Vivo Groupon

This Groupon sounded like a regular old Groupon.... But boy oh BOY did we get an amazing surprise.

As you can see I could Barely get the full photo of this without missing a few pieces of bread!! That dip was beyond belief... Sun dried tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and a whole bunch of herbs and spices according to the waiter.... I will try to recreate this soon as well!!!

Peach Sangria... We had two of these and after the night was over, we had to walk around the bloc to ensure we were sober enough to get home LOL

Vieiras

Seared scallops, cinnamon, aioli, paprika oil, potato comfit, romesco

This right here was really good.. I can make this at home, What shocked me was when My hubby ate all the onions... Hats off the the chef!

Salmon con Spinacas

Seared salmon with sautéed spinach, bechamel & white truffle oil

This Salmon was to die for... If this place wasn't so far, I'd go back for this and a glass of wine... the portion was good for sharing, but even better if you wanted it for yourself.... I would love to recreate this dish at home soon!

Paella Valenciana

Lobster tail, shrimp, clams, mussels, chicken, chorizo, sofrito, saffron rice

This is the Paella for two... We got the seafood one of course and I must say, In all my life eating Paella and not really enjoying it, this was by far the BEST paella I ever had.... The flavors and portions of everything was just phenomenal. . The rice was not too soggy, the sauce and seafood were cooked to perfection, not over cooked... I mean OMG was this great...

Crema CatalanaHomemade custard topped with crystallized sugar

Desert was beyond amazing!!! My hubby usually does not like creme brule but the waiter insisted that we try it and oh my was it worth out wild!!

I wish We could take the chef home with us!!

I would definetly recommend this place!! I am actually going to buy another Groupon TODAY!!!

http://www.ivivodoyou.com/restaurant/menu/

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Malecon Lunch!

ARROZ AMARILLO

Yellow Rice

There were veggies in this rice and I loved it.... Anything with flavor makes me a happy camper!

LAMBI GUISADO 

Conch Meat Stew

What an amazing Dish... I've been used to eating this the Haitian way.. but boy oh boy did this Dominican version change my life!!!

I looked up the recipe and will revisit this place again to enjoy this amazing dish!!!

http://maleconrestaurants.com/menu/

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La Ventana

The Theme in Miami is mainly South American cuisine. Most of the dishes we had were of Hispanic decent and boy were we happy with this one. 

Here We have Empanadas.. it's like a patty but Spanish styled. The crust was made with corn meal and you could taste the freshness.. this was not stored in the freezer people!!. The chicken was perfectly seasons and that green sauce will knock your socks off. Literally I can't stand heat so I skimmed the surface to avoid my tongue getting burnt off. But all in all it was decedent. 

Here we have My Juice again freshly made Passion Fruit with milk. OMG was it good. Not as great as the one I had at Goyo but Any shake made with fresh fruit is a win to me. 

This was a Colombian beer that was good. It reminded me of Malta for those of you who know what that taste like with an extra fizz to it. 

This Soup was smack your mother good. So good that even though It wasn't mines or my other friends we kept stealing spoonfuls and topping it off onto our rice mountains. It was a plantain based soup with everything but the kitchen sink in it. It was extremely savory and I was almost about to order a bowl for my self!!

This dish came with the soup listed above. Both those dishes didn't stand a chance with one of my friends in front of it. I had a piece of that steak and it was melt in your mouth good. The stew was prepared really well. 

Me and my one of my friends had this (Pollo a la Plancha) OMG the onions made the dish!. They were sauteed and caramelized and beneath was the huge slap of chicken breast. to go along we dipped our Yucca sticks into the soup just because there was no chance it wasn't getting attacked a few more times. This dish was enough to feed two people and have them both full. I can still taste those awesome onions in there!

I highly recommend going here. It was by luck we stopped into here and we couldn't have been more satisfied!!


http://www.laventanarestaurant.com/

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Havana 1957

This place was a nice and cozy spot that won the coin toss against another place. And we were happy with the decision!!!

We ordered a pitcher of white Sangria. It was light and refreshing. If I didn't know any better I'd say it was more of a Fresca than a Sangria but it was good. 

Here is one of my friends dish. She said it was good. I didn't try it but she got a sauce for it that was excellent on my dish below. 

Here we have a savory yet flaky Tilapia dish. OMG I love Fish and Tilapia is up there on my top 5 Seafood items. They really put their food in this dish. The lime wasn't needed but i did use a bit on the fish. I used the sauce that my friend had and it was like fairies dancing on my taste buds. I was extremely happy. The rice had a nice savory feel to it. Of course the Maduros was banging.. I don't think I ever had bad sweet plantains but with my luck someone will prove me wrong... 

I highly suggest going here if your in Miami. The staff is wonderful. The food is excellent and the atmosphere is homey!. Enjoy!!

http://www.havana1957.com/

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Goyo South Beach

Hello peeps!!! I'm back from a well deserved vacation from Miami and I have food upon food to bring you! 

We stumbled upon Goyo South Beach  after doing the tourist thing. Shopping looking at the locals and tourist as well as eating!!

We struck Gold when we heard they made natural juices. Boy did We fall in Love. With the taste buds running wild I was only able to capture my juice while the others devoured theirs. My juice was Passion Fruit. Freshly squeezed and boy did We want seconds. Among the other drinks that didn't make the photo shoot were Pine Apple and Mango and they were all GREAT!

Just Like the Drinks the food were hard to capture with our stomachs growling. I was able to capture my dish though. It was a Peruvian dish. The sauce was an egg curry sauce and boy was it delish!!! I wanted more between the juice and the sauce dear lord!. 

Here we are before I dug in and they all started digging into their meals. It was a great experience while doing the tourist thing

Can't forget the perk that lead us to this place. Although my liver couldn't stand another drink. If  you check into Yelp you get a specialty shot. This was a creamy yet liquidy shot that had both cinnamon and some type of pepper in it. It went down smoothly that I forgot it was alcohol My liver wasn't too upset with this :)

If your in the South beach area I honestly believe you need to check this place out. there are no If, Ands, or Buts about it!

http://www.yelp.com/biz/goyo-el-pollo-miami-beach

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The Kitchen

Let's talk about food.

My favorite thing in the world!!! 

This place made me more than happy my entire stay of the trip. So happy that the I wanted to pack the dish i had to go home for a week!.

Below we all had the lunch special. Here my friend had the Salmon with the mash potato. Judging by the size he wasn't too pleased with the portion but the salmon was really flavorful at most. 

The STAR OF the SHOW was my Salmon Penne AL Vodka!!!!! HOLY batman I kid you not. The marriage of the two was the best thing since Bradjolina!!! The sauce was savory and a sweet after taste. There were real chunks of salmon in every bite. It it weren't for the swim suite season I would have ordered another plate. I had to fight off my friends from eating my plate!. 

On the very corner of the picture is the fries my friend ordered and he used the rest of the vodka sauce for dipping of the fries!! DELISH 

Here was a Ravioli stuffed dish. She wasn't to happy with the portion either but the bite that I had screamed flavor. Fresh tomato sauce, cheese which I believe was either cream cheese or rocotta, not really sure but it was good. Only complaint was the size and price but it was good!.

I don't really recall the exact name of the place but it was along the busy strip of South beach. When I go out there the first place i will find will be this one. With pictures in hand to relive that awesome moment once again.

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Cubana Cafe

I love Eating here for Brunch on Sunday's or even a regular week day. I came here for dinner with my cousin and we wanted to see what their night life was like. We had our socks knocked off!

Below was my appetizer that I thought was pretty good. I like the twist on your normal Quesadilla. The chickpea salad on the side was refreshing and fresh. You can add it into the quesadilla like I did. All in all It was good! 

My Cousin Had the Snapper with a sweet potato plantain mash, corn with a spicy kick and a mango salsa. She felt like she was at a 5 star restaurant. Her exact words were " I feel like i'm eating something so refreshing with out the guilt." The Snapper was baked not fried which made her even more happy. 

My Ropa Vieja was DELICIOUS!!!!! It was succulent and filling. I was really impressed especially when it was my first time trying it after hearing good reviews about this dish. 

www.cubanacafenyc.com

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$16 deal @ El Ranchito del Agave

I love good deals and when i saw a deal for 2 drinks, 1 appetizer and 2 entrees for only $16 bucks i had to purchase!!! Below we have a very and strong coconut mojito. The girl behind the bar was extra nice to me and a friend of mine because we got more drinks after.

 Below we have Flautas...it's like a rolled taco with meat and guacamole on the side. it was really good. After it was done I wanted more.

 Here we have my friends entree which was some type of chicken in a spicy sauce. I forgot the name but it was really good. It came with soft tortillas on the side.

 To go with both our entrees was a side of rice and beans. I love rice and beans especially if the rice has corn in it.

 My Entree below was an enchilada ( something I always get in green sauce) that was really spicy. FYI do not eat a spicy dish and turn to a mojito...it just adds to the pain lol!

In all I had a good time and the deal was great. I would go back with or with out the deal. Oh and happy hour was on while we were there! $5 drinks were the bomb.com!!!!!


www.ranchitodelagave.com

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Mamajuana Cafe...

There was an awesome even for one of my friends. She was show casing her art and other artistic talents at this cafe. It was a group of us and of-course if there is food I am going to eat!

 It was happy hour at the time and the waiter suggested we try the Sangria. So I did... I was not to fond of it because I've had stronger Sangria's. I had to order another one and ask for a shot to feel as if I got my money's worth...

I was really disappointed in this pizza below. It was suppose to be a Shrimp Pizza but I swear there was only 3 little critters in that enormous pie. Aside from that the flavors were there but I was missing my shrimp.

 My friend had a chicken sandwich. the "bread" was actually creative -- it was plantains  smashed together and then fried I guess. It was really good. He couldn't finish it all so he took the rest home but was please with his dish

Not sure I would go back unless there was an event again and I was really hungry... The service kind of sucked as well. Took over 15 minuets to get someones attention every time I had an issue. I would let you guys be the judge of that.....

http://uws.mamajuana-cafe.com/Presentation/

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