Put a four-inch ring mold on top, and place the red quinoa mix on the bottom, pressing down with a spoon to make it even. In the same ring, add the stone crab mix on top of that, slightly pressing down with a spoon. When it’s firm, carefully slide the ring mold off the plate. Top with seasoned mache lettuce. Sprinkle with toasted pumpkin seeds.
Seaspice is located at 422 NW North River Drive.
LEYNIA Restaurant
Here is this week’s Miami food news:
Wednesday, September 12: Parrilla Con Amigos with Chef Santiago Gomez at LEYNIA
On this one-night-only event, Chef du Cuisine Guillermo Eleicegui, of LEYNIA at Delano South Beach {1685 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 305.674.5752}, will collaborate with Executive Chef Santiago Gomez, of Tacology {701 South Miami Avenue, Brickell; 786.347.5368} and Cantina La Veinte {495 Brickell Avenue, Brickell; 786.623.6135}. Guests who attend will gather around the grill in the famed Delano South Beach Orchard, where they’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at what both esteemed chefs are known for: making artfully-crafted dishes from scratch. Part of a larger dinner series at LEYNIA, called “Parrilla Con Amigos” (or “Grill with Friends”), this dinner will feature dishes by both chefs, along with some surprise collaborations. The meal, which will start at 7:30 p.m., will be served family-style and paired with vintages from Veuve Clicquot. This event is priced at $150++ per person. Seating is limited. Reservations are required and can be made by sending an email to [email protected].
Wednesday, September 12: Cubanito Sabanero at Tacology
Enjoy a Havana Club Rum takeover! On this night only, Gio Gutierrez, of Chat Chow TV, will sling $8 Mexican cocktails with a Cuban flair at Tacology {701 South Miami Avenue, Brickell; 786.347.5368}. The event will run from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., during which guests will be able to munch on bites by Executive Chef Santiago Gomez and vote on their favorite cocktail. Bonus: The winning drink might just land a spot on the Tacology menu.
Thursday, September 13: Zonin Fizz Thursdays at Sardinia Enoteca Ristorante
Every Thursday, Sardinia Enoteca Ristorante {1801 Purdy Avenue, Miami Beach; 305.531.2228} hosts Zonin Fizz Thursdays, serving $5 glasses of Brut Champagne and $8 rosé splits all day long. This restaurant is open from Noon to Midnight on Thursdays.
Sunday, September 16: Locals Night at Tanuki Miami
It’s Locals Night! If you have a Miami Beach ID, bring it to Tanuki Miami {1080 Alton Road, Miami Beach; 305.615.1055} and you’ll get 10% off your bill. The restaurant is open from Noon to 11 p.m., and the deal runs all day long.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor
If you know fine wine, you know Gérard Bertrand. Hailing from the South of France, the globally celebrated winemaker plucks excellence from the vine and seals it by the bottle. With over 40 years of experience in the vineyard and 14 estates located along the rolling hills of the world’s largest wine-producing region, Languedoc-Roussillon, Gérard Bertrand is force to be reckoned with in the winemaking industry. Utilizing biodynamics and holistic farming methods, the Bertrand team delivers high-caliber, authentic products that ignite the palates of wine lovers everywhere.
The Beginning
Gérard Bertrand found that winemaking was in his blood from a tender age. Born to a man who was a wine visionary in his own right, Bertrand was already working in a vineyard at just 10-years-old. The Bertrand name pioneered the early wine scene in southern France. His father, one of the first in the region to barrel wine, helped to shed the region’s stigma of a mass-producing mediocre wine town.
A New Approach
After taking over the family business, Bertrand took winemaking to the next level with environmentally conscious agriculture and a homeopathic approach to farming, including the usage of star and moon charts for optimal planting and harvesting windows. With absolutely no GMO’s, artificial fertilizers, or chemical sprays—and an appreciation for the value brought by patience and accuracy—Gérard Bertrand wines have an authenticity not found elsewhere.
Languedoc
A driving force behind landing the region on the winemaker’s map, Bertrand still cultivates all of his wines exclusively on his home turf. Contrary to popular belief, the first documented case of sparkling wine came about 150 years before the Benedictine monk, Dom Pérignon, began producing it from the Champagne region of France. It was the spring of 1531 at the Abbaye de St. Hilaire—nestled between Carcassonne and Limoux in the Languedoc region—when a group of monks discovered that the still wine they’d laid down in the winter was now glistening with bubbles. Using methods developed long before his time, in the true birthplace of sparkling wine, Bertrand produces some of the market’s best bubbly.
Code Rouge, a Crémant de Limoux
An alternative to Champagne that doesn’t compromise quality, Bertrand’s Code Rouge is a sparkling wine made with a blend of Chardonnay, Chenin, and Mauzac. Harvesting the grapes manually and pressing them with a pneumatic press, the juice is fermented at 64-degrees Fahrenheit and aged for a minimum of 36 months. Coming exclusively from the Limoux territory, the Crémant is pale and crystalline in color with fine bubbles. With a bouquet that is floral with notes of pear and fresh citrus fruit, the texture comes off as fresh and mineral on the palate. This wine is best served as an aperitif and pairs well with sushi, fish with cream sauces, goat cheese, or fresh fruit salads with basil.
By Peyton Garcia | Dining Out Content Editor
They call this cocktail The Myth, but if you ask us, it’s the real deal. Find this whimsical unicorn cocktail at Pao by Paul Qui {3201 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 786.655.5600}, and after you fall in love with it, play bartender and whip one up for yourself. We’ve got the recipe, below!
Here’s how it’s made:
Build 1 1/2 ounces Absolut Elyx, 1/2 ounce Cherry Heering, 1/2 ounce Coco Lopez, 1/2 ounce pineapple juice, 1/2 ounce ginger syrup, and 3/4 ounces lemon juice in a shake tin. Add one large scoop of crushed or pebble ice. Whip-shake back and forth. Pour into an Absolut Elyx Copper Unicorn, if you have one. (Otherwise, any cocktail glass will do.) Top with two ounces club soda.
Head to Seaspice {422 NW North River Drive, Miami; 305.440.4200} for a smooth, Ron Barceló cocktail with a zingy twist: the Stormy Daze. Sip it, love it, and come home and make it for yourself. We’ve got the recipe, below!
Here’s how it’s made:
Pour 1 1/2 ounces Barceló Añejo and fresh lime juice from half a lime into a shaker. Shake vigorously. Pour into a Collins glass, over crushed ice. Top off with ginger beer and garnish with a lime wheel.
Angel’s Envy Paper Plane from StripSteak by Michael Mina
Across the nation, September is National Bourbon Heritage Month—and while we already gave you our list of what to drink in Miami to celebrate—the Fontainebleau Miami Beach {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 800.548.8886} has given us a few more bevvies and bites to consider. All month long, head to the hotel’s high-end, award-winning restaurants and bars for specialty bourbon cocktails, flights, and even spirit-infused bites that you won’t find anywhere else.
The first place to start is none other than the Fontainebleau’s resident steakhouse: StripSteak by Michael Mina {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; , where, even when it’s not National Bourbon Heritage Month, you’ll still find top-notch bourbon drinks all year long. This month, be sure to try two of its signature cocktails: the Yama Japanese Drip Infusion with Woodford Reserve infused with chocolate, banana, coconut, and espresso beans, and the Angel’s Envy Paper Plane with Angel’s Envy Bourbon, Aperol, Nonino, and fresh lemon juice.
In addition to that, for this month only, the restaurant will offer three curated experiences centered around acclaimed American bourbons, like The Perfect 10 flight with half-ounce pours of Russell’s Reserve 10 year, Michter’s 10 year, and Eagle Rare 10 Year. Similarly, the Julian’s Legacy flight has half-ounce pours of Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Year, Pappy Van Winkle Special Reserve 12 year, and Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 15 year. Finally, the Gems of the Rickhouse flight highlights extremely rare, small-batch bourbons, and includes half-ounce pours of Michter’s Celebration, A.H. Hirsch 16 Year (1974 bottling), and Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 20 Year. Proving just how rare it is… that last flight is priced at $335 per person.
But like we said, it’s not just about the drinks. At Chez Bon Bon {4441 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 305.674.4727Fontainebleau’s chic coffee shop and patisserie, hungry patrons can get bourbon-infused treats like Signature Sinatra Bourbon Chocolate Bon Bons and Sinatra Bourbon Caramel Flan with Burnt Orange Cream all month long.
National Bourbon Heritage Month specials will run through September 30, 2018.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor
Shrimp Linguine from Seaspice
serves one
Ingredients
5 Jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
6 oz fresh linguine (dry linguine can be substituted)
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
1 shallot, sliced thin
1 oz Parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 lemon, zested
1/2 lemon, juiced (plus one squeeze of lemon juice, for garnish)
1 plum tomato, peeled and diced
Pinch of crushed red pepper
3 oz white wine
2 oz olive oil
3 oz shrimp or chicken stock
3 oz butter
Salted boiling water
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 oz chives, chopped, for garnish
Salmon roe, for garnish
Method
Add one ounce olive oil to sauté pan and sear shrimp on both sides. Remove shrimp from the pan. Add another ounce of olive oil, along with the garlic, shallot, tomato, crushed red pepper, and lemon zest. Lightly sauté until sauce is translucent. Deglaze the sauce with white wine and let it reduce by half. Add stock and let the sauce reduce by another half. Add salt and pepper. Let it sit.
Cook fresh linguine in salted boiling water for three minutes, or if using dry pasta, for 11 minutes. Drain. Coat the cooked linguine with butter. Add shrimp back to the sauté pan with the sauce, then combine that with the buttered linguine, lemon juice, and Parmesan cheese in a serving bowl. Twirl the pasta mixture, adding in excess shrimp and sauce while you do.
To serve: Garnish with chives, a fresh squeeze of lemon juice, and salmon roe. Serve warm.
Seaspice is located at 422 NW North River Drive.
When you’re looking for a good steak dinner in Doral, there’s nowhere better to go than BLT Prime {4400 NW 87 Avenue, Doral; 305.591.6606} at the Trump National Doral. But in those short hours between work and dinner, drinks are in order—and BLT Prime has you covered.
Just in time for fall, belly up to the BLT Prime bar, which overlooks the beautiful Blue Monster golf course, and enjoy a new-and-improved happy hour every weekday, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Start your night with haute cocktails, like the Ambrose with Brugal rum, orange curacao, and honey ginger syrup, the Lychee Martini with Finlandia vodka, lychee, and St. Germain liqueur, and more for just $5, $10, or $15. Or if you don’t want a mixer getting in the way of your alcohol, sip on a glass of Monkey Shoulder scotch, Tullamore Dew whiskey, or Tin Cup whiskey; order a glass of white or red wine, drink a beer, or make your night a bubbly one with a flute of Caposaldo Prosecco.
And with Chef Steve Mendez at the helm, you better believe there are some tasty sharing plates to go with it. Get $5 bar Bites like Day Boat Ceviche with chulpe corn, avocado, and aji amarillo, or Marinated Olives tossed with lemon, herbs, and Manchego cheese. For $10, skip dinner and chow down on the Fresh Maine Lobster BLT, which piles tropical slaw, smoked bacon, and pico de gallo on a toasted Hawaiian bun, or get the Spicy Ahi Tuna Tacos with citrus ponzu, Sriracha aioli, and micro cilantro. For $15, the Slider Trio with beef, pork and salmon sliders are always a good idea, as are any of the chef’s combo dishes—which pair the Chef’s Board of cheese and charcuterie with wine, or the From the Sea oyster plate with a glass of Prosecco.
…and that’s all before dinner.
To see the full happy hour menu, click here. Discounted valet parking is available, with validation, for $5 per car.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor
The Speck-Tacular Now
September is National Bourbon Heritage Month—and we’re not just saying that. (The U.S. Government says it, too.) In fact, in 2007, the U.S. Senate declared it, turning every September thereafter, across the nation, into a celebration of bourbon as America’s “Native Spirit.”
With September just days away, we’ve rounded up seven bourbon cocktails in Miami you can toast to the month with. Read below to find out what they are, why we love them, and of course, where you can find them.
Play Thyme
From: NaiYaRa {1854 Bay Road, Miami Beach; 786.275.6005}
Why we love it: Light and refreshing, this Rebel Yell bourbon cocktail is flavored with freshly-juiced pineapple and two sprigs of thyme.
Lawn Flamingo
From: Matador Bar {2901 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; 786.257.4600}
Why we love it: It’s mixes Buffalo Trace Bourbon with Torres Spanish Brandy, Aperol, grapefruit, guava, lime, and Peychaud’s Bitters.
The Speck-Tacular Now
From: Macchialina {820 Alton Road, Miami Beach; 305.534.2124}
Why we love it: This oddly-delicious concoction mixes speck-infused Old forester with honey clove syrup and Jamaican #1.
Tanuki Old Fashioned
From: Tanuki {1080 Alton Road, Miami Beach; 305.615.1055}
Why we love it: Here, Evan Williams is infused with ginger and caraway, while aromatic bitters punch up the drink a notch.
Berry Infused Bourbon
From: R House {2727 NW 2 Avenue, Wynwood; 305.576.0201}
Why we love it: Together, Evan Williams, berry purée, and lime juice make a perfectly-sweet sipper.
Boulevardier
From: Morton’s The Steakhouse {1200 Brickell Avenue, Brickell; 305.400.9990}
Why we love it: Woodford Reserve Bourbon, Campari Bitter, and Carpano Antica Formula Sweet Vermouth are strained over the restaurant’s Proprietary Ice Cube—and it tastes delicious with a juicy steak.
Whiskey Rye Manhattan
From: The River Seafood Oyster Bar {650 South Miami Avenue, Brickell; 305.530.1915}
Why we love it: It combines Russell’s Reserve 6-Year Rye, Carpano Antica, and brandied cherries.
Happy dining!
By Jennifer Agress | Miami Editor