Fish tales
Ensenada, Symphonie Fantastique, West Palm Beach listings, Dalé Zine, The Ceramic League, Salt + Ash, best Keys restaurants, MORE
ASK FOUND
A FOUND subscriber PROMPT for which we seek intel:
What restaurant should we take our picky kids to that’s also somewhere I actually want to eat?
Got answers or more questions? Hit reply or email found@itsfoundmiami.com.
RESTAURANTS • First Word
Uptown Baja
The Skinny: Mexico City and New York City converge inside the Vagabond Hotel, at chef Luis Herrera’s Brooklyn import Ensenada.
The Vibe: Funky, minimalist, cool: Ensenada fits neatly into the revived landmark MiMo hotel in Biscayne Boulevard’s historic district on the Upper East Side. A semicircle bar hugs a buzzy happy hour crowd, while the airy, blue and white dining room opens onto a tree-shaded terrace. There’s a homey, handmade, lived-in feeling to the space that extends to quirky, nautical-themed art adorning the walls. You’re just as likely to see the neighborhood’s creative types mingling at the bar as families enjoying a weekend dinner on the patio.
The Food: Herrera, who previously worked at Manhattan’s Cosme (from the team behind Mexico City’s Pujol), draws inspiration from CDMX’S fine dining institutions for dishes like his tostada de atun topped with salsa macha, al pastor-style swordfish, and tempura skate wing tacos. There are also ceviches and aguachiles, as well as more earthbound fare, like Oaxacan cheese quesadillas with poblano. And where corn shows up, so does delight: in tortillas made with locally sourced fresh masa, and in a carajillo affogato made with savory corn ice cream.
The Drinks: Cocktails are straightforward and agave-centric, like the perfectly tart, three-ingredient margarita and a well-rounded (mezcal) white Negroni with chamomile and orange. Sample the collection of rare and small-batch mezcals in a flight (starting at $36 per). Wines by the bottle or glass are nearly all organic and biodynamic.
The Verdict: Ensenada is an effortless neighborhood spot with warm, knowledgeable hospitality that hits the elusive right-place-right-time sweet spot, with a fun, laid-back take on creative Mexican. –Falyn Wood
→ Ensenada (Upper East Side) • 7301 Biscayne Blvd • Tue-Thu 530-10p, Fri 530-11p, Sat 11a-11p, Sun 11a-10p • Reserve.
Photo credit: Beth Rhodes.
MIAMI RESTAURANT LINKS: Brickell’s PM Fish & Steakhouse abruptly closes • Fancy sandwich pop-up Sndwch Miami goes permanent in South Miami • Fort Lauderdale’s Pier Sixty-Six Resort debuts 4 new restaurants • What’s next for Coyo Taco? More expansion • The unexpected, giddy rise of sparkling Riesling.
CULTURE & LEISURE • FOUNDLISTING
Cello royalty and a psychedelic symphony
TRAVEL INTO BERLIOZ’S PSYCHEDELIC DREAMS: For one night only, Stéphane Denève returns to New World Symphony this month to conduct Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, a wild, opium-fueled journey of unrequited love.
Also on this program, 25-year-old star cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason (above), whose performance at the Royal Wedding in 2018 was watched by two billion people around the world, makes his New World Symphony debut with Shostakovich’s most challenging cello concerto.
The evening begins with John Williams’ Grammy-winning score for The Book Thief. Reserve your tickets today. [spon]
→ Denève: Symphonie Fantastique (Miami Beach) • 500 17th St • Sat, 04/19, 8p.
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Three for-sale properties in West Palm Beach that came to market in the last 14 days.
→ 721 Kanuga Dr (Flamingo Park, West Palm Beach) • 5BR/4.1BA, 3534 SF house • Ask: $4.495M • double lot at city’s highest elevation • Days on market: 14 • Annual taxes: $16,603 • Agents: Samuel Fisch & Susan Brown, Real Estate Solutions.
→ 270 Cordova Rd (El Cid, West Palm Beach) • 4BR/3.1BA, 3200 SF house • Ask: $5.45M • front lawn intracoastal views with 2025 windows & roof • Days on market: 8 • Annual taxes: $8716 • Agent: Michael Smyser, Corcoran.
→ 1100 S Flagler Dr #1801 (The Bristol, West Palm Beach, above) • 4BR/5.1BA, 5744 SF condo • Ask: $25.5M • 11’ floor-to-ceiling windows throughout, ‘most coveted residence in building’ • Days on market: 2 • Annual taxes: $52,747 • Agent: Samantha Curry, Douglas Elliman.
MIAMI WORK AND PLAY LINKS: Plans for Shigeru Ban-designed condo development moving forward in Upper Buena Vista • Menswear designer Thom Browne opens in Palm Beach • The first org chart, 150 years ago, ‘resembled a tree abundant with blossoms’ • Career apocalypse reports: Gen X and Gen Z.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Rock the Ocean
Tortuga Music Festival • Jelly Roll, Luke Combs, Megan Moroney et al., Fort Lauderdale Beach (Ft Lauderdale) • Fri-Sun • 3-day pass, $399 per
LIV Golf • Doral (Doral) • Fri-Sun, 3-day pass, grounds plus, $286 per
Miguel Ríos • The Fillmore (Miami Beach) • Fri @ 8p •orchestra left, $968 per
WORK • Thursday Routine
Zine culture
STEVE SAIZ & LILLIAN BANDERAS • founders • Dalé Zine Shop and Gallery
Neighborhood you work in: Design District
It’s Thursday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
Usually, we're here at the Dalé Zine Shop, trying to catch up on emails, enjoying an iced Americano from our neighbors, Big Face Coffee. (We still love you, Jimmy!) It’s a mix of handling the day-to-day and planning ahead for events. We love the community energy of the shop in the mornings.
What’s on the agenda for today?
For one, we're getting ready for weekend events — making sure our posts are ready, handling deliveries, ensuring new books are out, and posting about what’s happening. We’re also picking records for our radio show, Dalé’s Deli, on Fridays from noon to 3p. We’re working with our interns, keeping things running smoothly. Today's agenda includes getting the word out about our upcoming show, “Small Things Coming…” by Ernestine Klecz, which opens this Saturday April 5, 5-9p, and runs throughout April.
Any bar or restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Lately, we've been rushing to get home, but we've also been enjoying special dinners, like Scribe Night at Sunny’s Steakhouse, or squeezing in at Tâm Tâm or Ensenada. We live in South Miami, so we like to pop around there, like to Happy Wine on 8th Street or little dive bars in the area for an early shot and beer.
How about a little leisure or culture?
We love our Friday nights at The Ceramic League down south with Stacey and the crew. And definitely shout out their Maker’s Mart.
Any weekend getaways?
We love escaping to the Caribbean Club in Key Largo for the beautiful sunset. It's actually where we got engaged.
GETAWAYS • The Keys
Changes in attitude
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.
GETAWAYS LINKS: New FAA system lets private jet owners make identities private • Checking out the new Sun Club at Ritz Carlton, Aruba • First U.S. One&Only now taking reservations for Big Sky, MT, opening in Nov.
GETAWAYS • The Nines
Restaurants, Florida Keys
The Nines are FOUND's distilled lists of the best in Miami and surrounds. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@itsfoundmiami.com.
Blue Heaven (Key West), for brunch beneath ship’s sails, backyard, live music