Lazy Saturday in Miami

I start every Saturday volunteering for a kids art program, and every week it just seems to get better and better. I follow these great mornings with a small lunch, where I enjoy my solitude and the quietude of dining alone. In this case, on sweltering N. Miami Ave at PizzaVolante. I wanted to try something other than the pizza, so I got some 'local' mozzarella they have from 'Boca Raton'. Is Vito still driving that stuff in? They serve it with tomatoes and spinach, and a little overdressed, to my taste, with oil and vinegar. Maybe a dash of balsamic, tops, a squirt of that good olive oil-some crunchy sea salt maybe? Too much vinegar cuts the subtle taste and creaminess of the cheese, and makes it bitter. Then it defeats its own purpose, Vickie. But the ball itself is great, $7-and you can add accompaniments at $2/ea.



Great---thin fried zucchini strips-light and fresh-but again with the balsamic-what's the point of a crunchy dish if you're going to limp it up with more vinegar and oil? Looks adorable, I know, but maybe better on the side? Caponata---a little bland. Try it for yourself. Olives---two dollars for half a handful of olives? They should give you five instead of ten and make them gratis. Or give you a decent portion. The 'trofie macaronie'? Still not sure what that was supposed to be-but it tasted okay. The tomatoes were amazing-they had heirlooms as well as cherries, and I think I would have liked more. In fact, I'm not sure something more interesting than spinach might have made a big difference. Arugula? Just throwing it out there. Four dollar glasses of that delicious and cold Rosé de Provence; it retails for $10/bottle. And is sold here for $15. That is why I'm here. Because I support a good, inexpensive list, and they got the goods here. And the food's damn good, too. Although next time, just bring me some bread for my mozz and that good extra virgin. Or do I have to order a pizza to get some bread? (Did I mention I hate breadsticks? They combine the worst qualities of bread, and of sticks. Stale, tasteless, and pointless. Just saying.)



Later that night, after the premier of Death Print at the Colony on Lincoln Road (hilarious), I went over to the Eden Roc for the wrap party of 'Work of Genius'-an arts reality show coming to Fox that I've written about here. Had a few bottles of Grolsch, the art beer (isn't that their slogan now?),



and hung with the inimitable Steve Bauer.



Home by 12:30. No craziness, no eight-balls, no after-parties. Still, a productive, seductive, Miami summer day.

Traditional Jewish Eats-Sheep's Head and P'tcha (Cow's Foot Jelly)

Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

Anise Waterfront, or Danny gets his bechamel, Part II

Probably should have taken these photos before the 'birthday toast'

Anise sits on a side street on the Upper Eastside, across from the ass-end of several fast-food restaurants, in a building that long housed various Indian restaurants. Now that may not sound very promising to you, but the secret is that once you get inside the renovated space, you will forget all of that, and feel like you are in one of those Miami places that have been around forever, but have only lately been discovered. Of course the Greek/Med paint job on the facade, and the complete Indian-food-aroma removal, which I am told took more than six months (there is still a hint of asafetida somewhere), have greatly enhanced the potential of this waterfront dining spot. And the fact that the Little River is now pretty clean and flowing freely (the 'locals' are even back fishing from the bridge-for mullet, maybe?), adds a new dimension to what once was a somewhat rickety outdoor patio. It always felt like it was about to tumble into the murky water.

But the owners, who ran 'Ouzo' on Normandy Isle, and then the ill-fated location on South Beach, know how to make people feel at home, and well-fed. At a big birthday party recently for a friend on the waterfront deck, we started with some mezze of hummus, and other dips, and everything was tasty. When I looked at the menu, I knew immediately that I would be ordering the mousaka, as I had been jones-ing for a fat bechamel-covered mousaka since February. And my patience was rewarded with this giant portion that was simply blanketed with the cheesy topping I so longed for. The eggplant was sliced very thin and cooked just enough to maintain its silky texture, and the meat and sauce were hearty under the great good white stuff. I can honestly now say that the Little River may be the New Restaurant Row (on water), with Red Light just fifty feet upstream from Anise. And speaking of fishing, the sardines were pretty damn good, too.



We finished up with a coconut cake soaked in a brandy simple syrup. I don't usually stay for dessert, but it's bad luck to skip cake at a birthday party. And this one was sweet and lush. Anise has added a great vibe to the neighborhood; and I will jones no more.







Anise Taverna
620 NE 78th St
Miami 33138
305-758-2929

Okra season at Chez Rosie

Chez Rosie used to be one of my stalwarts for lunch when they were located on Biscayne Blvd. Solid, inexpensive Haitian food cooked by a professionally trained chef who knows how to cook. Sitting outside in the scorching heat with my constant companion, who insisted on calling the chef 'Rosie'; and also loved to pronounce 'Chez' as CHEZZ, the hookers and crack heads would fight us for valuable sidewalk space. Oddly, although Chez Rosie moved to NW 2nd Ave. a while ago, during the great Biscayne Blvd. gentrification of 2005(?), the hookers have remained. In fact we lost several pretty good restaurants/take out joints in that time, and gained some dubious 'improvements', like Dogma, Karma (now Metro), UVA, Starbucks. There was a nice watering hole where Michy's is now, although most of their customers can be found two doors down at Jamboree. There was a restaurant called Citronelle a couple of blocks away, too (no relation to Michel Richard's L.A. restaurant of the same name). But Chez Rosie was the king, and I paid a visit the other day because it is okra season, and even though we are in the south, you don't necessarily see a lot of attention paid to one of our signature local vegetables. Probably because most people think okra is slimy and disgusting. And it is, especially if it is not prepared properly. If you can get it fresh from a farmer (Glaser's organic market in Coconut Grove, fyi), you can actually eat it raw-it's pretty amazing. But for the most part, that's only for crunchy organic types, and definitely not for everyone. But when you can say you've eaten raw okra, that is indeed a badge of honor in the south.





Here it is stewed, alongside some chicken, and a big mound of rice and beans. I think it was around $7, and I got two meals out of it. If you go, don't expect any glam surroundings. But the food is fresh, and you may even get a smile out of the chef if you ask how Chez Rosie got its name. (Hint-his name is NOT Rosie...)



Chez Rosie
305-756-9881
5961 NW 2nd Ave
Miami, FL 33127