My girlfriend and I were off to a decent start when the host of Jake’s gave us gratis vino to compensate for sitting outside in the cold.  Of course, when the check arrived we had been charged for said wine and had to explain the error to our waiter.  But the evening at Jake’s went downhill from that point.

The tapas appetizer was quite scant, not very tasty, and had only a few slices of cheese, bad tasting olives, and three small pieces of cantimpalo chorizo.  My burger was dry and under seasonsed and my girlfriend’s roast chicken was extremely dry.

To add insult to injury, the service moved at snail pace.

Don’t have dinner at Jake’s Bar and Grill.  It would literally be more effective to simply flush your money down the toilet.

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On the end of SW Third Ave, in Miami, next door to a Farm Store, you might easily miss Confucio Express, a take-out Chinese restaurant with a Spanish-English menu.

Besides three small tables outside, Confucio has no dining area of any substance.  But that’s ok, because most people are buying food-to-go.  And the cuisine is definitely worth the wait.

When  I dined at Confucio about a week ago, I had the Mongolian chicken which is served with a light, fried rice with sprouts, egg, shrimp, and pork, and a flaky egg roll filled with pork and veggies.

What separates Confucio from the countless other Chinese restaurants in Miami is that it is relatively grease free as the food is prepared using vegetable oil.  Also, the portions are enormous!  I literally made about three meals out of the one dish!  Finally, the prices are rock-bottom and a great value at that.

If you have a chance, visit Confucio Express which is located at 1810 SW Third Ave in Miami.

About a week ago I was driving through Little Havana when I happened upon an unmarked Thai/Sushi restaurant. Asian food (besides Chinese) in Little Havana? Odd, I thought.

Fast forward a week, and I decided to visit said restaurant which I learned is called Mr. Yum. It’s located between SW 19th Ave and SW 20th Ave on SW 8th St right in the heart of Calle Ocho. The menu is limited right now, but the owner assured us it would expand soon. Of course, the usual suspects were present: sushi, teriyaki, soups, meats on sticks.

After speaking with the owner, we learned this is part of the Sushi Rock (located on SoBe) family. And that they had literally opened only four days ago.

We received a great amuse bouche of spicy tuna with rice on a crisy wonton which was a pleasant surprise. My girlfriend had a wonderful tom ka kai soup which is a coconut lime broth with chicken and mushrooms. I had a tradional miso soup.

We followed the soups with a spicy tuna roll with fresh tuna and spicy mayo and a tuna naruto mai which is a roll made with a thin cucumber wrapper. As you can see, tuna is paramount to us.

Finally, I finished my meal with a flavorful chicken satay.

The restaurant is very chic and was outfitted with white tables, bright red cushions, and club-type music.

It’s definitely worth a visit! I know I will be offering it my repeat business.
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