A Critic of Macaluso's Restaurant (Fine Italian)
(Located in Miami Beach-Alton Road)

1. Location: Rating 4
2. Taste and Quality: Rating 5
3. Service: Rating of 5 (Waiter was excellent)
4. Price: Rating $$$$
5. MRC Must Visit: Rating 5

In the best interest of my readers, I rarely offer an introduction like the one I am about to give. However, I decided to make an exception, because I was very impressed by the restaurant you are about to read about.

I am going to start this post by stating that anyone who loves pasta (as I do) and lives in Miami, Miami Beach or South Florida must visit Macaluso's restaurant for fine Italian food. If you are a tourist or coming into town for a few days, I highly recommend that you visit this great little Italian Gem in Miami Beach.

On Saturday night, (July 21, 2012) friends of mine decided that we should leave the kids at home, go out to eat and look for a new place to dine on Miami Beach. While we discussed our options, I remembered that a close acquaintance of mine raved at the office about a place on Alton Road called Macaluso's. All I can remember is them telling me that Macaluso's had the best tasting meatballs in Miami and that I simply had to try them. So I decided to suggest Macaluso's to our friends and we decided to call and make a reservation. Our reservation was 10:30 PM.

Arrival at the Restaurant 

At first when we arrived I noticed that the restaurant was packed! That's always a good sign. When we arrived at the door, the hostess greeted us with a smile and immediately attended to us. This too was a positive. She acknowledged our reservation on file and asked to wait as they prepped our table.

A few things: We were asked to sit at the bar, but its a very small bar, so there wasn't much space, what did surprise me was the attentiveness of the bartender. He went out of his way to greet us and ask us if we liked something to drink. In the years I have been dining, I've never had a bartender leave the bar and attend us, this was quite nice! We decided to have a few drinks and wait for our table. This was a little bothersome but it was worth the wait.

Waiter and Service Level (5 Stars) 

As soon as we were seated, we greeted by a waiter by the name of Dennis. I want to take this moment to say that Dennis was phenomenal. He was very courteous, had a smile on his face, immediately broke the ice and made us feel welcomed. If you go to Macaluso's please ask for Dennis, he's a seasoned waiter. I wish more waiters in Miami were like Dennis.

As Dennis introduced himself and gave us a brief history of the restaurant and it's owner, I realized that Macaluso's was doing something right.

1. They were setting the tone and making us feel like we were somewhere special.
2. They hired a seasoned waiter and took the time to hire the right staff.
3. They paid attention to the details.

In our introduction Dennis took the time to explain to us all the different dishes and specials of the night. In his presentation he suggested that we consider the meatballs and the Macaluso's and Devito Salad as appetizers. This would turn out to be an excellent choice!-Thanks Dennis!

As our entrees, he suggested that we consider the Lobster dish, but I am allergic to shell fish, so I asked to hear about other dishes. He mentioned Macaluso's offered traditional meatballs and pasta, lobster, veal and chicken parm and a list of other pasta dishes. I decided to go for the Chicken parm, my wife ordered the veal, our friends ordered the Lobster dish.

(Please Note: The menu was given to us verbally and we did not know the price of the dishes, therefore keep this in mind when you arrive at Macaluso's) 


The Appetizers 

When the appetizers arrived, they served us two plates with two nice size meatballs in their special red sauce. All I can say is: Amazing! The meatballs were phenomenal and I highly recommend them. I think there were made with meat and veal and they were absolutely spectacular! I highly suggest you order the meatballs-I give them a MRC 5 Star!

When we received the Macaluso's salad and the Devito salad in their special house dressing, this too was very good. Anyone ordering the salad should know that 2-3 people can share the salad. The salads are huge, but very tasty. Order them!

(Please Note: We offered the Italian Sausage but we decided to order the Meatballs instead. If you are with a large party, I heard the Sausages are great.)

Our Entrees 

Ah! Now to the best part of the night.

When our entrees arrived, boy was I surprised. The texture of the pasta was amazing. This was home made pasta at its finest. The Chicken was lightly breaded, with melted Mozzarella cheese over the pasta. The dish is definitively for one person, two can share but why would you. :)

The Lobster dish looked exquisite but I thought the presentation of the dish was OK. The Lobster I heard was phenomenal and we give it an MRC 5 Stars, but Macaluso's could work a little more on the presentation.

The Veal looked tasty and boy was it! My wife told me it was a great dish and she highly recommended the veal. The Veal gets a Marly thumbs up and a MRC 4 Stars.

All and all the food and dishes were great! Upscale pasta, with a home cooked feel, all done by scratch, what more can you ask for? :)

Desert-Wow! 












Emilio Yepez
doinginternetmarketing@gmail.com
305 389 8955



















 

A Restaurant Review on: Town Kitchen and Bar, South Miami, Florida

MRC Rating:

1. Location: Rating 5
2. Taste and Quality: Rating 3 1/2
3. Service: Rating of 4 (Waiter was good)
4. Price: Rating $$$
5. MRC MUST Visit: Rating 3 1/2

Arriving to the Restaurant and Suggestions on Parking

If you are looking for a nice place to dine and eat some good food in South Miami, visit Town Kitchen and Bar. Town is located at 7301 SW 57 Ave. It’s in the heart of South Miami, near Sunset Place. It’s a great little place to dine and get a few drinks right before a movie. .
On Friday night, my wife and I were invited to Town Kitchen and Bar to celebrate my friend Ivette's 34 birthday. So before I go on with my critique, I want to wish my very good friend Ivette a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

We arrived at around 8:00 PM after going in circles looking for parking. After a few frustrating moments, I decided to Valet. I paid $7.00 and avoided having to drive around on a busy night in South Miami and thank goodness we did. If you decide to visit Town Kitchen and Bar use the Valet option, it’s well worth it. If you don’t like to Valet you can take your chance at the meters or park at Sunset Place and pay $6.00 for covered parking.

The Restaurant Ambiance and Bar

As I walked into the restaurant I could see it was packed with people. I assumed that the Happy Hour crowd at 5pm and the dining crowd at 8pm converged creating a nice scene in one of South Miami’s hot spot. Town Kitchen and Bar attracts a lot of locals on a Friday nights, so it does get busy, but head out anyway, it’s well worth the experience. (Please note: If you plan on visiting Town on Friday night, make a reservation. If you don’t make a reservation, be prepared to wait a little while for a table.)

While we waited, my wife and I decided to order a few drinks. I decided to order the house Merlot (great choice) and my wife opted to order the most unique drink on the menu, a Coke. :) My friends Ivette, Ching, Javi and other people at the gathering decided to order Vodka, Lemon Drops and other drinks which were mixed perfectly (or so I was told), so if you decide to go to Town Kitchen and Bar, visit the bar, they have a nice selection of drinks and some of the nicest bartenders in South Miami.

The Menu: Appetizers and Dinner Selection

We were seated by 9:00 PM and quickly got to looking over the menu. Surprisingly enough Town offered a nice selection of appetizers, pastas, meats and seafood entrees. After a few suggestions from the waiter and small talk over what we should order, we made our decision and decided to go with the following:

Appetizers
-Cesar Salad
-Tuna TarTar
-Calamari

Entree
-Churrasco (Medium Rare), Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Gnocchi
-Churrasco (Medium Well), Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Gnocchi
-Sliders (Well Done) and Sweet Potatoes Fries
-Sliders (Well Done) and Sweet Potatoes Fries

Critique on Appetizers

The friends we were dining with decided to order the Calamari and Tuna Tar Tar, while I decided to order the good “ole” Cesar Salad. I have a seafood allergy, so I can’t accurately give you a critique on seafood, but my friends said the Calamari is the best in Miami. So if you dine out at Town Kitchen and Bar, order the Calamari! I asked them to give me the most accurate MRC rating on the Calamari and they gave it a rating of 4. From what I understand the Tuna Tar Tar was good, they gave it a rating of 3 1/2.

Now, I’d like for you to pay special attention to what I have to say concerning the Cesar Salad. My Cesar Salad was one of the best I’ve ever had. The Cesar Salad was fresh, cold and crisp, with just the right amount of creamy delicious Cesar dressing and fresh sliced Parmesan cheese. I am always surprised how the kitchen at most restaurants get the Cesar salad all wrong, but not the folks at Town Kitchen and Bar. In my opinion, the Cesar Salad at Town is one of the best, therefore they get a gracious and high coveted 5 star MRC rating on the Cesar Salad!

How Was Dinner?

Ok, let me start by saying that Dinner was nice. I am going to give my dining experience at Town Kitchen and Bar a MRC 3 stars.

My wife and her friend ordered the sliders. They both agreed that the sliders were tasty, just the right size and perfect for dinner. The fries were thinly sliced and cooked just about right. Overall it was a nice meal. Good job on the sliders!

My friend and I ordered the Churrasco and we both agreed it was ok, just the right portion for dinner but not one of the best. The steak was lightly seasoned and went well with our garlic mash and gnocchi but sadly enough the steak wasn’t as good as the garlic mash and the gnocchi. The mash potatoes were excellent and the gnocchi was off the hook, some of the best gnocchi in Miami. As far as the steak is concerned, I guess it didn’t help that my steak was served well- done instead of medium-well as I requested, but in any case it wasn’t the end of the world. We ate, we drank and had a nice time.

Quick suggestion to the folks at Town Kitchen and Bar: Look to get your Churrasco from local Argentinean butchers or suppliers. Miami has some of the finest Argentinean restaurants and suppliers in the US. If you’re going make Churrasco use the best. If you happen to buy your meat from a local Argentinean butcher and had a bad night, I am sorry. I don't want to come off as being mean or rude, but the person I was dining with warned me beforehand that he had the steak the last time he was there and that it wasn't the best, but because this is my first time at Town, I'll settle for my critique and leave it at that.

(Side Note: I’ve been asked before why it is that I won’t tell the waiter or manager of an error on an entrée I order or complain about a bad experience. If you are wondering the same thing, I'll explain here why: I believe in giving a good, honest and well intended critique, therefore when I am critiquing a restaurant on my Blog I feel its unfair to thwart the critique by giving the manager, waiter or kitchen a chance to fix a problem. I don’t want to cheat my reader out of the truth. Therefore if you own a restaurant or manage a restaurant in Miami and I happen to critique it, please note I won’t complain or even mention a transgression to a member of your staff, unless it’s completely unbearable. You either get it right the first time or you don’t)

After Dinner, Concluding Thoughts

After we ate, we decided to head back to the bar area where most of our friends were still enjoying their appetizers and drinks. A phenomenal DJ played great music, set the mood and made the rest of the night really fun. We danced, laughed and had a nice time. This after dinner perk is what helped make Town Kitchen and Bar a must visit for tourist and locals alike.

BTW, the price was just about right, so dont be overly concerned with pricing.

I want to end off this critique by saying that my overall experience at Town Kitchen and Bar was very nice. The waiter we had was very good and did whatever he could do to make it a nice dining experience. The drinks, appetizers and ambiance get two thumbs up, leaving room for the staff at Town to work on their choice meats. If Town Kitchen and Bar in South Miami, Florida can work on providing an outstanding Churrasco or steak for that matter, it will go a long way.

Live, love and laugh!

Emilio Yepez

Critic of: The Capital Grill (Brickell, Miami-Florida)

MRC Rating:
1. Location: Rating of 5
2. Taste and Quality: Rating of 5
3. Service: Rating of 5 (Waiter was phenomenal!)
4. Price: Rating $$$$
5. MRC MUST Visit: Rating 5

I decided to dine at Capital Grill on Brickell Avenue on 444 Brickell Avenue, Miami, Florida 33131 on Sunday night with my wife and a few friends, boy what a treat!

There are very few restaurants I visit in Miami that actually leave me wanting to come back soon, the Capital Grill is one of those exceptions. If you’re visiting Downtown Miami or the Brickell area, this restaurant needs to be a must in your visiting map. Whether you are a tourist or a local, you will find its upscale, conservative wood paneling and attention to detail, to be one of the very best in fine dining experiences in Miami.

So I decided to invite a few friends we haven’t seen in quite a while to The Capital Grill on Sunday night. I felt lucky to have acquired an 8:15pm reservation because most of the time they are very busy, so I recommend to my readers that you get a reservation in advance if at all possible, if you can’t get a reservation, show up at the restaurant anyway and wait, it’s well worth it!

We arrived at the restaurant at 7:56pm and we were greeted by our host and we were immediately sat in our booth. Side Note: The host gets a big MRC 5 for attentiveness and efficiency!

As we sat down we were introduced to our waiter by the name of Anthony Q. He too gets an MRC 5 for service, he was on point, made great recommendations on the wine and entrees, seemed to be a seasoned vet in attending customers. For those interested in the Wine we ordered, we ordered: Domaine Chandon Pinot Meunier. This was an excellent bottle of Wine!

As we looked over the menu, Anthony Q. ran down a list of specials and kindly offered his recommendations. After hearing the fine list of items to choose from we decided to order appetizers. My friends wife and I decided to order the Wedge Salad with Blue Cheese, Ed decided to order the Shrimp Cocktails and my wife decided to order the Cesar Salad.

My Rating on Appetizers: A MRC 5!

The Wedge was phenomenally crisp with just the right hint of Blue Cheese dressing and bacon bits. The Shrimp Cocktail was also great and the Caesar salad was a Capital Grill signature Caesar, great start!

For our entrees, my friend Ed and I decided to order the Porter House (one of a kind premium beef), one was ordered medium rare and the other was ordered medium well. My wife decided on the Salmon and Ed’s Wife decided on the 2lb pound lobster. We also ordered a side of the LOBSTER Mac and Cheese (a must have) and Asparagus with Holland sauce.

After a few drinks of delicious wine, a few stories and a few laughs about my potential career in Security Enforcement (inside joke), we received our entrees, what a sweet surprise! Our Steaks were cooked just like we ordered (a first in a long time), my wife’s Salmon looked delectable and the Two pound lobster was OFF THE CHAIN! (Excuse the slang). The Mac and Cheese had huge lumps of Lobster, what a treat!

After about 45 minutes of munching and savoring our delicious food, we found it in our hearts to order desert, once again Anthony Q. hits it out of the ball park with his recommendations. Based on his guidance, we ordered the Cheese Cake (MRC 5) and the Chocolate Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich, that’s was the Cherry on the Cake (no pun intended). Needless to say we left the restaurant feeling 5 pounds heavier but very, very satisfied with our meal and service, The Capital Grill gets the honor of receiving MRC 5’s all around.

I need to point out something very important, Fred Sutherland, the Manager at Capital Grill, visited our table twice to ensure the service was up to par, this too added to our dining experience. (Frank you run the Capital Grill like a pro, kudos to you and your staff, thanks for all the attention and care to our table.)

Thanks,

Emilio Yepez

PS. Fred, thanks for the free taste on the Caramel Ice Cream, good stuff!


For Great Tasting Wine: Visit the: www.thecorkandbottle.com

Critic of Barton G’s, Miami Beach, Florida PT Duex

MRC Rating:
1. Location: Rating of 3 (it can be quite a drive if your not staying on Miami Beach)
2. Taste and Quality: Rating of 4 (comparable with most fine dining)
3. Service: Rating of 4 (Waiter was phenomenal!)
4. Price: Rating $$$$ (quite expensive but just about there with other dining establishments)
5. MRC MUST Visit: Rating 4 (New updated look, tourist location, fun and novel)

Ok, I know that my recent review of Barton G's was somewhat negative however I must admit that they recently made some updates to the restaurant that I found refreshing, not to mention that my waiter was phenomenal! Therefore, in all fairness to Raymond, Stephan, the entire Barton G management staff and waiters, I ve decided to do something, I will not do again, update my critic and offer a more lively review of my overall experience at Barton G's.

I decided to give Barton G's another chance this past Saturday and invite my wife, her brother and his wife to dinner. My brother in law had mentioned to me various times that he was interested in dining at Barton G's, however because of my critic he decided not to go. My brother in law is an events coordinator specializing in media and fashion events. He's expressed to me in the past the he was a big admirer of Barton G's work and really wanted to experience the restaurant, therefore I thought it might be worth a try to take him there.

We arrived 30 minutes early on Saturday night and I was pleasantly surprised to hear from our hostess that we could be seated immediately, I thought that was a very nice gesture and it started off the night on the right foot! As I walked in the dining area, I noticed that there was a nice updated vibe to the place, I really couldnt put my finger on what was different but I am guessing it was the flowers and arrangements on the wall and near the bar area.

I've had the pleasure of dinning at some of the most exclusive dining establishments in the world and I am very good at picking up the difference between an experienced waiter and a waiter that doesnt know how to set the mood and offer a great dining experience. On Saturday, we got very lucky and had a great wait staff person attend our table. We were given options, time to order, recommendations, was'nt too forceful on the specials and added just the right bit of humor to our dinning experience.

More to comer later! ( I'am running late)









I just recently went to Barton G's on Saturday

Critic of Barton G’s, Miami Beach, Florida

MRC Rating:

1. Location:
Rating of 3 (it can be quite a drive if your not staying on Miami Beach)

2. Taste and Quality:
Rating of 3 (comparable with most fine dining)

3. Service:
Rating of 2 (Waiter interested in inflating the bill, over charged me and gave me the wrong bill twice, highly suspicious)

4. Price:
Rating $$$$ (quite expensive but just about there with other dining establishments)

5. MRC MUST Visit:
Rating 4 (tourist location, fun and novel)

I decided to take my wife to Barton G’s for our anniversary to experience this very popular restaurant on Miami Beach. From the moment we arrived, we were greeted by the host who quickly looked up our name in the book of reservation and immediately seated us in the general dining area. I must say that I was impressed with the ambiance of the restaurant and looked forward to a nice meal and pleasant time.

As we sat down and talked about the ambiance in the restaurant we were greeted by our waiter who seem to be happy to serve us and eager to take our order. After a few moments of dialogue and recommendations from our waiter we decided to order a few salads and a main course. We ordered two American Classic salads and two main entrees. My wife ordered the Garden Sea Bass and I ordered the 10oz. Filet Mignon. I also decided to add to my order a fruity drink they serve; that later I found wasn’t all that great. They have these signature drinks for $29.95 which are fun and novel, but not worth the price. Please NOTE: Your waiter will hard sell these drinks and unless your with a big group of people and want to all sip out of the same glass and laugh it up, avoid ordering it.

After a casual drink and few jokes about how our 10 year anniversary seemed liked yesterday, we received our salads and we immediately noticed that the portions served for the salad were rather large and could each serve two people, therefore for those reading this article you may want to only order one salad and share it between the two of you. I am glad we went with the American Classic Salads as a starter; it was fresh, crisp and ideal for a hot summer night in Miami Beach. I give this salad a rating of (3) three and recommend you order it if you like Blue Cheese and iceberg lettuce.

After eating our salad and feeling 50% full, we received our entrée and again were surprised by the portions they served. The entrées were huge and enough to feed two people. At this point I was a little annoyed and thought to myself why the waiter hadn’t warned us about the portions when we ordered. I then quickly realized that maybe the waiter was more interested in inflating my bill so his 18-20% tip would grow at the same rate; however I decided to discredit the thought and continued to eat about 50% of what they served me. The Sea Bass was tremendous and the Filet was ok, the filet was definitely NOT at the level of a steak house like Ruth Chris, Capital Grill or Christies but it was pretty good.

Now, I’ve explained in brief my experience with the service and portions served at Barton G’s, but what I’ve failed to mention is that while we were eating, there’s much more going on around us then what I’ve described thus far in my blog. People dinning in the restaurant were either starting to order their food or receiving their desserts and I will be the first to admit that the deserts being served were straight out of a movie. Now if you know a little history about Barton G, you know that he’s received accolades, high ratings and reviews for putting together lavish and unique events in and around South Florida, however what I must warn you is that the restaurant falls short in style and showmanship and was a bit dated. The food presentation reflected his style and prices but you could tell it looked passé. Let me end off by saying that Barton G’s restaurant needs a slight “face lift”. Many of the plates served on and deserts ordered on a Palm One were dated with a capital D! With the money they are charging tourists and locals they should really consider a makeover.

When our waiter picked up our plates and was ready to offer desert, he was extremely adamant about us ordering something and not leaving the restaurant without trying a desert, therefore I decided to order for the heck of it and later regretted the decision. We were given the option of ordering deserts like: Big Top Cotton Candy, Carnival Fun Cakes, The Sabrina Sundae and Ultimate BG’s sundae. We decided to order a chocolate cake and once again realized when they delivered our order to the table that it was way too huge and overpriced. Deserts ranged from $25.00 to a whopping $75.00 each! What’s even worse is that if you dine by yourself (which I don’t suggest in this restaurant) or with another person, the desert is way too big to finish therefore take caution. My suggestion is to order coffee and eat desert elsewhere, you’ll be happy you did!

All in all our experience was pleasant and enjoyable, with the exception of my waiter overcharging me twice and giving me someone else’s bill, I've seen this practice before and it was highly suspicious. I will say that the waiters at Barton G’s really know how to encourage tourists and first timers into ordering more than they can eat and it’s a real shame, because at the end of the night I concluded that although the food was good and the service alright, my waiter could have done a better job looking out for me then looking out for his TIP.

Thanks

Emilio Y.
The Miami Restaurant Critic

Miami Restaurant Critic Updates & Comments

Fellow readers and eaters,

I thought I would share a very brief perview on some of the restaurants we will be featuring in the Miami Restaurant Critic Blog. I will be writing and sharing my thoughts and experience concerning the following restaurants:

Barton G's in Miami Beach
Capital Grill on Brickell Avenue
Amici's Trattoria Italiana Restaurant at the Hammocks
Long Horn's Steak House in West Kendall
Cafe Di Note in South Miami/East Kendall
New York New York Deli on Kendall and 107th Avenue

I think you'll find my review to be interesting to say the least and you'll also be surpised by some of the things I have to share concerning some of the more upscale Restaurants. Please keep an eye out for the full reviews in this week's Miami Restaurant Critic!

Talk to ya soon!

Emilio Y.

Introduction to Miami Restaurant Critic Blog

Fellow readers and "eaters",

I've decided to develop an un-bias and objective Blog concerning my experiences at local restaurants in Miami, Florida. I consider myself a lover of "food" and a good judge of all types of cuisines. Unfortunately I cannot and will not Blog about shellfish or restaurants that serve shellfish because I am allergic, therefore I will probably have to bring in another editor that can speak clearly and candidly about shellfish.

In my assessments, I will rate the restaurant on a 5 point scale that will regard:

1. Location
2. Taste and Quality
3. Service
4. Price
5. MRC MUST Visit

I will be rating a restaurant on location and the feasibility in getting to the restaurant. There will be tourist and foreigners reading this Blog and will candidly explain whether or not the restaurant is an a neighborhood that is safe or not safe.

I will include in my rating taste and quality of food. Whether the chef threw something together or whether they took their time to develop the dish. Whether or not it has a unique taste or a microwaved, out of the box taste.

I will be honest in my assessment and especially focus on service. There is nothing I hate more than a nasty waiter or attendant and you can bet and count on the fact that if I am mistreated or receive horrible service, that I will be writing about this experience in details, using first names, dates and times. I strongly believe that price, location and quality of food is important, but the waiter/waitress is who helps set the mood and ambiance.

Price will also be an important part and I will be frank in my critic when I gage whether or not the restaurant is over priced. For those reading this Blog and wondering whether or not I am qualified to rate this area, let me reassure you that I am not a cheapskate nor do I only look for deals on meals. Over the last 18 years that I have frequent restaurants all of the world, I've spent on dinner for both me and my wife anywhere between $20.00-$550.00 and never thought twice about what I was spending so as long we experienced a great meal and a nice dinning experience.

Last but not least, the highest rating a restaurant can get from me is the "MCR Must Visit" stamp of approval. This rating will be almost impossible to get and will only be given to a certain groups of restaurants. I want to reassure you that the only way a restaurant will get this honor is ensure that they are on their game!

I want to end this post by saying, that the goal of this post is help the food enthusiast and people who not only love food, but want to dine at an enjoyable place and experience a restaurant somewhere nice in the hottest city in world!

Emilio Y.