Itinerary needs suggestions/recommendation....Thanks!!

[shake N baik]

Miami Chowhounders,

I'll be in Miami with family to celebrate my parents wedding anniversary. We'll have a car but prefer not to drive too far from our hotel in Miami Beach. The one thing making this difficult to plan is that my Dad is particular about certain restaurant "concepts". He hates small plates/dainty portions etc. If there is a seafood centric restaurant I can take my family to for dinner that would be great. My wife and I enjoyed River Oyster Bar when we went couple years ago but would like to try someplace new. For lunch I'm thinking Cuban. I appreciate your help!!

day 1
lunch - Joe's Takeaway
dinner - ???

day 2
lunch - ???
dinner - Michy's

day 3
lunch - ???

[Frodnesor]

River Oyster Bar is still good, and Altamare is a good call on the beach for seafood. There's also Area 31 downtown, but if you're already on the beach you might just as well stick with Altamare. Estiatorio Milos is another seafood-focused place on South Beach, but very expensive (except for the bargain $20.12 lunch special) and doesn't do local seafood, rather flies everything in from the Mediterranean.

For Cuban I like Sazon which is on the north end of Miami Beach just past 71st Street.

The Dutch is a great call that will appeal to your dad without being boring to you - great food, unfussy format.

I was recently back to Sardinia Ristorante, which I hadn't been to in some time, and enjoyed it quite a bit, if you're interested in Italian.

[tpigeon]

To the OP -- did not read the cuban part of your email - I would do puerto sagua if you want to do cuban and are in south beach.

Frod, did you have their new crepe dessert at sardinia? It is great - their best dessert by a wide margin.

[Frodnesor]

Did not do dessert. Stuck with just antipasti and my favorite, the spaghetti with bottarga.

[tpigeon]

Good choices. Next time, get the dessert - nutella banana crepe but made with the sardinian flatbread. It is pretty great.

To the OP -- I prefer dutch to yardbird if you are deciding between the two.

[shake N baik]

Apparently my wife had a bad experience at Joe's last year so that is off the list now. The menu for Sardinia and Alta Mare seems to fit the bill. I'll have to run that by you know who and decide if we'll go for lunch or dinner.

I've read some inconsistent reviews about Michael's Genuine here but I like their menu and cooking philosophy. Since my parents are coming down from NY we'll pass on the Dutch. Do you think Michael's Genuine still does a good job of highlighting the local ingredients?

We'll be in town in late October. Can't believe that the only table available at NAOE is for 6 oclock.

[tpigeon]

You may want to read the link below before dismissing the Dutch. It is from michelleats who is a frequent nyc chowhound poster.

http://www.girleatscity.com/2012/05/d...

[Frodnesor]

Naoe only has two seatings a night, at 6pm and 9:30pm.

Michael's still is among the tops especially if you're looking for local products. Altamare, which was already mentioned, also makes good use of local product, especially fish and seafood (the chef is a former MGF&D guy).

[tpigeon]

Naoe is also tiny.

[Frodnesor]

correct - only 8 seatings at a time.

[Blind Mind]

NAOE also is small plates kinda which your Dad might not like. Well, it's a bento box followed by a 8-piece sushi progression that gets delivered 1 piece at a time.

Altamare is a great call. The Dutch and Sardinia are also great calls given your requirements. I'm also a fan of Meat Market though I will admit it's been awhile since I've had dinner there.

Off the beach, Michael's is the spot to hit, especially for fresh seafood. I had a whole pompano there last night that was outstanding. Actually, every fish that I've ever had there has been incredibly good. Real simple preparations with great flavor. Nice scene there too, a classy joint you and your parents will enjoy. I eat there 1-2x a week so I'm probably biased...or just smart ;) If I were you that'd be my dinner on night #1 to start the trip right. Recommend reservations in advanced. It's packed nightly.

[shake N baik]

My wife and I may leave for Miami the night before so the 9:30 slot for NAOE would be just us two.

I think Michy's lets you reserve 6 weeks out so once I can reserve I'll make sure to do that. You sold me on Michael's Blind Mind. Just made the reservations at Michael's for Friday night with plans to check out The Dutch or Sardinia for lunch.

Really looking forward to this visit since it's more food and drink focused. Appreciate all your inputs and hopefully my plan will get solidified soon.

[tpigeon]

If you do the dutch for lunch, stick with sandwiches and burgers

[shake N baik]

Yardbird brunch inquiry - there are tons of slots open for 2 tops but nothing for 4. Is this common occurrence when trying to book their brunch over a month out?

[Frodnesor]

I would call directly - Yardbird has a somewhat odd reservation policy especially through OpenTable (assume that's where you're checking) - I think they block out certain times & tables on the system, and you may fare better with a phone call.

[lax2mia]

Unless they put the fried chicken back on the menu. It was there, had it once, then it disappeared without a trace. Shame.

[shake N baik]

Just wanted to thank you fellow Miami Chowhounders. Had an excellent time this past weekend. There was no better way to start the weekend off than freshly shucked oysters and clams at River Oyster Bar. The food at Michy's was stellar. Short ribs were delicious but found the snapper to be a little bland. Parents and wife basically loved every dish we ordered at Michael's Genuine. We've had fried pork ears at other restaurants before but theirs took the cake. Delicious dunked in some of their homemade hot sauce. My finicky Dad's favorite meal of the weekend was the roast pork w/ crispy skin and the stewed pig knuckles and trotters at El Palacio De Los Jugos. Did get ripped off at Deco Grill on Ocean Drive getting charged 9 bucks a beer but guess the menu with no prices should've been a sign. Till next time...thanks again.

[Frodnesor]

Thanks for the followup, it's always good to hear back.

[tpigeon]

You can do Alta Mare for dinner day 1 assuming you do not want to do Joe's.

Day 2 lunch - dutch or yardbird

Day 3 Lunch Milos (never been but heard that lunch is a great bargain there -- dinner is very expensive) or one of the day 2 choices.