We were last there June 29.
We have a favorite manager who moved there about a year ago. His name is Marco. Feel free to use my name. He will give you some extra attention.
I think the wines were about $80 each.
Thanks, but I can go to Lucali here in Brooklyn anytime! Or not, given the crazy hype and many hours of waiting for … pizza.
A few recent experiences:
Mandolin Aegean Bistro - excellent Greek and Turkish a block or two from the Design District. Laid back vibe, but it’s a hard table to get, even on a Monday night. Staff is great, friendly and eager to please. Interesting wine list, too. We had the '16 Clos Cibonne Tibouren Cuvée Spéciale des Vigneltes, to my palate, one of the best Provencal rosé and not too common. Will definitely return.
KYU - Asian fusion in Wynwood. This place is super trendy and service is spotty, but the Asian-fusion food is quite good.
Alter - chef’s tasting menu only, and the chef trained under Grant Achatz at Alinea, so it’s molecular gastronomy with foams and such, even though we were told that calling them foams is discouraged. Interesting wine list. The tasting menu started strong but then ended flat, as more than one course was excessively salted and the funky combinations grew a bit tiring. I enjoyed the meal overall, but for the price, not hurrying back.
Casa d’Angelo - the flagship in Fort Lauderdale now has branches in Boca and Aventura, although we returned to Lauderdale. Is it cutting edge? No, it’s not, but it’s solid and reliable and very satisfying. The wine list is excellent and the quality of the food is undeniable. The kind of place to bring one’s parents who like good food and are impressed with old school stalwarts, which this is.
Macchialina on South Beach sounds very good. Anyone been ? I have a business dinner the week of 12/16 but right now the host is leaning towards STK. Very different experience and price points. Macchialina sounds like it might not be a great spot for a group of 10 ?
I ate there and the food was excellent.However, the room was noisy so it might not be great for a business meeting of 10.
Thanks Richard. I may an evening when it’s a much smaller group that we’ll target. You confirmed what I was thinking.
We ended up going to Macchialina on South Beach. Our group for night 2 actually grew to 15 and the restaurant did a fantastic job on short notice. We did a 6pm seating and a multi course tasting menu for $59 per. 4 courses and 10 different dishes. Great food and service and quite the value especially on the beach.
Another vote for Mandolin. Reminded me of some of the best restaurants in Greece, where simple ingredients are cooked to perfection. Amazing food, very nice vibe sitting in the garden and great wine list. Had a Gruner Veltliner with my fish. Long wait for table, but worth it.
Macchialina is great and the owners are very corkage friendly. For the beach its one of the best.
Tigertail & Mary in the Grove has some interesting things going on. Food is good and wine list is improving. They are having a somm slam on 1/27 with Danial Toral from Florida Wine Co. (one of the better somm’s in Miami).
Fiola in the Gables is excellent (quite pricey) and has free corkage on Mondays.
Also if in town worth checking out new Four Seasons Surf Club build out of La Sirenuse and the Surf Club Restaurant. Food at the restaurant is over-priced given the Thomas Keller name but the property is really stunning and worth having at least a glass of wine at the bar.
Cory
Our last trip for awhile we hit Miami Beach before spending the weekend in Key Largo. We went to Macchialina and my wife loved it as much as I did from my prior business dinners. It really is an a terrific restaurant and they really deliver for the $. Only thing someone may not enjoy is it gets pretty loud when it’s full but that didn’t bother us. Really outstanding and a great value for the beach.
+1, really good QPR.