Hi there ! thanks for stopping by!
I hope you all had a great and relaxing weekend. today's post is a special one...and good enough to eat, literally. This past weekend I had the chance to experience something different here in Miami by attending a food tour, by Miami Culinary tours ! They give you a chance to taste and experience some new and well-known resaturants and eateries throughout South Florida. I was super excited when I first found out about it, and said yes ASAP (also, it doesn't hurt to say that I love to eat too LOL) Now you may ask what does this "tour" consist of? It basically lets you try the food of 6 different places at a reasonable price. The best part is that they are all lunch portions so you'll definitely be getting your money's worth out of it! :)
My Experience: So the tour I got to go on was the Wynwood tour. The day before the tour you will receive an email from your tour guide to arrive early because it does start at the time thats designated since we have a schedule with the restaurants. It started with out tour guide, Grace, talking to us about what we would expect to try/drink. She also gave us some deep background history of all the art of the Wynwood walls which I thought was very interesting and did not know, which was a plus ! She is very knowledgable! Also they tour rain or shine..so if its cloudy out, I suggest bringing an umbrella!!!!
Alright lets get to the good part: the FOOD!!
First up is WYNWOOD KITCHEN AND BAR:
2550 NW 2nd Ave, Miami, FL 33127
I love this place! It's in the heart of wynwood and where all the main art is located.
This was one of my favorite dishes from the tour to be honest ! Maybe because I love all the "unhealthy" food LOL ! Anyways it consisted of a cheese tequeno, sweet plantains with queso fresco and two ropa vieja (pulled pork) empanadas (fried pastry). My mouth is almost watering as I think about eating it again LOL. I never had the combination of sweet plantains with cheese on top, it was delicious!!! The cheese tequeno could've been better as I am a big fan of them. I felt like the cheese wasn't as melted as it should've been. Also the pulled pork empanadas were great too! They were served on a bed of cilantro sauce which really infused the flavor more! Oh, this was also served with a mini glass of beer, which was also great! (Sorry guys, I forgot the name of the beer but I drank it all, so it was good LOL!)
While we were eating Grace was also talking about the background of the restaurant and of their top chef, Miguel Aguilar. Everything was done at a decent pace as well, I didn't feel rushed at all. God only knows that I dislike when I'm rushed when I eat haha ;)
Next up is the R HOUSE RESTAURANT AND BAR:
2727 NW 2nd Ave, Miami, FL 33127
Now I'm surprised I've never gone to this place since it's ridiculously close to Wynwood kitchen and bar. When you first walk in the first thing I noticed was the art displayed everywhere. It was all art work of different types of soda brands...unexpected, but nice. Also, another thing I noticed was their bar seating area. Fully stocked and friendly staff, which is always a plus in my book.
This was another favorite guys! It consisted of a "Short rib" slider (pulled pork on a brioche bun) and a tuna tartare. This was also served with a glass of your choice of white or red wine. I chose white! I prefer it over red. I must say the tuna tartare was awesome! I am not a fan of raw fish at all but it tasted phenominal. It had sesame seeds and a little of avocado as well. Also the tortilla that it was on wasn't your typical flour or corn tortilla chip, it tasted more like chicharrones (pork rinds!) It was really unexpected but it was a great combo together. The short rib slider was great, nothing out of this world though. The pulled pork was cooked well and the bun was just a little different than your typical white bread. I would love to come back here to try their other wine selection and menu
So during the tour (after the first two restaurants) we had to walk a little bit more to get to the third destination. I'd say it was like 2-3 blocks. I am including this because my best advice is to come chilling...in other words, COME COMFORTABLE! This particular day was scorching outside, it felt like 100 degree weather, so I was thankful I wore shorts and some flat shoes for this tour! I even regret not bringing a water bottle of some sort to keep with me too (add that to your list)!
Ok, let's keep it rolling....the next stop was: PRIDE AND JOY!
2800 N Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33127
Now they are well known for their amazing barbecue and all around American food.
This is a place I'd definitely come back to to try their full menu selection.
On this stop, we had the "pulled pork" (I guess they love that pulled pork everywhere LOL) texas toast. It was the simplest little dish, but it was full of flavor..which surprised me. The pork was tender and juicy and the mixture with the coleslaw was just perfection. Especially since the coleslaw was not dry. That's something that I hate...dry coleslaw! I like when the coleslaw has some texture or some type of sauce...not just some cabbage and carrots thrown together! I also like that it was on a toasted piece of bread, although after a while it was a little soggy because of the coleslaw, but I ate it pretty quick, so that was not a problem haha.. Overall, it was great!
Our next destination was: SUVICHE
2751 N Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33127
I loved the ambiance and the outside patio of this restaurant. It was really welcoming and the staff was friendly too. Although, I must say that was my favorite part of this stop.. :( lol
At this stop, they served us the classic ceviche. I'll let you know first that this dish was my least favorite. I've had ceviche once before and I did not enjoy it..so here it was not any different. It consisted of fish, onions, pine nuts, and I cannot recall what else. The fish was good, I will give them that. But the smell of the onions alone was enough for me to not enjoy it.The mixture it was in was good, it had a lot of lemon though. I'd say I had 2-3 bites of this and that's it. My friend accompanied me on this tour and she did love and enjoy the ceviche, but me personally..I did not. If I do revisit, I'd try their shrimp, which I do love. :)
Ok guys we are almost approaching the end here...how sad, I know..
The next spot is : MADE IN ITALY GOURMET
10 NE 27th St, Miami, FL 33137
Now this is a place I will definitely come back to(like maybe next weekend!) It is really casual but the staff and vibe alone is enough to have you sold. The entire place almost looks like a wine cellar. They have wine/wine boxes as decor everywhere..they also had a kind of "mini deli" with different types of italian cheeses. It was really wonderful. There are also many seating areas around the place which really lets you enjoy everything.
Here we enjoyed a glass of "Prosecco" wine and truffle cheese called Taleggio. It was just awesome! I loved the combination of the wine and cheese together, it's like a match made in heaven. Although the cheese alone is really really strong. It had a sharp taste but it also melted in your mouth rather quickly, and the wine really balanced it out. I recall a pound or so of this cheese could set you back about $30-35 !! Crazy!
Goodbye goodbyeeeeee..miss American pie! We have reached the end of this post, but let me tell me you..I saved the best for last because it's DESERT!
Last stop was: FIREMAN DEREK'S WORLD FAMOUS PIES
2818 N Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33137
By the time we reached this stop I was ready for my bed LOL...but it was so worth it. Derek's was such a cute little place that I am sad I couldn't enjoy it more because of how packed it was of people! It's a really small shop but it offers a variety of yummy pies! We all got to try their famous key lime pie! It was just heavenly. It was the perfect amount of lime(lemon) flavor and the graham crust was just cooked to perfection. This is another place that I will come back to; I would love to taste their other flavors!
Overall I'd say that it was such a great experience. Not only do you get to try some good food, you get to meet new people on the tour and that's always refreshing. Miami Culinary tours also offers the South Beach and Lil Havana tour. The Lil havana tour is one that I am really looking to go on next time! It it also great because they offer different times almost everyday of every month.
Click HERE to get all of the info and where you could sign up for one!
If you'd like to sign up for the one that I went on, you could do so here: Wynwood Tour.
If you'd like to sign up for the one that I went on, you could do so here: Wynwood Tour.
I know this is was different from my regular posts but I hope you enjoyed it!
I love writing about food ;) Let me know if you join one of the tours in the comments below!
'til next post!
xo
This was our tour group!
*Thank you to SouthFloridaBloggers.com
and Miami Culinary tours for making this all possible!*
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