Food

Miami Spice 2022 Plus My Picks!

Casa Mariano Lobster Thermidor and parmesan risotto

Miami Spice 2022 is back from the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) , running from now to September 30. This year, along with a full list of participants, I’ve featured picks of some of my favorite restaurants and their complete menus plus my experience at one of them. See below for Part 2 with more lunch and dinner experiences. More than 200 restaurants are participating, 35 recently opened or first timers. Enjoy prix fixe, three-course meals for $28 for lunch/brunch, and, new this year, the option of $45 or $60 for dinner, all per person.

Hutong and my experience

Miami Spice 2022 Offering; Lunch, Monday to Friday $28 per person; Dinner, Monday to Friday, $60 per person

Menus:

Lunch includes Appetizer: a choice of beef and egg broth or corn and egg broth soup; Entrees, choose one, are scallop soba noodles, kung po chicken or tofu, spiced peking duck salad; Choice of chef’s fried rice or steamed rice; dessert of ginger chocolate mousse. Half a Peking duck with pancake is offered for $50 (minimum of two). Side dishes bring a supplemental charge of $9 and include ginger kai lan, vegetarian fried noodles and four season beans.

Dinner includes an appetizer choice of beef and egg broth, lobster and crab broth, or corn and egg broth. Choice of one entree from spiced Peking duck salad, pan seared prime beef tenderloin, Mapo tofu (tofu in a garlic szechuan sauce) and king po chicken or tofu; choice of chef’s fried rice or steamed rice; dessert of ginger chocolate mousse. Side dishes as above with a supplement. Optional half Peking duck with pancake, minimum of two people, $50.

Address: 600 Brickell Avenue

My experience at lunch: My friend and I enjoyed the beef, tofu and egg broth and corn and egg broth soups which were both light and tasty. The Kung Po chicken, a specialty of Hutong, was a fave as usual. The chicken was tender and flavorful, with the cashews adding a welcome crunch, and just enough sauce to lightly cover everything but not overwhelm the flavors. We opted for the supplemental half Peking duck with pancake and all the trimmings, which is another fave here.

The portion was just right, serving two, the meat tender, and the skin perfectly crisp. Duck lovers will also find on the menu spiced Peking duck salad, but note that it’s pieces of duck rather than slices and without the skin. Other salad ingredients included red and green cabbage and carrots in a light dressing. We didn’t try the scallop soba noodles which are on the agenda for next time. Having to get our vegetable fix, we opted for the ginger kai lan (broccoli) which were fresh, tender and crisp in a slightly sweet sauce (a supplemental charge for sides). Dessert was an elegant ginger chocolate mousse with a crunchy chocolate coating, accompanied by white and black sesame ice cream, which went perfectly with the sweet and slightly spicy menu. And last but not least, how could I not mention the oh so stylish ambiance and excellent service we received.

For more first hand experiences at lunch and dinner, see post below:

Miami Spice, Experiences, Part 2

COTE MIAMI

Miami Spice Offering: $28 Lunch

Menu:

Dishes include Waldorf Salad and Steak Tartare for appetizers; limited edition fried chicken and Optimus prime rib on a baguette as entrees or, for an additional $12 per person, their famous butcher’s luncheon ; and housemade soft serve ice cream topped with soy sauce caramel for dessert.

Address: 3900 NE 2^nd Avenue in Miami’s Design District

LEKU

Miami Spice 2022 Offering: $28 Lunch; $45 or $60 Dinner

Menus:

For $45 dinner, appetizer choice of beet tartare, short rib sliders on a bun, seasonal tomato and basil cracker, Key West shrimp in garlic sauce ($10 supplement). Entrees include wild mushroom rice (a fave), salmon and cauliflower, confit cod, braised Wagyu veal cheeks with sweet potato mash and crispy chips; for a $20 supplement slow cooked rack of lamb. Dessert choices are smoked ice cream, traditional Basque cake or Basque cheese tart ($6 supplement).

Miami Spice 2022, Leku, Miamicurated — Wild mushroom rice at Leku

For $60 dinner appetizer choice includes potato salad with house cured salmon, Key West pink shrimp in garlic sauce, truffled Spanish omelette (another fave) and foie gras terrine for a $5 supplement, Main course choices are wild mushroom rice, salmon and cauliflower, duck breast, braised Wagyu veal cheeks and rack of lack ($15 supplement). Desserts include Smoked Ice Cream, cold pressed beet juice, Chocolate ganache tart and basque cheese tart.

For $28 lunch appetizers include beet tartare, seasonal tomato and basil cracker, and confit of leeks. Main courses are truffled Spanish omelette, short rib sliders on a bun, braised Wagyu veal cheeks and salmon and cauliflower. Dessert choices are smoked ice cream and Basque cheese tart ($6 supplement).

Address: 1100 NW 23rd Street in Miami

FIOLA MIAMI

Miami Spice 2022 Offering: $28 Lunch (Tuesday-Friday); $28 Sunday Brunch; and $60 Dinner (Sunday-Thursday)

Menus :

Dinner menu for $60 includes, for appetizer, colors of the garden salad, burrata sundried tomato pesto, zucchini arugula salad, cobia ceviche, bison steak tartare. Entrees include roasted summer zucchini with wood oven calabaza, oyster mushrooms, apricot agrodolce, fusilloni al pesto; yellowtail snapper alla puttanesa;, whole wheat rigatoni; braised Berkshire pork shoulder; grilled wood oven delmonico. Dessert choices are mascarpone tart, mango pavlova, coffee mousse and coconut parfait.

Lunch menu for $28 is a choice of three courses: appetizers are ricotta peach bruschetta, panzanella salad, cobia ceviche,pepper crusted beef carpaccio ($8 supplement). Entree choices include spaghettoni aglio e olio, radiatori cacio e pepe, cauliflower steak, Aquanaria grilled branzino and 7 ounce prime delmonico steak ($12 supplement). Dessert offerings are macedonia di frutta, copetta sorbetto, and 66% chocolate Valrhona chocolate terrine and a choice of coffee, espresso or tea.

Address: 1500 San Ignacio Ave in Coral Gables

CASA MARIANO

Miami Spice 2022 Offering: $60 Dinner; $28 Sunday Brunch

Menu

Dinner menu includes, for appetizer, choice of surf and turf (seared scallops, tenderloin tartare), Italian burrata salad. Entrees include short ribs sous vide with mashed potatoes, lobster thermidor with risotto. Desserts are a choice of lava fig cake and creme fraiche ice cream or strawberry and pistachio pavlova.

The brunch menu includes a choice of two from huevos rancheros, crispy chicken waffles, croissant boat with pork belly, spinach, eggs and cheese; crab cake benedict, flat bread with smoked salmon and brie spread; and mini Wagyu burgers (2). Then choose one for dessert, either bananas foster French toast or pancakes.

Address: 8200 NW 27th St, Suite 106 in Doral

Participants in Miami Spice 2022 include the following: Click on the name to see the specific restaurant menu. And for more information, visit MiamiTemptations.com.

Also on this month are Miami Spa Months 2022. In case you missed the post, click here.

Karen Escalera

3 Responses

Roxane says:

Aug 10, 2022 at 9:11 am

I went to Milos for Miami Spice and it was fabulous!

Reply
1. Karen Escalera says:
  
  Aug 10, 2022 at 4:56 pm
  
  They always do a great job!
  
  Reply
Sandra Elliott says:

Aug 10, 2022 at 6:08 pm

I went to Sexy Fish today for lunch. The venue is lovely and the bathrooms amazing! Most of the dishes we had were excellent, great presentation, creatively done seafood both cooked and sushi style. The desserts (fresh tropical fruit or donuts with 2 sauces) weren’t as exciting as other restaurants but over all it was definitely worth a visit.

Reply