Food

These restaurants are new to Miami Spice this year. Where should we start?

Kiki on the River's lavraki is among the dishes on its debut Miami Spice menu.
Kiki on the River's lavraki is among the dishes on its debut Miami Spice menu.

Miami Spice returns for a 16th year of marathon dining with dozens of restaurants participating for the first time.

We’ve picked five new spots you should try on this dine-a-palooza.

Kiki on the River

The Miami River’s most buzzed-about new restaurant embraces Miami Spice with a dinner-only menu that highlights their unique approach to modern Greek classics. Kiki’s chef, Steve Rhee, island hops in this fixed-price menu with dishes such as the Dakos salad (made with grated tomato, torn barley bread, garlic, olive oil, feta cheese, Greek oregano) and the grilled halloumi cheese platter, with white balsamic marinated grape tomato, grilled zucchini, eggplant, onions, topped with basil, parsley, and olive oil. Another tier of “hot apps” includes grilled octopus and shrimp saganaki. Mains include pan-seared scallops and lamb T-bone served with bacon, and herbed roasted purple potato. Ending things on a sweet note won’t be hard with traditional baklava, assorted gelato or a fresh fruit platter.

450 NW North River Drive, Miami, FL

Matador Room

Francesco Tonelli

The Miami Beach Edition’s swanky restaurant debuts on Spice with a combination of the restaurant’s most-loved dishes. They include the sweet pea guacamole, arroz con pollo, and the pizza with mushroom, three cheeses, garlic-parsely oil and a farm egg. And don’t forget the tres leches cake.

2901 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140

Bird & Bone

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Chef Richard Hales dives right in for Bird & Bone’s first year participating in Miami Spice. With both lunch and dinner menus offered, there’s a variety of home-cooked favorites such as the Florida Cheddar & Chive Biscuits or black-eyed pea soup and Chef Hales’ Hot Chicken Sandwich or Cubano Grilled Cheese. For dessert go for the Fried Apple Hand Pies.

4041 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140

Bazaar Mar

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The seafood fantasyland from José Andrés is usually a pricey night out so rejoice that some of the best dishes are being offered, such as his California Funnel Cake, a seaweed funnel cake with avocado, blue crab, tobiko, mayo, and cucumber. There’s also Neptune’s Pillow, a sashimi of spicy tuna, air breads, spicy rocoto mayo, sea lettuce powder. And for mains, there the Po Boy Jose: fried baby squid, pelayo, steamed brioche bun, alioli. Round out the options with the grilled branzino from the Cantabrian Sea in Spain.

1300 S Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33130

Upland

he Spaghettini is one of several pastas that appear on both the Miami and New York versions of Upland.
he Spaghettini is one of several pastas that appear on both the Miami and New York versions of Upland.

Celebrated chef Justin Smillie and renowned restaurateur Stephen Starr introduced Upland to Miami Beach last fall and it was an immediate hit. But given the restaurant’s pricey dishes this participation in Spice is a blessed event. Start off with crispy duck wings (lemon, olive oil, yuzu kosho) or the Little Gem salad and then move on to dishes of bucatini cacio e pepe (Pecorino Romano, black pepper) or Creekstone Farms skirt steak  with romesco and bunching onions.

49 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139

This story was originally published July 26, 2017 at 1:07 AM.

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