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Table 8 Chef
Govind Armstrong |
The cult of celebrity chefs is bigger today than ever before.
With gourmet cookbooks, popular TV shows, chef-branded cookware and
expensive restaurant chains popping up all over the country, it's
fascinating to watch the impact of this multimedia empire on the South
Beach dining scene. While Miami has long enjoyed a wealth of small-scale
ethnic restaurants, the influx of name brand dining makes it possible to
participate in Celebrity Chef Culture every night of the week! For some
locals, this is an unwelcome change. For our international visitors, the
chance to sample the culinary pyrotechnics of Govind Armstrong, David
Bouley, Nobu Matsuhisa and a host of others all within
walking distance of our sunny beaches is irresistible.
When Hollywood Super Friends Jennifer Aniston and
Courtney Cox drive the paparazzi wild, chances are
they're photographed running into Sunset Boulevard's
Il Sole Restaurant for a plate of chef Pietro Rota's
popular pasta. Though it looks like no one in Los
Angeles ever really eats, the chefs who feed the stars
are now celebrities in their own right. Last season,
Govind Armstrong shuttered the west coast branch of
Table 8 to make extensive renovations while he
perfected the menu at the Regent Hotel's sun deck
dining room at 14th Street and Ocean Drive. This
second generation of Table 8 has been wildly popular
with Miami's foodie crowd as well as the upscale
lounge crawlers who flock to the tapas style menu he
serves at the bar after hours.
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Chef David Bouley |
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While Armstrong shuttles between his west and east
coast restaurants these days to make certain the food and service are up
to his standards, his Miami Beach restaurant is often compared to New
York superstar David Bouley's Evolution at the Ritz Carlton South Beach.
Opened within months of one another, their caliber of cooking raised the
standard in town to new heights.
Too often, South Beach restaurants get
dismissed as tourist hot spots or trendy lounges.
While there are still many places where huckster
hostesses wave unsuspecting visitors toward badly
prepared menus, those in the know credit
out-of-towners like sushi star Nobu Matsuhisa with
inspiring the influx of big name restaurants to our
small town dining scene. Nobu, the "nouvelle Japonais"
super chef, perfected an upscale chain of
celebrity-friendly sushi restaurants in the world's
capitals. Lucky for Miami, the chefs who train in his
kitchen have gone on to open some top-flight
restaurants all over town.
Name Dropping Dining Options
Miami's Mango Gang, the half dozen chefs who fortify
their menu with local seafood and Caribbean-inspired
citrus-infused preparations are facing a new breed of
competition from New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and
beyond. South Florida is such a popular international
destination, the eyes of the culinary world are
increasingly focused on our shores. Bravo TV sent
their production crew to the brand new Fontainebleau
Resort to shoot the third season of Top Chef and the
Food Network hosts the ever-popular South Beach Food
and Wine weekend on Ocean Drive every February.
Emeril Lagasse, a Food TV superstar, can sometimes be
found in his dining room at the Lowe's Hotel at 1601
Collins Avenue. Young fans of the show who have
learned to shout "Bam!" while spicing their own
dishes, flock to meet their hero at the Food and Wine
weekend or at the private dinner parties he hosts
during the event. In a recent interview, Lagasse
marveled at the impact of TV stardom on the once
humble status of a restaurant chef. People often took
for granted that a staff of anonymous cooks labored
over a hot stove to prepare their dinner. Suddenly,
these behind-the-scenes workers are considered
craftsmen, savvy business people and Important
Personalities. This is what cooking shows have done
for America. Celebrity Chefs are often called upon to
endorse household products, fast food chains -even
Dunkin Donuts!
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Emeril Lagasse |
Emeril Lagasse will once again participate in the 2008
line up for the South Beach Food and Wine Festival. He
joins Mario Batali, Jamie Oliver, Jean George
Vongerichten, Alice Waters, Rachel Ray and South Beach
Diet Doctor Arthur Agatston in events all over the
city February 21-24th. There will be a late night
Fettuccine Party hosted by Mario Batali, an all-girl
D'Vine Divas party celebrating Lucques LA star chef
Suzanne Goin, and even a Poker Party with down home
Southern Chef Paula Deen. Tickets go on sale October 15 and will sell out
fast.
One of the highlights of the weekend is a panel
discussion hosted by Bad Boy chef Anthony Bourdain.
His Travel Channel television shows, his personal
website and frequent guest blog posts on top culinary
sites are critical of his too-popular friends who are
more often Brands than Cooks. While he endorses no
products, his hours in front of the camera far
outweigh those before a stove. He is a personality in
his own right and has become even more famous by
poking fun at the foibles of his fellow famous chefs.
Awash in the spotlight of his own infamy, Bourdain
reminds his fellow TV stars that they were once just
back-of-the-house workers who were never the smartest
kids in their classes. He warns chefs not to forget
the humble peasant origins of their craft by making
celebrity more important than their ability to cook
good food. His frequent visits to South Beach to film
his television program or to participate in the Food
Network events often take the wind out of the
over-inflated sails of the other celebrities.
What's in a Name?
Our fascination with fame drives our decisions to
purchase certain products, to visit certain cities,
even to style our hair in certain ways. While
political pundits dust up a scandal over the prices
candidates pay to cut their hair, even hair stylists
enjoy 15 minutes of notoriety when their work is
associated with a famous person. Which brings us right
back to Jennifer Aniston and her famous Rachel Haircut
that launched a thousand imitators when Chris McMillan
created that layered shag hairstyle in the 1990s.
Jennifer Aniston frequents Los Angeles eatery Il Sole
and thus bestows celebrity status upon chef Pietro
Rota. This season, Rota brings his culinary firepower
to the reinvented Tides Hotel and the newly
refashioned La Marea Restaurant on Ocean Drive.
The Tides Hotel suffered a round of bad press this
season as extensive renovations lingered longer than
expected. Disappointed guests posted negative comments
online and frustrated the hotel's efforts to brave the
onslaught. The saying, "Time and Tide Wait for No
Man," certainly rings true for this Ocean Drive
stalwart as the drop cloths are gone and the scaffolds
lifted to reveal a spectacular new setting for dinner
or a truly romantic vacation. With just 45 sleek guest
rooms and suites awaiting finishing touches, the hotel
dining room and terrace lounge are working through the
transition from their former moniker, 1220 (a
reference to the hotel's address) to the more stylish
La Marea - Italian for "The Tide."
For ten years, the Restaurant Formerly Known as 1220
challenged 5 different chefs and endured seasons of
good and not-so-good reviews. Now under the
stewardship of the Kors Group, this elegant Art Deco
property will spend 2007 "in turnaround," as they say
in Hollywood. Shepherding the restaurant through
these growing pains, LA big guns Pietro Rota and Bravo
TV's top designer Kelly Wearstler have transformed the
lobby and lounge space into a wild post modern
seascape. With interior design that's more about the
quirks of her character than practical end use, Kelly
Wearstler lends something rather Pee Wee Herman to her
interiors. It's all too easy to spot Wearstler's
whimsy everywhere you look and the highly stylized new
Tides is no exception. Ultimately, the classic Art
Deco bones of the property have been given a
much-needed update - all the better to focus attention
on the exciting new menu.
Executive Chef Pietro Rota is as big a name in
Hollywood as his Ocean Drive neighbor Govind Armstrong, who is often
seen wooing guests on the patio of Table 8 at the Hotel Regent.
Celebrity chefs
add a new luster to South Florida's dining scene and
the man who feeds the cast of "Friends" is certainly
bringing his own sparkle to La Marea. The journey from
Il Sole, the Sunset Boulevard restaurant that hosted
the final cast party for Friends to the quiet reaches
of northern Ocean Drive stands in contrast to
Armstrong's Table 8 because Rota's dishes tend toward
simple pastas and salads rather than Armstrong's
loftier gourmet riffs. The Tides has decided to extend
the restaurant's soft opening throughout the summer to
allow the chef and wait staff to work out any kinks in
preparation and presentation. South Beach's off-season
will be the proving ground for a menu that features
tapas both hot and chilled, simple salads, Rota's
signature pastas and a number of grilled, roasted or
steamed fresh fish.
Also serving breakfast and lunch to hotel guests, the abbreviated daytime menu includes main plate salads from a classic nicoise to a lush lobster cobb with bacon and avocado. Sandwiches of chicken and fish, light pastas and seafood round out the lunch selections. One consideration in holding the official opening until September might be Rota's decision to offer most fish whole or on the bone to be filleted tableside. While some LA waiters may be moonlighting actors, the La Marea staff will be required to master this more formal
seafood service. It is uncertain whether this decision will survive the
summer shake out. What matters most is that this Milanese chef brings a
considerable Italian influence to the new Tides menu, but his penchant
for a simple, straightforward Mediterranean style keeps each dish light
and fresh and inviting. It may be tempting to make a meal of the
innovative starters. The fresh tuna crudo and a salad of thinly sliced
red and gold beets topped with a Humboldt Fog artesanal goat cheese are
both simple and delicious.
The freshly marinated anchovies paired with lemon, garlic
and white wine are as succulent as the just-seared diver scallop.
Perhaps too hearty for a
sultry Miami night, the Mediterranean Seafood Soup is
more like a traditional bouillabaisse of clams,
mussels and scallops nestled in just a bit of garlicky
tomato broth. Pastas topped with lobster, with
homemade pork sausage or with roasted pork cheek and
porcini reduction are Rota's best efforts. Those who
limit their carbohydrates and manage to resist what
might possibly be the best breadbasket on the Beach
are rewarded by the pan-seared Dover Sole in a lemony
butter sauce. Share a side dish of mini fried
artichokes or the outrageously creamy polenta and
you'll certainly agree - The Tides Have Turned!
From Philadelphia with Love
At the opposite end of Ocean Drive, the celebrity name
on the newest restaurant marquee is not that of the
chef, but popular character actor Danny Devito.
Executive chef Francis Casciato takes a less prominent
role in the opening weeks of this big name eatery so
that the more famous little guy can enjoy the
spotlight. Devito is quick to equate his years in his
mother's kitchen and his father's New Jersey diner
with his lifelong interest in food. However his
participation at Devito South Beach (150 Ocean Drive)
is strictly front of the house. After a chance meeting
with restaurant financier Michael Brauser while on
vacation in the Greek Islands, Devito and Cheer's star
Rhea Pearlman decided to focus their attention on
renovating the Joia restaurant space adjoining the
Century Hotel. Devito hosted a number of opening
parties, first for the cast of HBO's Sopranos
following the series finale and then a second VIP
night featuring his costars from FX's "It's Always
Sunny in Philadelphia." Ever the charming host, Devito
attended solo while his wife readied for an upcoming
stage performance in London.
The third partner in this new power venture is David
Manero, who's casual Vic and Angelo's Italian Enoteca
still ranks as a top door in Palm Beach County. While
the PGA location boasts pizza made with "real" New
York water and the only outdoor dining patio with a
real bocce court, this glam, big-ticket installation
on South Beach is rumored to have cost over $4 million
dollars to design. Manero's wife Lynn is credited with
the over-the-top presentation that includes red
croco-printed benches, pearl white upholstered chairs
and framed flat screen televisions strategically
placed around the dining rooms featuring clips from
Devito's comic movies. The overall effect is 1950s
Miami Beach meets a stylized Las Vegas lounge. Bright
red Murano glass chandeliers, cabana curtained dining
nooks and exposed brick walls definitely provide the
"Wow!" factor the partners hoped to create.
The menu fuses upscale steakhouse classics with
Italian red sauce specialties. Diners are presented
with freshly steaming popovers at the outset of each
visit and are gifted with the recipe should they wish
to try to replicate the dish at home. Adding to a
strong first impression, a plate of just fried
zucchini, roasted peppers and imported Parmesan cheese
is presented as a complimentary appetizer. The menu
ranges from classic antipasti of imported smoked meats
and cheeses and rolls deftly through hearty pastas,
Mama's meatballs topped with creamy ricotta cheese and
a full range of the house's signature meats. Not for
the faint of heart, a $325 "Flight" of steaks from
three continents boasts Japanese Kobe Beef, Australian
Wagyu Rollatini and American Kobe Flat Iron steak. If
your tastes run more toward spaghetti and sauce,
you'll be relieved to learn the house's private blend
of San Marzano plum tomato sauce is available for a
paltry $12.95 a jar.
Devito recently dodged a scandal when he appeared on
"The View" morning chat show still suffering the
effects of a night of too much limoncello with fellow
actor George Clooney. Rather than hide from his boozy
performance, Devito offered to represent a distributor
of the strong cocktail and was quickly signed to
endorse a personal line of the potent lemon liqueur.
Danny Devito's Premium Limoncello will hit retail
shelves in August for $23.99 a bottle and advance
tastings will be held at his new South Beach eatery.
"When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Limoncello," he
laughs. It's possible this enterprising actor will be
laughing all the way to the bank.
If you decide to take a South Beach Celebrity Chef
Dining Tour, be certain to make reservations well
before your visit.
Devito South Beach is located at 150 Ocean Drive and the
reservation line is 305-531-0911.
LaMarea at the Tides Hotel is located at 1220 Ocean Drive
and serves lunch and dinner daily. Book a table at 305-604-5070.
The Miami Spice Annual Summer Dining Event takes place
from August 1 through September 30.
Many of Miami's
All-Star Restaurants including Rota's La Marea, Armstrong's Table 8, Emeril's
South Beach, Eric Rippert's Lido at the Standard, Douglas Rodriguez's Ola at the
Sanctuary, Allen Susser's Chef Allen's, and Michael
(Scwartz's) Genuine Food and Drink will participate in
the Miami Spice Event featuring a set prix-fixe 3
course menu for just $22 per person at lunch and $35
per person at dinner.
Learn more at www.ilovemiamispice.com including a complete list of
participating restaurants and menus. Reservations are
strongly suggested.
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