The northwest suburbs of Miami-Dade offer any number of Latin American restaurants, but cuisines from the other side of the Atlantic are a bit harder to find. Here are two Miami Lakes restaurants that boast a taste of the continent and a Doral spot with Mediterranean flair.

EL PIMIENTO

As the name promises, this small (14-table) Spanish restaurant provides a bit of spice in the heart of Miami Lakes. Tucked into the Windmill Gate shopping plaza and not visible from the street, it's worth seeking out.

You'll find traditional dishes but also some twists. Owner Mylo Gonzalez says he likes to give the flavors and ingredients of Spain his own stamp.

Caldo gallego, the thick white bean stew, is an antidote for anything that ails you, be it a cold or a long day at the office. El Pimiento's version didn't disappoint, but for the full salutary effect, it could have used a few more potatoes.

On the tapas menu, my husband found an ample appetizer, solomillo al whisky -- thin slices of pork tenderloin wrapped around a chunk of sweet plantain and sautéed in garlic butter with a splash of whiskey.

His main course, red snapper in creamy saffron sauce with shaved almonds, was moist and well-prepared, but my chicken breast in a Canary Islands picona sauce was the star. The thinnest of seasoned batters gave the chicken a satisfying crunch, the perfect counterpoint to the creamy, pepper-laced sauce.

Alas, to keep within our $50 budget for two, we couldn't sample the extensive wine menu, though it's clear that tapas y tintos is what El Pimiento is all about.

Even the décor is, well, vino, with cork-covered menus, glass-covered tabletops resting on wine corks, wall cases stacked with bottles of wine and a bar paneled with slats from wine crates.

• El Pimiento, 16403 NW 67th Ave., Miami Lakes; 305-826-8181, www.elpimiento.net; lunch and dinner; tapas and ceviches $5.95-$13.95, entrees $9.95-$22.95, paella $26.95, $36.95 (lunchtime paella $9.95 the last Tuesday of the month); live music, flamenco show 9 p.m. Friday, Saturday.

TRATTORIA PAMPERED

CHEF

Another hidden gem in Miami Lakes, this white-tablecloth Italian restaurant with a splashing fountain and a few tables out front sits in the far corner of the Cypress Village shopping center. Not only does the food make it worth the search, but it's open until 11 weeknights -- a rarity in the suburbs.

A basket of warm rolls with herb butter arrived with the menus, and the courses came out like clockwork.

A seafood antipasto -- plump mussels and calamari rings and three shrimp perched on a mound of marinated peppers, onions, carrots, cucumbers and a bed of lettuce -- was big enough to share, with plenty left to take home. We weren't expecting the small house salads that came next, but an excellent creamy garlic dressing made them worth sampling.

My chicken piccata was a perfect marriage of tangy lemon sauce with piquant capers, but my husband's grouper was a tad too salty. Both dishes came with sautéed vegetables and rigatoni on the side.

Portions were so generous that even though the tiramisu was calling, we passed and headed out into a rainy Wednesday night.

• Trattoria Pampered Chef, 7347 Miami Lakes Dr., Miami Lakes; 305-825-8919; lunch and dinner; starters $4.95-$12.95, pastas $8.95-$16.95, entrees $13.95-$19.95, desserts $4.25.

RICE HOUSE

Our budget stretched the farthest at the Rice House of Kabob in Doral, a Persian grill restaurant that's a nice change of pace and also has locations in Kendall and South Beach.

Six stuffed grape leaves with three hefty olives on the side were a bargain starter at $3.95. Main courses are made-to-order, and you might want to fortify yourself with appetizers or lavash bread and hummus: It took nearly 40 minutes for our selections to come off the grill.

This is the drill: Pick up your drinks (beer and wine are available) and appetizers from a case near the cashier, place your order, take a beeper and wait. Large, illuminated pictures on the wall help you tell your joojeh (braised marinated chicken) from your dolmeh (grape leaves).

We ordered platters of grilled tilapia and joojeh. Both arrived atop a mountain of Greek salad with sides of saffron-infused basmati rice and a yogurt sauce.

This is a casual, family-style place (cutlery is plastic; you bus your own table), but the food more than pleased.

• Rice House of Kabob, 1450 NW 87th Ave., Doral; 305-418-9464, www.ricehouseofkabob.com; lunch and dinner; starters $2.50-$3.50, rice dishes $6-$7, wraps and entrees $7.50-$14, desserts $1.50-$2.75.

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