In the late ’80s, Chef Richard Cingolani helped transform Broward County from the dining doldrums into a place that could hold its own with the big boys. The acclaimed New World cuisine of his Café Arugula lit up Lighthouse Point. And, because, of Cingolani’s singular stature, one could argue that…
For far more authentic — and far-flung — “nuevo Latino” cooking, try Café con Leche (7721 Lake Worth Rd., Greenacres, 561-439-8899). The place is owned by Roy Burdier, a Dominican whose little slice of good eating next to Publix in the Nassau Square Mall makes the playful sophistication of Cabana…
Roy (Wellington, red wine) was looking for a job. Jill (Boynton Beach, iced tea) and Mike (Boynton, Budweiser) were looking for an evening’s escape from the kids. How do I know? Because they were eating and talking large, one and two tables down from me the other night at Cabana…
Stuffed frog, pork organs in broth, monitor lizard, fertilized duck’s eggs — do we need more examples of why Filipino cuisine can so easily terrify unsuspecting diners? Many dishes from the world’s second-largest archipelago make the perfumed delicacies of Thai food or the gutsy surprises of Korean recipes seem as…
Want a quick fix of Filipino foods and culture? South Florida offers few better opportunities than Far East Food & Gifts (Shops at Oriole, 4140 N. State Rd. 7, Lauderdale Lakes, 954-486-6373). “In this store, if you break it, you’ll be happy to pay for it,” says a tough-minded sign…
It’s dinnertime and you’re driving along Oakland Park Boulevard east of I-95, lost in a beltway of insurance shops and tattoo parlors and curl-‘n’-spray hair salons. You’re starving. Out of the corner of your eye, you spot a nondescript, one-story building with a sign sporting the colors of the Italian…
Vincent Foti’s 4-month-old Kitchenetta, just south of Oakland Park Boulevard, takes the same Neapolitan-inspired cuisine served at Salerno’s and puts it through a wringer of fabulosity. No elastic waistbands here. High concept reigns in the flat-screen TV on the wall, in the acid orange-and-green colors splashed throughout the restaurant, and…
The Capital Grille compares nicely to a smash Broadway road show: polished to the hilt, full of practiced verve and talent, and yet as adventurous as surfing on Lauderdale beach. The brainchild of RARE Hospitality Intl. Inc. in Atlanta, the first Capital Grille opened in Providence, Rhode Island, in July…
In Broward and Palm Beach counties, there are two Morton’s the Steakhouses (West Palm Beach and Boca Raton), two Ruth’s Chris (Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton), and two Shula’s Steakhouses (Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach Gardens). All of these chains, popular throughout the Midwest, South, and East, claim zealous adherents…
Some people might call it luck that the 9-month-old Chima Brazilian Steakhouse continues to attract customers to a lonely little shopping plaza down on Las Olas Isles. The site has been a restaurant heartbreaker since long before Il Tartufo took a tumble there two years ago. But the Brazilians would…
³I wanted a place where Brazilians would walk in the door and go ‘Ah!¹, simpjavascript:passCharacter(‘225’)tico owner Ronald Batista says about his almost two-year-old store, Brazilian Point (840 E. Oakland Park Blvd., Oakland Park, 954-630-8840). Batista is not necessarily referring to the skimpy bikinis and monokinis for sale on the racks…
Tom Jenkins’ Bar-B-Q, 1236 S. Federal Hwy., Fort Lauderdale, 954-522-5046. Lunch and dinner 11 a.m. till 8:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. till 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Jack’s Barbecue and Smokehouse, 500 E. Oakland Park Blvd., Wilton Manors, 954-567-9595. Lunch and dinner 11 a.m. till 10 p.m. Monday…
Jesse’s Place (1395 W. Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, 954-523-4774) bills itself as “a fine soul food restaurant.” They got that right. The room is simply arranged, a dozen or so tables for two to the left, a counter for ordering and takeout to the right. The breakfast menu contains eggs,…
Henry Flagler established West Palm Beach to house workers who would build and staff the plutocratic palaces of the “real” Palm Beach. But then the area, which was never particularly well off, took a deep dive into drugs, drifters, prostitutes, McDonald’s, and so on. Nowadays, CityPlace and Clematis Street boast…
Chien Chung Peng from Hong Kong opened Chung Hing Oriental Mart (9803 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, 954-438-1060) in North Miami 15 years ago and five years later brought a second store to Pines Boulevard. The diversity of Asian food items displayed is staggering: a fresh-produce area with bok choy, taro,…
Where are we, in Riyadh?” I asked as we walked, and walked some more, from a distant parking spot to the all-white, multidomed, Saudi-styled Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Located on its own little 86-acre oasis (technically a “reservation” — wink, wink) just off State Road 441, the 130,000-square-foot…
Let’s face it: Mexican-American restaurants are all pretty much the same. Sombreros on the wall. Margaritas. Chips and salsa. Rice and beans. Nachos, tacos, burritos, fajitas — the whole enchilada. Santiago’s Mexican Café & Grill (17185 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, 954-432-0041) dishes decent renditions of all of the above and…
The United States, with its cowboys and cattle and wide-open West, has always been considered a serious beef-eating nation. Then again, carnivorousness is relative — our American siblings down south in Argentina, with their gauchos and cattle and wide-open pampas, consume twice as much red meat as we do. The…
El Cafetal Bakery (7649 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, 954-964-7557), a humble Colombian market situated in the corner of a strip mall, is easy to pass by without notice — until, that is, you’ve tasted its cooked-to-order, lip-smacking, Latin American snacks. Manager Lucy Garcia is pleasant in two languages and can…
Shooters has been a fixture on the Intracoastal in Fort Lauderdale for more than 15 years. It’s a place where boaters, boozers, and bikini-clad beauties gather for waterfront vistas, live music, and affordable drinks. Although an informal menu of sandwiches, seafoods, and pastas is available, that’s not enough for some…
The South Florida chapter of the American Institute of Wine and Food (954-396-3875) has launched “Summer Sundays,” a series of wine luncheons held at top Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach restaurants. The next one takes place July 11 at Johnny V on Las Olas Boulevard, where you can catch a…
The name conjures water, sun, and with a little imagination, a splashy oceanside oasis, but Aquasol Restaurant and Bar is located behind Wendy’s and a Chevron gas station in the decidedly lackluster VPC Center, a faceless shopping mall off Congress Avenue. There’s no ocean in sight, but the nearby sprawl…
