Changes in attitude

Salt + Ash (Duck Key)

GETAWAYS • The Keys

Off mile marker 61 on the Overseas Highway, Top Chef winner Jeremy Ford unveiled a new dining oasis at Hawks Cay Resort last month at Salt + Ash, where Ford — the creative force behind South Beach's Stubborn Seed — merges sophisticated culinary technique with Keys casualness.

Set beneath a dramatic white-washed vaulted ceiling with a centerpiece capiz shell chandelier, the contemporary, inviting dining room is accented with pops of seafoam green, a mural depicting fresh produce, and a striking wood-fire oven. A recent meal opened with cacio e pepe cheese puffs and a seafood plateau that elevated freshly fished Keys bounty beyond the typical raw bar platter, accompanied by Ford's inventive preparations and sauces.

Ford's six-acre Homestead farm supplies much of the restaurant's produce. A wood-fired pizza emerged with perfectly caramelized mushrooms, their earthiness balanced by a blistered crust. A koji-marinated picanha steak with beef fat frites and a creamy peppercorn sauce delivered concentrated flavor in modest portions, while the whole charred cauliflower plated with tahini cashew puree emerged as an unexpected star of the meal, which finished — fittingly, perfectly — with a towering key lime tart.

While Duck Key, a two-hour drive south, might be farther afield than Miamians are accustomed to traveling for Ford’s cooking, Salt + Ash — with its thoughtful, ingredient-driven cuisine pointedly celebrating the Keys — is a more than worthy stopover on your next road trip. –Olee Fowler

→ Salt + Ash (Duck Key) • 61 Hawks Cay Blvd • Mon-Sun 4-9p • Reserve.

Photo Credit: Michael Pisarri.