​Last night, the monster magnet lodged at the end of my shopping cart dragged me, yet again, directly to the cookie aisle. I gazed in awe at the vast selection that lined the shelves, wondering where my favorite cookie jar filler could be found. Panic overrode the incessant drooling when I realized the ugly truth: Oreos have morphed into so many incarnations that I could hardly recognize the original.
Isn't it fair to say a brand can only stray so far away from its roots if it wants to keep its audience loyal?
It was then I started to question what exactly an Oreo is. One envisions a small, round, triple-tiered treat: two crisp, dark-colored chocolate cookies with a layer of cream inside. This center layer should be visible from the side and should match the cookie's circumference.
The fall 2009 Allen Brothers catalogue has just been released. For those not familiar with the mail-order meat company, Allen Brothers has been America's leading source of USDA Prime beef since 1893. The company has also been one of the main sponsors of the South Beach Wine & Food Festival and has provided most of the meat for the festivities, including the very meaty Burger Bash and BubbleQ events.
The big news coming out of this edition is the introduction of a "baseball cut strip steak" -- and no, they don't mean a hot dog. This increasingly popular, extra-thick strip promises the "robust flavor and juiciness unique to a strip steak" with the plushness of a fillet. We tried this cut (though not from Allen Brothers) at Miami's Chophouse downtown (formerly Manny's Steaks), and described it thusly: Cut fillet-style from the top sirloin, it is actually closer to softball-size, boasts a strong meat taste, and is overall less like a steak than your own personal roast beef.
Short Order predicts the baseball steak will be a big hit, will score with the fans, will knock it out of the park (stop us when you've had enough). But we wonder why it wasn't premiered in Allen Brothers' spring catalogue so it could be enjoyed around the country during the summer -- you know, the season for baseball, barbecues, outdoor grilling, etc.
Maybe we can mix some jackfruit into Yani's cat food
​I was hanging out at The Standard the other day, and in the lobby encountered Gabriele Marewski of Paradise Farms -- she sells her organic produce to the Standard's Lido Restaurant. Gabriele graciously offered me a jackfruit to take home. I believe she said "Would you like a really big jackfruit?", and I replied "Why not?". When we went to remove the fruit from her van, I was thinking how fortunate it was that I'd taken my car instead of my bike that day.
First question my wife asked when I lugged it into the house was what I intended to do with it. "I haven't the foggiest" I said, and I still don't, but I think ideas will come to me once I get the chainsaw out and cut it open.
​Bengal Modern Indian Cuisine (2010 Biscayne Boulevard) serves up authentic Bangladeshi and North Indian cuisine with a modern twist 7 days a week. And from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. they have an all you can eat lunch buffet for $11.95. Short Order has been to it before, yesterday we went again. Here are the pictures.
May is officially National Hamburger Month, official in the sense that it was enacted as a vast marketing scheme by either White Castle or Krystal depending on whom you ask. We here at Short Order support fast food America, capitalism, and fake holidays, but let's face it, corporate chain burgers suck. Here are our top ten do-it-yourself ways to celebrate
Klime Kovaceski is from Macedonia, not Miami, but during his years as owner of Crystal Cafe (which was on 41st Street in Miami Beach), the personable chef was adopted as a native son by a large and fiercely loyal local clientele. These former patrons will knowingly smile when they hear that Crystal's signature lobster and shrimp cake copped the top prize last week as Best Hot Dish at Share Our Strength's Taste of the Nation event in Charlotte, North Carolina (same benefit to feed hungry kids as the Allen Susser-coordinated Miami affair).
To enjoy these luscious seafood cakes you can do one of two things: 1. Head to Mez, the new Charlotte restaurant in a new EpiCentre entertainment complex that Kovaceski helped to open and currently helms as executive chef. 2. Continue on for his recipe and prepare them yourself.
Boca Bubble Tea is an informal festival operation run by the Ward family. Bubble Tea is flavored sugar water with tapioca pearls at the bottom. Listen to Mr. Ward tell you about it.
Take a table-top tour of authentic Vietnamese cuisine featuring a rice and wonton noodle and vegetable dish, fried rice with Chinese sausage and vegetables, Vietnamese egg rolls, and a jelly dessert with tapioca pearl.
Ian Martin is the brains behind Island Stylee Gourmet Ice Cream, an excellent product I had the opportunity to sample recently. Ian learned about homemade ice cream from a friend and then took the product development on himself seeing in a gourmet ice cream the wide open possibilities of a highly marketable product. Find out more about Ian and Island Stylee by clicking here for his website
Sophia's Thai and Korean has been a vendor at the Asian Culture Festival for 18 years. This year, Sophia was serving some fine foods including a spicy bamboo-strip dish, chicken wings, mixed vegetables, the great-tasting fish on a stick (AKA Thai catfish) and a special Louisiana crawfish.
You can catch Sophia's in the flesh at Wat Miami's Songkran Festival (water festival) and Thai New Year celebration on April 12, 2009. Wat Miami is a Thai Buddhist temple in Homestead officially called Wat Buddharangsi, and it houses a 23-foot-tall golden Buddha. Check it out.
Pancit, Turron, Chicken Adobo -- these are all traditional Filipino dishes, and they were all presented by a family catering company called Asian Fusion Cuisine at the Asian Culture Festival on March 7, 2009. Those interested in Asian Fusion Cuisine should call 954-200-9726.
Moriano, a little art cafe joint on a semi-desolate stretch of NE 2nd Avenue barely south of the Design District, serves what co-owner Jorge Di Cataldo describes as "Italo Argentinian" food. They opened "like 5 months ago," and their most popular sandwiches are The Moriano (meat, caremalized onions, sauteed bacon, tomato, mozzarella) and the Chicken Panini, pictured above (chicken, sauteed mushrooms, brie cheese, dried tomatoes).
Ideas Restaurant in the Grove is all about its name. The lunch specials reflect customers' input. When diners finish their meals Chef Felipe Perez often leaves the kitchen to cull reactions and take requests for future meals. The restaurant also takes e-mail suggestions into consideration when deciding upon lunch specials.
I recently spoke to Ideas Restaurant's business manager and marketing maven Rebecca Perez. Here's what she had to say...
Flashback Diner in Hallandale Beach has been serving the 24-hour eating needs of South Florida for a long time. The guy in the video, John Pozzi, says he's been eating there 40 years, since before it was Flashback. Pozzi was sitting at the counter with a miniature laptop webmastering an eco friendly global banking initiative.
Around 7 or 8 p.m., the place was packed, the parking lot was full, and there was a line out the door. The place is having a St. Patrick's Day promotion. For $18.99, you get corned beef and cabbage, parsley potatoes and mixed vegetables, soup or salad, a loaf of bread, pie a la mode with pistachio ice cream, and a mug of draft beer. The promotion runs from noon to midnight every day until March 17.
Ever wondered what wine goes good with oysters? Well, Marita Leonard from the River Oyster Bar, just south of downtown Miami, will be happy to tell you. She gained her expertise in pairing wines to food by "drinking a lot, eating a lot, and reading a lot." Sounds like the kind of scientific research we could get used to. The River Oyster Bar is currently running several dollar-saving promotions that you can learn about only by calling 305-530-1915.
Motley Crue has come a long way. You think they were serving casino quality beef and turkey at their early LA shows? Hell no. Check out this carving station they had in the lobby of the Hard Rock Live last night for the Crue show. 8 bucks for a plate of fresh carved, hot lamp, heavy metal animal flesh ain't a bad deal, and as clubs editor Jason Handelsman says "delicious.".
The Coral Gables Middle Eastern Festival at The Cathedral of St. George featured food, drink, arts, crafts, and bounce houses. Nothing Middle Eastern about bounce houses, but hey, the kids love 'em. The Cathedral of St. George
The bar might be the best part, a fun and funky gathering spot with 2-for-1 island rum runners all day long, and 2-for-1 drafts and well drinks during daily happy hour (3 to 7 p.m.). The restaurant is open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Shake it Shaka! Downtown needs more places like this.
Ever since Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto unveiled his latest restaurant, Morimoto, in Boca Raton Resort & Club, Short Order has been dying to go. I mean, the man is an Iron Chef,
both on the original Japanese program and the new Food Network
creation, Iron Chef America, and this restaurant, a simple sushi bar
focusing on painstaking, time-honored Japanese preparation, is his
first in South Florida. However, the only snag in our dinner plans was
this: the Boca Resort, in which Morimoto is located, is exclusively
private. Only guests of the hotel or members of the resort are invited
to dine on Morimoto's infamous tuna pizza or his savory rock shrimp
tempura or his line of specialty beers.
And since -- despite my logical and passionate arguments otherwise --
my boss was not willing to put me up for a night in the resort, we,
like many of South Florida's sushi lovers, were out of luck.
But maybe not. Last month we wrote a post about how, despite a few calls to the resort's PR staff, we were unable to requisition a table at Morimoto.
Turns out, though, that someone else who handles PR for the resort
externally caught wind of our post, and invited us to dinner at the
Sushi Bar. So, two weeks ago, we hoofed it out to the beautiful and
historical Boca Resort. We marveled at the European inspired cloister
and newly-refurbished lobby. And we had a lovely -- absolutely lovely -- meal at Morimoto Sushi Bar.
A couple months back, we reviewed Marumi Sushi,
a small but very authentic Japanese restaurant hiding in the western
wilds of Plantation. I loved it then: nowhere else in Broward can you
get this kind of unfiltered, unapologetic view of the food that
Japanese folks actually dig into, and nowhere in Broward can you find
it done with such raw enthusiasm. And I love it now: I love the
ultra-fresh and always-local whole fish options, which are served in so
many interesting ways that you almost feel proud for the happy bastard
you're about to eat. I love that I can spend $30 and feel like I've
been blessed to taste things I never have before in such a setting. And
I love the guts it takes (literally and figuratively) to put pig
intestine stew on a specials board and plop it in front of an
Americanized audience. The sheer confidence it must require to serve
food like that is really stellar -- especially in a market that's
moving ever-steadily towards the known quantity.
I took a trip to Marumi the other night for a friend's birthday, and as always, it was an adventure. Pics are after the jump.
This time of year brings all manner of helpful hints, like how to truss
a turkey, or how to make your gingerbread men look like Scarlett
Johansson (I made that second one up, but you know what I mean). Tips
on avoiding food-borne illness are especially prevalent, as they should
be -- an estimated 5,000 people in the U.S. die each year from eating
something bad. It is bummer enough dying, but perish because of a
tainted Christmas turkey and that is all you will ever be remembered
for. Yes, it can happen to you -- but probably not if you follow these
commonsense guidelines published by Consumer Reports in the January
2009 issue of ShopSmart.
1. Look at the date on the package. Although it's no guarantee the meat won't make you sick, choose a date with the most leeway.
2. Check packages for loose juice. It can be a source of bacteria. So
if the meat packages are leaking, sticky, or wet, ask the butcher to
cut a dry piece.
3. Triple-bag it. Put a plastic bag (get one from the produce aisle if
you can't find one near the meat) over your hand and use it as a glove.
Slip the bag back over the package of meat you select to prevent
bacteria from contaminating you, your other groceries, or your fridge.
4. Sniff it. If meat smells off, don't buy it because it might not be
fresh. (Even if it smells OK, however, that's no guarantee it's not
loaded with bacteria.) And never rely on color alone since meat can be
treated with carbon monoxide to make it look red and fresh.
5. Get meat ground fresh. Cuts of meat are held to a higher standard
than ground. Choose cuts and have your trusted butcher grind them. The
machine should be clean.
6. Look for firm fish. The flesh shouldn't have any gaps between the
muscle fibers. Also sniff it; fish shouldn't smell fishy or like urine
or ammonia. If you're buying whole fish, check the eyes; they should be
clear, not cloudy.
7. Take along a cooler bag. Or ask to have meat and fish packed in a
bag of ice so it stays cool. That will help slow the growth of bacteria.
Two of our favorites, Sheba Ethiopian restaurant in the Design District, and Le Bon on Lincoln Road, called it quits last week. Prime Italian, from the Prime One Twelve folks, opened its' doors across the street from its' sister steakhouse. Barton G secured the concessions at the Adrienne Arscht Center For The Performing Arts, and will be debuting two restaurants there later this year. As inventive as Barton G. Weiss can be, he's going to have to work awfully hard to top this:
Executive chef is Garrette Gray, whose eclectic menu includes starters
($6-$17) such as pan roasted scallops with smoked duck, shiitake
mushrooms, poached pears and natural thyme jus; fish entrees ($24-$34)
like grouper with braised callaloo, potato conch fritter, roasted red
pepper and lemongrass broth; and meats ($24-$56) like grilled veal chop
crusted with Sansyo Japanese pepper and pooled in sake apple reduction.
Executive pastry chef Mika Kochi will produce pastries and breads on
premise. Open for lunch and dinner until midnight on weekdays, 1:00
a.m. Fridays and Saturdays; the coffee shop, as stated, never closes.
Miami DJ Cedric Gervais and partner Juan Carlos Dominguez are opening their Hed Kandi Lounge tonight. Located in the former Afterglo space (1200 Washington Avenue), this "gastro-lounge" will showcase molecular gastronomy. For those who aren't sure what this means, let's just say that the photo above is of flying bacon plantains, and the one below is the bruschetta:
The name comes from the UK-based label Hed Kandi, and music played here will be curated from that inventory. The lounge aspect is a major one, and there promises to be "high-octane dance-floor glamour".
The Market Company
has started a Fresh Market at their Market Company Warehouse in Wynwood
(4127 NW 2nd Ave., just west of the Design District). Local produce,
honeys, cut flowers and more will be sold on Tuesdays and Thursdays,
excepting holidays, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The Market Company
also runs the Lincoln Road, Upper East SIde, Aventura, Normandy,
Palmetto Bay and Surfside farmers markets.
Area 31 makes its' debut tonight on the 16th floor of Brickell Avenue's Epic Hotel. Executive chef is John Critchley, who trained under Boston's renowned chef Ken Oringer (Clio) and was known to make a mean morcilla at his own Beantown tapas bar. The sommelier is Emily Wines (from San Franciscos's Fifth Floor)
-- and no, I'm not making her name up. Then name of the restaurant
derives from Fishing Area 31, which runs along the coast of Florida,
Central America and northern South America. Much of the seafood on this
eclectic, Mediterranean-influenced menu will be sourced from the
namesake coastal region. Interior design includes water views, as do
seats on the outdoor terrace. It's breakfast and dinner to start, with
lunch being added next month.
Another day, another restaurant debut. After a soft opening in November, Canyon Ranch Grill in Canyon Ranch Miami Beach (6900 Collins Ave.) is set to go public. Chef Alex Asteinza oversees the Canyon canon of healthful foods that fit with the spa's "wellness lifestyle". Starters, $9 to $16, include:
Pumpkin seed crusted poblano pepper stuffed with shrimp and goat cheese and shrimp, the latter being Laughing Bird Shrimp from a low impact "acquaculture" farm in Belize.
Black bass tiradito with red miso smear, house-pickled jalapeño and a squeeze of lime.
Seared watermelon with tomato salad topped with red wine vinegar syrup and basil seed.
Sardine stuffed with preserved lemon, sage and tarragon.
Main courses, $22 to $30, include:
Sassafras-wrapped grouper with corn truffle croquette, roasted tomato and duck prosciutto.
Glazed, lavender-stuffed quail with späetzle, green fig & cipollini onions.
Fresh vegetable "pasta" ribbons with chili, mint, mushroom Bolognese sauce.
Vegetable dishes are $9 to $13, an example being Spinach and Napa cabbage rolls with garbanzos and fennel pollen in smoked paprika broth. Paradise Farms in Homestead provides some of the produce. There are a few red meat products on the menu as well, like rack of lamb and braised bison short ribs.
It all sounds pretty tempting, and I'm also looking forward to having a cuppa organic tea in The Conservatory -- which will serve cocktails and tapas as well.
The interior of The Grill at The Setai (as well as The Restaurant portion) is arguably one of the most beautiful in Miami-Dade. When it comes to the Zen-like outdoor pods-on-the-pond dining area there is no argument -- this is the most beautiful al fresco setting. The cuisine here has always been ambitious, but it didn't really come together until Jonathan Wright took over the chef reigns. Tonight, he and sous chef Anthony V are relaunching The Grill with a revised menu that looks notably enticing.
Side dishes that sound most seductive: roasted bone marrow with red onion and parsley; English peas; braised turnips; fava beans; duck fat fries with truffle salt. Chocolate tart with roasted almond sorbet will be the dessert we try first. A prix fixe menu is available for $55, but don't expect to be offered any of the aforementioned luxe comestibles.
These sorts of ingredients in this type of setting don't come cheap -- the low end of the steak range is a Niman Ranch 16-ounce ribeye for $58. Or, for $92, you can nab a Four Story Hill Farms Avaiane poulade roasted with black truffles -- perhaps the priciest chicken in town, but it might also be the tastiest. We shall see.
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