Makoto
It’s Tuesday morning here in Sunny Miami Beach and the weather is now starting to sink in with me. I’m getting accustomed to the heat and humidity of the Sunshine state after a day spent in the beach swimming.
I was trying to recall the places where I went to the last time, I was here a couple of months ago and I started to get hungry and figured that I’m in Miami and #KULINARYATRAVELS should start it’s on Miami series and found my way off to Bal Harbor. After we parked our car, we had about 15 minutes before our lunch reservation and I used this time to take the elevator up to the 3rd floor to Books and Books to pick up a copy of Vegetable Simple by Eric Ripert and World Travel by Anthony Bourdain. As I’m carrying my books down to the 1st floor and headed to my first meal at Makoto, which was a place that eluded me on my last visit.
Our reservation was right when the restaurant opened at 11:30 and the dining room was starting to get packed right away. We were seated on their outdoor patio inside the mall by the Coi fountain which gave our table somewhat of a soothing rainforest dining experience. While thinking about what to order and to wait for our companions Victoria and Alex to join us for our meal I opted to start with some green tea. Many people were starting to arrive around the mall as shoppers and diners slowly started walking towards their respective destinations. Our server finally came back to our table to check on us and took our order and we were all patiently waiting for our food to arrive.
The Hamachi Ponzu was first to arrive to our table and this was the best way to start the meal with raw seafood cured in citrus with thinly sliced peppers.
The Anago Sushi was a perfect second starter as the ell was grilled perfectly and the eel sauce had the right balance of sweetness.
Vicky’s order of Watermelon Ceviche was the 3rd order, and this was a very bright and colorful dish that was equally as tasty.
Shrimp tempura maki was the first roll to arrive at our table and I was immediately transported back to my time in Japan after my first bite. The crunch of the tempura complimented the asparagus and spicy aioli well.
The Vegan Stephen roll followed shortly after and I was quite impressed with the zucchini tempura, avocado and red pepper strips that made the roll so Instagram ready.
The Ginger Lamb Chop finally made it’s way and this dish stole the entire party. Served perfectly medium rare and smoking from the charcoal grill vessel it was plated on. The whipped feta tofu sauce that it came with was a superb accompaniment to the pungent flavors of the lamb chops.
This dish was by far one of the best grilled lamb chop dishes I’ve ever had and a super way to start our Miami series.
Next stop will be at Wakyu for an Argentinian experience here in Miami…