Canyon Ranch for lunch

Walked to Canyon Ranch for a healthy lunch.

Menu is 'too healthy' for me. I much prefer Seasons 52 which at least has Diet Coke.

Cobb salad was just OK and Mona-Lee's 'pizza' looked horrible.

Bill was $45.

5/10

Flame Caffe and Grill, Espanola Way off Washington

Last night we went to Flame Caffe and Grill on Espanola Way in Miami, just south of Lincoln Road off Washington.

http://www.flamecaffe.com/

The scene was not great but the food and service was. We started out sitting outside but it began to rain so we moved inside.

The presentation of each dish was straight out of Top Chef. Each dish looked like a masterpiece.

The pizza appetizer (thin crust), the ribs and onion rings, the sea bass, the salmon and the tuna were all great.

We went to Shake Shack for some Key Lime Concrete for dessert so I cannot comment on the desserts.

Bill was $110 per couple with drinks but valet parking was $20.

I will likely go back.

8/10

Wynwood Kitchen and Bar, Design District

Went to Wynwood Kitchen and Bar in the Design District with a large group last night in the middle of Art Basel.

What a scene! Felt like Super Bowl weekend.

The food was tapas-style which I do not particularly like. A simple menu.

http://wynwoodkitchenandbar.com/home.html

The walls were covered with famous graffiti street artists which didn’t impress me. Overall I found the décor to be uninviting and too large and the outdoor seating area was anything but cozy.

Every single dish we had was really good but there was nothing special. I had nothing to complain about but I also left feeling that I had nothing memorable. Lots of chicken, steak and shrimp and decent desserts.

The bill was $585 for 9 people including tip.

I’m giving it a 6.5/10 and I won’t go back but I emphasize that everything we ate was good.

Steve's Pizza, Biscayne below 123rd

One of my favorites. Not as good as Anthony's Coal Fired but almost as good.

A real 'dive' that has been around for a long time but worth going to.

8/10 for pizza!

Yardbird Southern Table and Bar, near Lincoln Road

Last night we went to a new restaurant near Lincoln Road called Yardbird Southern Table and Bar.

It was absolutely great!

http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2011-11-17/restaurants/yardbird-southern-table-and-bar-flies-high-with-southern-fare-and-blues-soaked-ambiance/

The restaurant is warm and just feels good. We sat close to the open kitchen counter and saw each meal as it came out. Every dish looked better than the one before it.

The menu was the most unusual menu I had ever seen. We couldn’t decide what to order since everything that we saw from the kitchen looked so good and sooooooo fattening. There was no shortage of calories in any of their dishes.

We had the southern fried chicken, the ribs, the fried green tomato pork belly BLT, the meatloaf a.k.a shredded short ribs, the waffle fries and the fried chicken and biscuit sandwich.

Each dish was amazing although I was a little disappointed with the taste of the sauce on the ribs. The fried chicken was the best and the biscuits were amazing. The presentation was awesome.

For dessert we had a lattice apple pie and ice cream and pecan crumble pie. Also great.

The bill with 4 drinks was $110 per couple including tip and valet parking was $10.

I will definitely go back after a lot of running beforehand.

I’m giving it a 9/10. Had to take a ½ point off for rib sauce and ½ point for taking too long to get my car from valet.

Gameroff's Steakhouse, Hallendale

DISCLAIMER: I did not go to Gameroff’s myself and NEVER would go there because of my feelings about the Seltzers. I am clearly prejudiced. The review is a review given to me last night by a couple who is actually friends with Michael and confirms 2 other opinions of Gameroff’s I have already heard. These are the almost exact words of these customers’ of Gameroff’s. They are not my words.

“It was horrible. We went last Friday night at around 8 pm. The parking lot was full but the restaurant was at least 50% empty. The décor was cheap. With few customers the service was good. The only good dish I had was the meatballs. The tuna salad was almost inedible. I had the 24 oz. prime rib and chili and they were terrible. It’s cheap stuff and you get what you pay for. We will not go back again. My bill was $85.00 for the 2 of us without dessert”

I am not sure if the $85.00 included tip or not nor do I know if there were any drinks in this amount.

Based on this review and 2 other less detailed reviews I have heard I am giving it 5/10.

III Forks Steakhouse, Gulfstream

Soooo bad! 1/10 for a nice looking wine cellar!

Don't go!