Swine Southern Table & Bar - Coral Gables, FL

Kale Salad

House Smoked Salmon Dip

Wood-Fired and Grilled Octopus

Homemade Cornbread

Fried Chicken Sandwich

The Swine Burger

Backyard BBQ Chicken

Shrimp & Grits

 

Oh my, I'm in love with swine! I love bacon (that cannot be denied), but amazing service, fabulous food and a great atmosphere is why I love the restaurant so much.

 

 

 

Swine Southern Table & Bar

2415 Ponce De Leon Blvd, Coral Gables, FL 33134
(786) 360-6433

www.runpigrun.com 

Tivoli & Lee - Warehouse District - New Orleans, LA

Unlimited Mimosas

 

Two Run Farm Burger

 

Omelet of the Day

 

 

 

The food was delicious and service was amazing, but if that is still not enough the $10 unlimited Mimosas during Saturday and Sunday brunch will make it well worth it.

Tivoli & Lee
2 Lee Circle, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 962-0909
www.tivoliandlee.com

My Top 10 Meals Of 2014

10) Wakin’ Bakin’ - New Orleans, LA

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and this fresh, delicious and homemade meal made my day.

 

9) Fins & Things Caribbean Seafood Bar & Grill - Sunrise, FL

Caribbean and seafood, these are two of my favorite things!

  

8) Swine Southern Table & Bar - Coral Gables, FL

A salad shouldn't be anyone's favorite meal, but cornbread as croutons made it delish. Plus it was a great start to an even better meal.

7) SAIA Sushi Asian Grill - Fort Lauderdale, FL

Sushi is everywhere; some good, some bad. However, it is hardly ever memorable and this was.

6) Pincho Factory - Coral Gables, FL

A tasty twist on the original burger. Plus a shout out to my South Florida roots.

5) Machiya - Miami, FL

Ramen became a craze, just like cronuts and many others but this right here surpasses the frenzy.

4) Sugarcane Raw Bar Grill - Miami, FL

Happiest hour! Drink are fresh and the food is spectacular.

3) Yardbird Southern Table & Bar Restaurant - Miami Beach, FL

Miami Beach is for tourists, but food like the Old School easily becomes a favorite even among locals.

2) LP Steamers - Baltimore, MD

I am in love with seafood (the true reason I could never be vegetarian, plus the fact that I love bacon). I wish I had some of these right now.

 

1) Gott's Roadside - Napa Valley, CA

Simple but so so good! I could eat these Ahi Poke Crispy Tacos everyday for the rest of my life.

People’s Bar-B-Que - Overtown - Miami, FL

I was really in the mood for some BBQ, but did not know where to go so I did a little Google searching for a place and found People’s Bar-B-Que with a lot of positive reviews. Good reviews and the fact that it was in the hood, I decided to go there because those things must mean that they had authentic BBQ.

 

The reviews I read were mostly great, but it definitely couldn't be because of the service (the girl at the counter couldn't get my order right and had attitude) or the atmosphere (plain and basic), it had to be because of the food.

 

After a bit of a wait, I finally got my food (ribs and chicken, however I ordered only ribs). It was pretty average BBQ, although the sauce would not be described as a typical BBQ sauce. The sauce had a surprisingly nice taste and flavor though. I was just a little annoyed eating the ribs because they were randomly chopped (not by each rib) and the sauce was excessive (I got some on my clothes). The sides were pretty decent.

 

 

Basically it was good but I doubt I would ever go back. The unique sauce made it interesting, but other than it was pretty standard.

 

 

People’s Bar-B-Que

360 NW 8th St, Miami, FL 33136
(305) 373-8080

Yardbird Southern Table & Bar Restaurant - Miami Beach, FL

What could I say about Yardbird that has not already been said. It is a staple on South Beach and serves up some pretty damn good food.

Service is good and friendly, the atmosphere is awesome and the drinks are delish. Try the Blackberry Bourbon Lemonade!

Brunch is a great time to go and although almost all of the options are great, you can never go wrong with the Old School (Fried Chicken, Waffles & Watermelon).

And, don't forget to add some of that Pork Belly Bacon on the side.

All I have to say is Yardbird is Yummy!!!

Yardbird Southern Table & Bar Restaurant
1600 Lenox Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139
(305) 538-5220
www.runchickenrun.com

Swank Southern Kitchen Restaurant - Davie, FL

My desire for some Southern Swank since leaving New Orleans left me no choice but to check out the new spot in town. The location was not in an area I would have expected this restaurant to be, but it is near my hood so I embrace it. I mean it is really quite odd to find a modern Southern eatery such as this outside of Miami, much less in Davie and on this stretch of University Drive.

Beyond my excitement to find a spot like this in my area, I was equally impressed by the restaurant decor and atmosphere as well as the service. The decor was a modern take on the saloon yet offered that inviting Southern charm. The charm extended to the employees, although I can only really speak about our server who was super sweet and a pleasure the entire meal.

As if it couldn't get any better, since it was a Monday night, they were offering shots of moonshine (as a shot or mixed in a cocktail) for Moonshine Monday! The alcoholic in me definitely took part, and while it wasn't the high-proof drink I was expecting or a beautifully crafted drink, it was $3 and worth it.

I hate when a menu has so many good and interested choices and you have to choose one (you don't have to but if you don't, you are just being greedy). After some going back and forth and some consultation from our server, we settled on the S'Wings. They came out super hot and I was pissed because I was so hungry and I was being forced to wait to started eating. I ended up not waiting and just using a knife and fork but anyway that I ate them, they were tasty. This was not your typical buffalo sauce or blue cheese, it was if you didn't like any of these two sauces before, you might have to reconsider that now.

They have a dish called Beer Can Chicken on the menu, so it was not right that at least one of us try it. The fries and the cole slaw weren't stars, but the gravy was beerrific and the chicken was ridiculously moist. Add a little bit of their hot sauce to the mix and you got a superstar dish on your hand.

Even though I would have went for the ribs, since I knew my fiancé was ordering the Beer Can Chicken, I decided to order something that wasn't out of the smoker and went with the Hanger Steak. It was well prepared and cooked just to my liking. The house jus and the horseradish cream were the perfect quantity and compliment.

We also ordered cornbread which was not only a huge piece but good. I wish it were warm, but it did come with this really amazing butter that I think I may have liked even more than the cornbread itself.

Dessert has always been my favorite part of a meal, but today it was my least favorite. We ordered the Walnut Bread Pudding and although the flavor was there, the consistency was too mushy and I had trouble enjoying it.

What I like about Swank Southern is that the food wasn't ordinary and that creativity was involved in creating the menu. I loved the chill atmosphere and despite my lack of love for my dessert choice, I can see myself going there again and again.

Swank Southern Kitchen
4198 S University Dr, Davie, FL 33328
(954) 727-5497
www.swanksouthern.com

Muriel's Jackson Square - French Quarter - New Orleans, LA

The second stop on my COOLinary dining experience is none other than Muriel's Jackson Square. Located smack-dab in the hustle and bustle of Jackson Square, it is hard not to take notice of this restaurant. Obviously my curiosity set in and after months of living in New Orleans, I finally set foot in the place.

Although the building had been around for a ridiculous amount of years (from the 1700s kind of years), Muriel's had only occupied the building since the 2000s and even though the building is old as hell, the restaurant decor was a modern representation of what a dining room would have looked like back then.

I always start my meal at a restaurant with one of their signature cocktails. They have a pretty interested list but Honey Child sounded about right for me. Vodka, blackberries and basil, OH MY! Most cocktail preparations focus on the sweet or fruitiness of the fruit but in this cocktail, the alcohol was the focus (as it should always be) and the addition of chambord didn't make me mad either.

The Shrimp and Goat Cheese Crepes appetizer was extremely appetizing. It was like eating homemade ravioli in a luscious buttery sauce that tantalizes your tongue.

The Gorgonzola Prosciutto Tart was good but not as fabulous as the crepes. Honestly it was a cheese tart with a few crumbs of prosciutto on top but when combined with the apple, blackberries and the sweet honeyed pecans, it was a lovely starting dish.

The Pecan Crusted Puppy Drum was exquisite. I was impressed by the lightness of the batter and the delicate flavor of the sauce. We added crabmeat to the dish which took it up a notch, but despite any strong flavor, it was still a distinctive entree.

I am all about seafood and combining shrimp, fish and crabmeat into one entree is like being able to choose three men and make them into one dream man. The sauce was a well-prepared, rich and heavenly flavored concoction of ingredients. The biscuit had a slight sweetness to it.

I tried to avoid the Bread Pudding (a dessert at every restaurant) but the server probably heard me wrong when I asked for the Butterscotch Pudding and brought out the Bread Pudding instead. It looked so good and I am not one for complaining so I didn't bother to correct it. I am glad I didn't because it turned out to be one of the better Bread Puddings in the city. The candied pecans and rum sauce killed it (in a good way).

The other dessert choice was the Flourless Chocolate Cake. It was divine but was richer than Oprah. It was moist, dense and smooth like fudge.

This may be a quintessential tourist restaurant in the French Quarter, however after my experience I highly recommend it. The food is a superb representation of Cajun/creole cuisine and let's not that forget that the service is impeccable and that they aim to please. My only issue (if you can really call it that), was that I did feel a little rushed but I'll chalk it up to attentive service and I can't get made at that.


Muriel's Jackson Square
801 Chartres St New Orleans, LA 70116
(504) 568-1885
www.muriels.com