new cafe (downtown miami) December 18, 2008

Downtown Miami is slowly becoming a place that says open past 5PM. Here’s a new cafe I read about on Daily Candy. I haven’t been there yet, but let me know if you have.

Rybak’s Cafe Opens
What: Downtown gets a watering hole complete with a 24-hour coffee shop, live shows, and an outdoor lounge for snacking on sliders and barbecue ribs.
Why: Things will be great when you’re — downtown.
When: Resto, Mon.-Thurs., 11 a.m.-midnight; Fri., 11 a.m.-1 a.m.; Sat., noon-1 a.m.; Sun., noon-10 p.m. Coffee shop, 24/7.
Where: Latitudes Building, 177 SW 7th St., Downtown (786-539-4903).

(from Daily Candy, Miami edition)

vegetarian in miami September 24, 2008

My brother just sent me an email and asked if I could name some vegetarian restaurants in Miami for a co-worker of his who will be traveling there soon. Of course! So, I thought I would broadcast this more widely, in case anyone else if looking for somewhere to dine. This is an extremely partial list, but a good start.

Garden of Eatin – Little Haiti, 136 NW 62nd St
- jamaican, vegan; like really great home cooking; if you eat in, you get soup for free

Books and Books – Lincoln Road and South Miami
- all around cafe; good for people watching too; veg and vegan clearly marked

Greenstreet Cafe - Coconut Grove, 311 Commodore Plaza
- great for brunch; probably good for other meals too; good people watching on the corner

Front Porch Cafe – Ocean Drive
- a long-time establishment that is consistently good; i usually go for brunch, but they have all meals; right near the beach

Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant – Design District, 4029 North Miami Avenue
- not a typical ethiopian restaurant in that orders are individual; food is good, and lots of veggie options

Sublime Restaurant and Bar – Fort Lauderdale, 1431 N Federal Highway
- a newly redone vegetarian (with lots of vegan options) restaurant; a bit of a drive from miami, but nice

Miami Juice- Sunny Isles, 16210 Collins Ave
- more than just juice, though that’s very good too. they have great salads!

Panizza Bistro- just off pedestrian part of Lincoln Road, 1229 Lincoln Road
- one of my all time favorite places for a quick bite to eat. they have great empanadas with many more veg options than is typical for an argentinian restaurant- corn, mushroom, spinach, tomato, etc. they also have facturas, pastries. their cafe con leche is great! a nice place to eat alone.

a rainbow of empanadas August 21, 2008

Whenever I am in Miami, I go to Panizza almost every other day. It’s a great cozy Argentine place right off of Lincoln Road, and I love their empanadas. What’s great is that they don’t only offer the standard variety- chicken, beef, cheese- they also have caprese (tomato and mozzarella), spinach and ricotta, mushroom and cheese, and corn. Of course, for desert (or a sweet breakfast) they have facturas of all shapes, sizes, and flavors including ones filled with dulce de leche. Pair that with an espresso or cafe con leche and I am good to go (though, I prefer my facturas in the afternoon). They also have a full menu with a variety of other dishes and drinks including salads, pastas, wine and beer. I can’t help it, though, whenever I go, I order something from the case, which displays their empanadas and special pies, and while they are warming it up, I grab a basket full of facturas to take home.

While it’s great to go out and buy empanadas, I am sure it would be a lot more cost effective to make my own. I have made them before, but in searching for a new recipe, I came across this link which lists a rainbow of empanadas from many different country origins. I’ll keep you posted if I try any of the recipes.

at last . . . sunday brunch at 190 August 2, 2007

this is from an email blast send by alan hughes, of 190 restaurant:

(Enjoy it for me, since I won’t be able to be there.)

Brunch, Brunch, Brunch!!
Starting This coming Sunday August 5th
Brunch hours from 11am until 3pm
Brunch menu is a la carte… come and have some
Ackee and Saltfish!, Mimosas, Homemade Pancakes…. we have international newspapers, great music and the Brunch is Kid friendly
Reservation caller number 4 number gets free brunch for two!!

irie isle serves it up at small axe conference June 25, 2007

I went to yet another conference this past week. This one was at the University of Miami, and was put on by the Caribbean Literary Studies Program and the Small Axe Collective. The conference theme was “Archaeologies of Black Memory,” and invited guests included David Scott, M. NourbeSe Philip, and Brent Hayes Edwards among many others. If you missed it, you can get the archived webcast here. The conversation was good, the presentations were good, and the food was good too!

I found out that the food came from the Irie Isle Restaurant in North Miami. I heard that one of the scholars there used to run this place, or still does (such is the nature of eavesdropping). Anyhow, I will definitely be scoping this place out while I am in Miami.

The food offerings over the course of the two-day conference included Jerk Chicken, Stewed Chicken, Stewed Tofu, Veggies and Tofu, and Oxtail. They were all served with a large portion of rice and peas and a few plantains. I read online that the restaurant is casual and cost-effective; a homestyle cooking take-it-to-go kind of place.

Here’s the info you need:

Irie Isle 

168 Northeast 167th Street
Miami, FL 33162-3403

+1 305 354 7678

Open Hours: 9a-8p Su, 8a-9:30p M-Th, 8a-10:30p F-Sa