Summer Rolls-Miami when it's hot...

Asian cilantro, fat scallions, limes, cucumbers, ginger, mangoes...

First crack open a cold beer, or even better, some cold sake. Then try out these cool refreshing 'summer rolls', which just require one to quickly cook some shrimp, cutting down on the heat required in the kitchen. Or you can buy them pre-cooked if you like. Or vegetarians can just leave them out-firm tofu works. Get a pack of spring roll wrappers from the Asian grocery, they are about a buck and a half for about a hundred (try NE 163rd St-there are plenty of Asian markets on that strip). I pick up my groceries at LaGuardia market on NE 2nd ave and 34th St-all the items above for $3.50. Soak the wrappers in cold water for about 30 seconds, then carefully lift out and place on a plate. Have everything else at hand, and start wrapping, burrito-style. Don't fill too much or they will break. Put all your handiwork in the fridge, and let cool down for an hour. Crack open another beer.
Chinese secrets....I hate to give this one away, but five-spice powder is the best for making your dishes taste authentically Asian. Five spices, already mixed, sprinkle on the shrimp while you're cooking it. You get all the glory, almost no work. Works on everything. Also, aside from soy sauce, buy some oyster sauce-great for dipping. Make sure that 'oyster' is listed at the top of the ingredients. Buy the wasabi in the tube while you're there, too. Make sure the ingredients list 'wasabi'. Trust me.
Summer Rolls-the perfect cure for heat-stroke, and whining...


The assembly process is helped along by copious cans of cold beer...


Get the cat involved-they love shrimp, too, once they figure out what it is...


Sloppy, but pretty tasty. Dip in soy sauce, oyster sauce, or a combination of oyster, soy, and wasabi.

Miami's Choice Cafe Still Rules Wynwood...

{I've heard many rumors lately about Choice Cafe's imminent demise. However, CC is still here, at least for the moment. Do not delay your visit! Things do change fast here, and you do not want to miss this true Miami joint. In fact, I am 'repurposing' this post, which is almost a year old, to let everyone know that nothing has changed at Choice, and it is still one of a kind.}

The hole-in-the-wall joint that you heard about but weren't sure actually existed? On a street that, even when it's crowded, looks deserted? Because three's a crowd on NW 3rd Ave., in whatever the heck the Miami Chamber of Commerce is calling this 'district' this week (Fashion? Arts? Let's wait until the developers get their two cents in...). It's right around the corner from the Rubell Collection, and would be a perfect spot for the employees' cafeteria. In fact, it's also hard by MOCA at the Goldman, the Margulies, and the Bakehouse, and just a few blocks from most everybody else in the Wynwood crawl. You'd expect slumming art slags all over the place, slurping their Bibimbap, and watching the TV tuned to Japanese baseball. But there's just a few local workers, and a slow but steady crew of Koreans, with nary an asymmetrical haircut in sight.

A reader and fellow food-lover hipped me to this place, and I hope they don't get fired from their job for aiding and abetting. But I'm certainly not the first person to write about Choice Cafe, and I have a feeling I won't be the last. This is a place where the food is delicately yet firmly spiced, and even the panchan, the five or six little traditional side dish accompaniments, each have something special about them. The chef, the dude with the food-spattered t-shirt, is Go. He mans the over-sized wok, and will happily explain anything you don't understand to you, if he is not cooking. The front of the house is run by the delightful yet stern Kui, who pretends she doesn't speak English (or is pretending to pretend-maybe it's all an ironic performance piece), and prefers when you order by number. She will also ring you up, and roll out the cart to deliver your food.

In deference to taskmaster Kui...

#3..."Kimchi & Pork BBQ spicy marinated thin sliced" ($11.95)
#6..."Homemade noodle top cooked w/potato, pork & bean past[e] special sauce" ($7.95) #8..."Mixed seafood & vegetables with soft tofu in a heated stone pot ($8.95)
#15..."Steam rice, beef & vegetables in a heated stone pot w/house spicy sauce" ($9.95) #21..."Pan fried dumplings" ($7.95)

Everything was served promptly, fresh and hot, and each dish had its own distinctive textures and tastes. This isn't some cheapo joint throwing out lifeless, forgettable food. There is a mastery and love of Koren cuisine here, albeit on a short menu (and I am certainly no expert on Korean food), that comes through in each dish. And as you return, the frosty Kui and the likable Go will probably remember you, and make the extra effort to make sure everything is just right. As long as you order by number

Choice Cafe
2750 NW 3rd Ave
Miami, FL 33127
(305) 438-4224
Open M-F for breakfast and lunch (11AM-4PM, more or less)






Number 8....


I had to add a few rough videos so you could see how hot and bubbly the food was, and how much fun we had eating it...

Number 6
Number 6, Number 21, panchan
Number 21
radish, onion (panchan)
Number 8

Number 15, panchan, Number 3
Number 15, crunchy rice

Homey
They also have an English menu

Clean
Artsy
Number 15
Number 3
Panchan


Total Pigout... Someone please give that guy a napkin and tell him to slow down...

Choice Cafe

2750 NW 3rd Ave

Miami, FL 33127

(305) 438-4224

Open M-F for breakfast and lunch (closing around 4 or 5 PM)

ROBERT F. MERTON’S 'TEMPERATURES' HEATS UP THE DESIGN DISTRICT

Photographer Valdir Cruz, Nobel Laureate Robert C Merton,
Cosette Alves, Painter Robert F Merton, Harriet Merton



Writer Anne Tschida, Artists Neraldo de la Paz
and Alain Guerra (Guerra da la Paz)



Alexandra Rangel-Brody of Artoconecto, second from left,
welcomes (from the left) Kalyn James (Arts4Learning)
Kris and Artist Tal Rickard

Painter Robert F. Merton’s first solo exhibition, ‘Temperatures’, was launched with a packed VIP Sneak Preview attended by art lovers from all over the world. The painter, whose abstract canvasses evoke several dimensions of dreams at once, showed twenty-five new and recent works, ranging from the small, all-white layers of one canvas, to the enormous multi-hued layers of another. The crowded Gallery 120, in the historic Buena Vista Building, was overflowing with Miami's art aficionados. The painter's father, Nobel Prize-winning Harvard math professor Robert C. Merton attended, as did Ms. Cosette Alves, President and Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of The Inter-American Culture and Development Foundation, of Washington, DC, who helped make the exhibition possible. Also in attendance was Ms. Tiffany Chestler, Manager and Curator for the Craig Robins Collection. "The Design District has been host to many exciting art shows over the years, and Robert F Merton's 'Temperatures' is a great example of the kind of show we want to promote in the future. Rob has a special talent that is evident in his captivating work." The show, which will run through April 30, 2009, is presented by Artoconecto, the dynamic arts non-profit based in Miami. "Part of our mission is to provide artists with the tools to prepare for their first solo exhibition. We would like to be able to create the first solo show for artists whose work we believe in; and who also have the drive, the talent, and the completed works ready to exhibit, but have not yet been approached or selected by a commercial gallery," says Alexandra Rangel, Executive Director and founder of Artoconecto. The resounding success of Merton's first solo show illustrates the great potential of this kind of collaboration. "Traveling from New England to Miami for this show was an overwhelmingly exciting experience," says Merton. "And being embraced by members of the local art scene was richly rewarding."
After the show it was announced that one of Merton’s pieces was selected for the prestigious Museum of Fine Arts/Boston’s Summer Party Silent Auction; and another will go to Project Sunshine’s NYC Gala to benefit children facing medical problems.

For more information, please visit
www.robertfmerton.com/
http://www.artoconecto.org/

When: April 11-30, 2009
Where: The Buena Vista Building, 180 NE 39th Street, Gallery 120, Miami, Fl, 33137
Private viewing: Contact Alexandra Rangel-Brody 786.246.2052....artoconecto@gmail.com
Ends: Thursday, April 30



Art Lovers Humberto Estenoz, Jennifer Andia, Sonia Estenoz,
and Carolina Botero get a rise out of 'Temperatures'

Robert F Merton 'Temperatures'

VIP Sneak Preview-Food and Wine by North One10, Music by WVUM's 'Vamos a la Playa' DJ Laura

Artoconecto is excited to present painter Robert F. Merton’s first solo exhibition ‘Temperatures’, on Thursday, April 9, 2009, for a sneak VIP preview, followed by an exhibition open to the public on Saturday, April 11, at The Buena Vista Building in Miami’s Design District. The painter, who resides in the colder climes of New England, in the seaside village of Cohasset, will unveil his exciting new work in the tropical climate of Miami, where his work has received considerable early attention. His vibrant work, like his family name, demands historical perspective-his grandfather, Robert K. Merton, was a groundbreaking sociologist, who coined terms like 'self-fulfilling prophecy', and 'unintended consequences'. His father, Robert C. Merton, won a Nobel Prize in economics in 1997 for his work on a new method to determine the value of derivatives. And his own study of 15th-17th century European history, when a human-powered economy evolved into a mechanized economy (and a mechanized society), has influenced his understanding of the transitions through which society and its members must evolve. "The transition period is what interests me," says Merton. "We are in an era of change, and we must embrace that."

RSVP- Artoconecto@gmail.com
Date:
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Time:
7:00pm - 10:00pm
Location:
Buena Vista Building/Design District
180 NE 39th Street
Miami, FL 33137