Ever since I heard that one of the owners of a fave ,Toscana Divino ,had opened a lower priced Itallan restaurant, Coral House Miami, on Coral Way it had been on my “to try” list. Then when an email announcing $10 pizzas and pastas on Monday arrived in my inbox, it moved up on my list. We finally went with friends for happy hour, and then returned a week later with other friends, all of us pronouncing the food delicious, the prices a very good value even off the regular menu, and its outdoor terrace delightful.
Coral House is literally in what was formerly a small one story home, now painted – you guessed it, coral. There’s indoor seating with a pizza oven on view and basic tables and chairs and a treelined terrace, at night adorned with twinkling lights. The terrace is the place to stay.
The menu is divided into appetizers, salads, from the oven, pizza, pasta, calzone and dessert. There’s also art and pizza which are their signature pizzas. On both occasions we got pizza and pastas along with an artichoke salad we liked so much we repeated it. At the Monday happy hour, there’s a selection of eight pizzas and four pastas from the regular menu and the same size portion – good size personal pizza and a large plate of pasta.,all for $10 each.
We tried the indiavolata and tartufata pizzas.
The former has mozzarella flor di latte, salame and chili, so there’s a little welcome kick; the latter, a fave, has mozzarella, crimping mushrooms, porcini, truffle carpaccio, shaved parmesan and truffle oil. Both had a crispy thin crust, and were very tasty. Of the pastas, our favorites were the spaghetti with pomodoro and basil with a sauce that had a rich , fresh tomato taste and a wonderful mushroom pappardelle with wild mushroom, parmesan cheese and truffle oil . Both were appropriately al dente, and had just the right amount of sauce. Next time I’d like to try the beef ragu pasta and the combo of half calzone and half pizza.
Customer reviews mentioned the veal Milanese as tops. It’s also on my list for next time.
The desserts to get are the limoncello tartufo and pistachio tartufo ($12). Each is an ice cream ball,the former hand dipped in white chocolate and the latter in dark chocolate. They were refreshing, just sweet enough, and delicious.
Prices even outside of happy hour are very reasonable. Everything is priced in the teens with nothing more than $24, including a New York steak with mashed potatoes and grilled branzino with potatoes and carrots.
Wine is also a bargain, with a glass (5 ounce pour) starting at $7.50 and bottles starting at $26.
Service is warm and friendly. There’s a small parking lot in the back for diners, and street parking in the neighborhood. Note that there’s no sign, so look for trees in front of a coral colored one room house.
Coral House Miami, 1762 Coral Way, Miami, FL. www.coralhousemiami.com. It’s open seven days a week for dinner, from 5 to 10 p.m. and brunch on Saturday and Sunday.
And while you’re in the neighborhood, if you haven’t been, stop by Chevre Miami and pick up some wonderful cheeses, charcuterie and gourmet food items. It’s open until 7 p.m. Find out more here.
