Wine Beneath the PalmsFred Tasker blogs wine and spirits
Dining Q & AAsk Victoria Pesce Elliott about dining out
Food & CookingRecipes, meal ideas and more
I saw double at Tarragon Middle Eastern Market when the shop owners, identical twins from Lebanon, smiled in unison, making this an especially welcoming place to grab a falafel or stock up on fig jam, olive oil and fresh pita. Hussein and Hassan Mehaydli have created a little souk crammed with spices, flower waters, dried fruit, nuts, bulgur and dried beans at this unassuming shop in a strip mall off South Dixie Highway.
Domo Japones, the hip Japanese Bistro that sprouted up in the Design District this past December, is serving up modern takes on an ancient cuisine and making a great addition to the ripening scene there.
Nothing says summer more than some finger-lickin' good barbecue. With Memorial Day right around the corner, we checked out some options for those who would rather not sweat over hot coals.
Ask Herald reporters your questions
Here's a scouting report on Blu Pizza e Cucina from Miami.com's Sara Liss: Adding to downtown's burgeoning culinary mecca is Blu Pizza e Cucina, a gourmet pizza and Italian restaurant that offers belly-filling fare to Brickell office refugees. The brick-walled dining room, suffused with the sounds of opera arias and the smells of fresh pizzas baking, has an urban neo-industrial feel.
NIBBLES & BITS
Celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse is lending his Miami Beach restaurant and his presence to a fundraising dinner Sunday in honor of his late friend John Kushner, namesake of his JK's Chocolate Souffle.
Cocktails Anyone? @ Domo Japones: Mixed drinks and hors d'oeuvres by chef Albert Trummer and music by DJ Induce; 9 p.m., Domo Japones, 4000 NE Second Ave., Design District. No cover. 305-573-5474.
Sylvester Lukis, lobbyist for Miami-Dade County and other entities, explains why Nino Pernetti's Caffè Abbracci has survived for nearly 20 years in South Florida's tough restaurant market.
'Wonderful, authentic' Thai and Vietnamese cuisine brings Arturo Codina to Siam Bistro at least once a week. 'It's one of my favorite restaurants in Miami,' says Codina. The food is 'excellent with very nice appetizers and dessert. The presentation is very beautiful.' You'll also find 'attentive and friendly' service -- and don't miss the Thai or Vietnamese beer or coffee.
MIAMI-DADE ROUNDUP
Mofongo! It sounds like a battle cry. Actually, it's a word of African pedigree for a classic Puerto Rican preparation of mashed green plantains with garlic and pork crackling. Like many dishes from La Isla, as its children call it, mofongo has much in common with classics from Cuba (fufú) and the Dominican Republic (mangú).
BROWARD REVIEW
The third time's the charm, the saying goes. But the folks behind Riley McDermott's have left little to luck at their swank Las Olas steak and seafood restaurant. Following Red Coral and then Zucca in the Bank of America Building, McDermott's has been the hottest reservation in Fort Lauderdale since opening in January.
A FORK ON THE ROAD
As the South Florida skyline grows, it's nice to know a pocket of one-story cottages from another era exists at Cauley Square, just off Dixie Highway in far south Miami-Dade. The ''village'' is a cluster of about 25 structures, many housing galleries and small shops, set on 10 acres with tropical gardens, gurgling fountains and little plazas.
WINE
When you think of Portugal, you think of port wine -- sweet, rich, powerful, the aperitif and classic after-dinner drink. Just ask Winston Churchill. Or Thomas Jefferson.
CLINK!
It's hard to improve on a classic, but Nikki Beach is giving it a shot: Its Fresh Sugar Cane Mojito adds a sugar cane slice for nibbling -- so much tastier than a plastic swizzle.
COOKBOOKS
Just in time for produce season, publishers are showering cookbook enthusiasts with vegetarian options. Here are three of the latest:
