Miami/Ft Lauderdale, Casual Reccomedations?

I'll be in the Ft Lauderdale/Miami area for the next week and will be looking for some interesting chow. Nothing fancy, just interesting. I'll have a couple of small kids so we're looking for inexpensive casual spots. Any ideas?

Here's a few ideas:

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t= ... ht=florida

Thanks!

We just got back from South Beach/Miami and I haven't posted a report yet, but here are a couple of casual places we liked (all are in South Beach--can't recommend any places we tried in Miami proper):

Tap Tap is a great Haitian place which would be family-friendly if your kids are willing to try something new. We went early (they're only open for dinner) and there were plenty of open tables and a chance to wander around and look at the many paintings, bead and metalwork on every wall. We're vegetarian and found plenty to eat here, but there's lots for carnivores, too. We loved the pumpkin soup (not a creamy, bisque, more like a chumky stew in a light broth), the stewed veggies (similar to an Indian curry but with different spices) and the side of spinach in coconut milk. They have lots of fried items kids might like--plaintains and yuca, etc along with rice & beans.

We had a couple of nice breakfasts at Front Porch Cafe which is right across from the beach and a short walk to the Lincoln Road area. Looks like a nice casual lunch and dinner menu, too.

Pasha's is a quick, healthy, CHEAP Middle Eastern place smack in the middle of the chichi Lincoln Road shopping district (they have a couple of locations)--great outdoor seating, too.

We had a meal at 11th Street Diner because some locals highly recommended it to us. Not much for us veggies, but a fun setting for kids and a huge menu. Big Pink was similar--huge "comfort food" menu, fairly cheap, this place was really loud and lively on a Sat morning. Portions are huge.

Lastly is Barton G. Definitely not cheap but they are big on "fun" presentation--the desserts, especially, which come out family-style (there was a crazy cotton candy/popcorn creation that passed us and a fruit cobbler that was served "homestyle" in a glass baking dish w/ a can of whipped cream.) There were several families eating in the beautiful outside garden area. My husband loved the mac & cheese--note--"small plates" = meal size, not appetizer.

We found lots of menus at http://www.miamibeach411.com. Have fun and send back some sunshine (and a report!)

Tap Tap Haitian Restaurant
(305) 672-2898
819 5th St near Meridian
Miami Beach, FL 33139

Front Porch
(305) 531-8300
1418 Ocean Dr
Miami Beach, FL 33139

Barton G.
1427 West Ave.
Miami Beach, FL 33139
305.672.8881
www.bartong.com

11th Street Diner
1065 Washington Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33139
305.534.6373
Open 24 hours

Big Pink
157 Collins Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33139
305.532.4700
www.bigpinkrestaurant.com

Pasha's Miami Beach
900 Lincoln Road
Miami Beach, FL 33139
Phone: 305-673-3919
Sunday - Thurday: 11:00am-12:00am
Friday - Saturday: 11:00am - 1:00am
http://www.pashas.com

For great, inexpensive Cuban food in South Beach, try Puerto Sagua. One of the best Cuban sandwiches I've had.

Puerto Sagua
700 Collins Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33139
Phone: 305.673.1115


Of interest were you not with the kids, it's open 24 hours and can be a pretty surreal place in the wee hours of the night.

Ralph Wiggum wrote:For great, inexpensive Cuban food in South Beach, try Puerto Sagua.

Puerto Sagua
700 Collins Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33139
Phone: 305.673.1115

YES !!!

veghead wrote: Lastly is Barton G. Definitely not cheap but they are big on "fun" presentation--the desserts, especially, which come out family-style (there was a crazy cotton candy/popcorn creation that passed us and a fruit cobbler that was served "homestyle" in a glass baking dish w/ a can of whipped cream.) There were several families eating in the beautiful outside garden area. My husband loved the mac & cheese--note--"small plates" = meal size, not appetizer..

I'll be in Miami this weekend and was considering BartonG. I have a reservation but not sure if I'll use it. How outrageous are the prices? I know your a veg but did you notice the average price of entrees and apps. Maybe dessert too. Thanks.

Sorry this is probably too late for you, Rev., but just in case...

Our meal, which was a total of two bowls of soup ($8ish each), two "small" plates (mac & cheese and eggplant rigatoni) and three sides, a bottle of sparkling water and 2-3 sodas (they charge for each) came to about $125 with tip.

I don't remember many specific prices but think the desserts were in the $12-20 range, I think, which seems high except they're huge--definitely enough for a group. In fact, everything is quite big--the "regular" size meals we saw go by were on the ridiculous--Cheesacake Factory scale, though they all looked wonderful. (FYI-There was some giant steaklike thing with a massive skewer of veggies that looked pretty impressive.)

The setting was beautiful (we sat outside, but inside looked nice, too), but the service was lacking for all the 2 person tables--groups seemed to get much more attention. The food was all very good. My husband says of the place, "it's expensive with an attitude, but worth it," not faint praise from him.

Look forward to hearing about your trip--send back some warm weather!

veghead wrote:Sorry this is probably too late for you, Rev., but just in case...

Yes, it's too late but it didn't matter because we never had time to go there. We were at the Nasdaq tennis for most of the day and had a short break between the day and night session. We ended up just running over to Pizza Rustica for some quick pizza, which turned out to be pretty horrid-one step up from Pizza Hut. All was was not lost as we went to Rascal House Sunday morning before heading home where I had some wonderful corned beef hash. Service though was slower than snail mail.