Miami Food Blog

Everybody's doing it.

​Sometimes, everything you've ever feared about the drive- thru is true. Careful what you say into that fast food speaker.

Short Order recently met Trew Money, his rap name, in a local bar and grill kitchen where he was working as a dishwasher.

We asked if he had any funny stories from working in the restaurant business and his face lit up, he cracked a smile, and he said, "Yeah...I got some stories dawg."

"I was working at a Steak-N-Shake in Hialeah Gardens that's closed down now. All of us that was working there were young, like 16, 17, 18.

First off, the manager was fu#*!cking one of the servers. Well, then he started fu*#!cking another one, and the first one found out, and that was just drama right there.

8 Oz. Burger Bar

Spin city

​Govind Armstrong's challenged upscale seafood chain, with locations in LA and New York, has severed its weakest link: South Beach. 

As reported in the Miami Herald bankruptcy column today, Table 8 has filed for Chapter 7.  For those of you not familiar, this means full-on liquidation -- and not of the ocean type. 

8 Oz. Burger Bar, a popular meat and bun-focused spin-off, will remain open.  Co-owner Eric Fried relayed to Short Order in a phone conversation today that, despite sharing a common brand and executive chef in Armstrong, the two restaurants "have absolutely no financial relationship." 

Table 8, which opened on South Beach in December 2006, had been on shaky ground for a while with both customers and critics.  "Market-driven California cuisine" may have a place in South Florida, but its going to take a more hands-on approach than what Armstrong was willing to invest.

The Internet

Fluttering away

Open only since February, Mariposa on Third Avenue in Shenandoah appears to have called it quits.  Hints of its demise were evidenced by step ladders seen through a newly un-branded storefront on a recent drive by.  Calls placed to its phone number today resulted in a perpetual busy signal on the other end.  The former website is also for sale from Godaddy.com.

Not that anyone cares, because the food was crummy and service even worse, stifling what was supposed to be a convenient stop for an afternoon cafe or even panino for lunch.

Hopefully any customers they had will just go across the street to newly opened Casa Cafe.

We've called up more than 250 restaurants in Miami, sniffing out closings over the past month and reporting them.  Combined with tips from friendly commenters, here's a recap of what's 'unfolded' in May.  So now the question is, who's next on the list Sherlock?

Coral Gables
Chocolate Restaurant - The lights at this restaurant on Coral Way have been out for some time and phone calls turned up a disconnected number.  A search online found health code violations in December of last year, but a clean inspection on April 22.  There is a branded website homepage reading "coming soon."

Design District
Brosia - We learned yesterday that the restaurant has been sold and will be closed through the duration of the transfer of ownership until its future is determined.

South Beach
Maison D'Azur at The Astor - A phone call to the hotel today confirmed the restaurant is closed "for renovation for about 2 to 3 weeks."  When pressed for details on what was being done, replied with "it's behind closed doors." 
The Forge - Closed for renovation with no anticipated re-opening date.
Kobe Club - Per China Grill management, "Kobe Club Miami will reopen in August when Miami Spice starts and goes through the end of September, and continue to be open after, as it's when our season kicks in."
Zushi Flirt - Replaced by a branch of 8-oz. Burger Bar in the lobby of Z Ocean Hotel.
Akashi at Fresh on 5th - Closed on the second floor, but contemplating venture downstairs in the future.

Downtown Miami
Shaka Jon's - It's phone is disconnected, and the website is no longer in use.
Prime Blue Grille - Closed, empty restaurant and empty website.

North Miami Beach
Matador Argentinian Steahouse - Multiple phone calls to multiple listed numbers produced busy signals.

 

 

In a response to our blog about the up-and-coming MIA venue in downtown Miami, Eddie writes that he will miss another downtown spot, Prime Blue Grille -- which reminds me of a an old country music song, How Can I Miss You When I Don't Know You're Gone?

According to Daily Business Review's Inside Track blog from two weeks ago, a sign in Prime Blue's window went up claiming that it would be closed for remodeling. The phone number listed on the place's website is gone. And as the IT post keenly notes, there is really little to retool in this sleek restaurant that is less than two years old. So you didn't hear it here first, but we're repeating the news for those, like us, who missed it.

John Linn

The chicharron tacos at Tacos al Carbon are a thing of beauty.

Each week on Destination: Food, Short Order pays tribute to the restaurants - dives and chichi joints alike - that serve South Florida's "go-to" meals. These are dishes that you think about when you're toiling at work; that you still taste in your mouth hours after you've finished them; that you'd be willing to drive for hours across this urban sprawl just to consume. Most of all, they're the eats that define the South Florida food scene. If you have a suggestion for our next Destination: Food, leave us a comment below.

Welcome to the first Destination: Food, everyone. We've got an oldie-but-a-goodie holding down the premier spot, the chicharron tacos at Lake Worth's Tacos al Carbon. 

"I don't understand, ya'll!"

ZOMG, ya'll! Did you watch last night's Super Bowl edition of Top Chef? Poor Jeff McInnis got the boot. We feel for him. The chef from the DiLido Beach Club at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach couldn't wrap his head around why the judges preferred season 2's Josie Smith-Malave's warm ceviche over his rock shrimp ceviche with sangria ice.

What happened to Downtown At The Gardens? What was once a lovely dining destination is rapidly becoming a restaurant graveyard, staffed by people with bad attitudes and bunker mentalities. We called and spoke to someone in The Gardens' marketing department about a wild rumor about the fact that four -- count 'em, four -- Gardens eateries recently went out of business: The Grape, City Kitchen, the fascinating Rosa Mexicana, and Strip House. The woman we spoke to, Laura, was instantly suspicious of our motives, confirmed that the restaurants were closed, refused to tell us when they'd closed up shop, and growled and hung up when we asked her last name.

Other recent Palm Beach County casualties include Spoto's (the one in downtown), Aqua Café, and Capri Blu. Granted, Aqua wasn't very good, and Capri had gone downhill recently, but still.

If Strip House and Rosa's are disappearing, can others be far behind?

The moral is: go there. Spend money, like our outgoing Prez once recommended.

For more news in this mode, subscribe to New Times' weekly foodie newsletter by clicking here.

-- Brandon Thorp

During this week of welcoming Art Basel Miami, let us take a moment to say goodbye to The Art Of Food. The raw food/vegan counter cafe was located in a cooperative vintage clothing and jewelry shop across the street from Midtown Miami's Circuit City (which has problems of its own). Excepting delicious desserts, I didn't care for the Art Of Food's food at all. As I wrote at the time of review, the glorious natural flavors of fresh fruits and vegetables are impressive enough on their own terms, and needn't be compromised into concoctions like uncooked "lasagna" and "hamburger". That said, in a city as bereft of not just vegan restaurants but worthy vegetarian cuisine, it is sad to see The Art Of Food fold.

Can't any restauranteur out there do this meatless thing right?

--Lee Klein

The periwinkles have packed their bags and gone back to the Riviera: After less than a year in operation, Maison d’Azur is out of business. The gorgeous seafood brasserie, set in the stunning Angler Resort on South Beach, served sensational seafood from the Mediterranean; their créme brûlée was finer than any in town. But it was très expensive. And executive chef Didier Balluais had left awhile back. And the hotel property is having problems of its own. And then the curse from which it could apparently not recover: A 2008 New Times nod for "Best Seafood Restaurant."

Au revoir.

-- Lee Klein