Monday, June 9, 2008

Miami Spice 2008 Sneak Preview June 16-30 | Summer in the City

One of the highlights of the summer season takes place during our dog days - those hot, rainy August and September nights when most people seek the shelter of an air conditioned hideaway. The Greater Miami Convention and Visitor’s Bureau solicits the top restaurants all over town to participate in a reduced-price lunch and dinner promotion they call Miami Spice.

Ideally, this effort is meant to showcase the best in Florida cuisine and make it possible for curious diners to explore restaurants they’ve often dreamed about but never tried. With set 3-course $26 lunch and $36 dinner menus published online in advance, well-informed foodies can strategize where they want to eat. Locals and visitors benefit from the reduced rates and can afford to dine out more frequently.

While this sounds like a win-win, skeptics point out that some participating kitchens post less-than-impressive choices (cheaper meats or only pastas) and some restaurants fail to impress upon their waiters that Miami Spice is supposed to promote business and therefore patrons are not to be treated like cheapskates.

Bearing in mind that some forces are beyond our control, we strongly encourage you to get out and explore as many participating restaurants as you can. To make the offer even more appealing, there will be a sneak preview of the August event with the following restaurants offering Miami Spice pricing from June 16th through the 30th. If you go, please let us know your favorites!

A Fish Called Avalon (D)
Acqua, Four Seasons Hotel (L,D)
Atrio at Level 25 (L,D)
Azul (L)
Bizcaya (L,D)
Bleu Moon Restaurant (Dinner menu)
Blue Door (Lunch menu, Dinner menu)
Blue Sea (Dinner menu)
Chef Allens (D)
China Grill SoBe (L,D)
Christy’s Restaurant (Lunch menu, Dinner menu)
Cioppino (Lunch menu, Dinner menu)
DeVito (D)
Emeril’s Miami Beach (L,D)
Escopazzo (D)
Fontana (L,D)
Food Gang (D)
Grass Restaurant & Lounge (Lunch menu, Dinner menu)
La Cofradia Restaurant (L,D)
Maison D’Azur (L)
Nikki Beach (L,D)
OLA Restaurant (Dinner menu)
Palme d’Or (D)
Palm Restaurant (L,D)
Pascal’s on Ponce (L,D)
Red Fish Grill (Dinner menu)
Shula’s Steak House Miami Beach (Lunch menu, Dinner menu)
Table 8 (L,D)
Talula (L,D)
Tantra Restaurant and Lounge (D)
Tuscan Steak (Dinner menu)