A Miami Must: The Bazaar, Miami Beach, FL

This past weekend, I was lucky enough to find myself on a girls weekend that was all about sun, rosé and restaurants -- in that order.  Seriously, after 10 hours on the beach on Saturday and a few bottles of the pink stuff, we headed to what would be the best meal of our trip and probably one of the best meals I've had in recent history. 

We teetered in our heels a few blocks from our hotel to the Hotel SLS and were immediately entranced by the scene of beautiful people.  After an attempt by the hostess to seat us in the bar/lobby area (don't you hate how hostesses always try to give you a bad table first? Even other reviewers on Yelp say the same thing about their experience here), we found ourselves in the best spot in the house. 

The room is awe-inspiring with a massive coral-like chandelier and books painted on the walls. Our table had a couch in lieu of two chairs with side tables flocking the couch.  It almost felt like we were in someone's living room, almost. 

By definition, Bazaar is a tapas restaurant.  The Spanish-born José Andrés, however, created not just Spanish choices but also Asian, Italian, American Comfort Food, you name it.  The menu is daunting.  Fortunately our Frodo-looking waiter, Christopher, provided some guidance.

Per Chistopher's recommendation, we ordered 3 to 4 plates per person.  It seems like a lot, but the servers space it out and trust me, you are able to savor everything.  Just think of it as your own tasting menu where you get to choose everything. 

Most dishes were both delicious and gorgeous, and really just a few misses. 

Here was our tally (with descriptions from the menu in italics):

HITS:
- Kueh Pai Ti Singapore’s favorite street food - shrimp, peanuts, chili sauce: Christopher's recommendation was messy after the first bite, but its tough to complain when you combine shrimp, peanuts and chili sauce.
- Japanese Taco grilled eel, shiso, cucumber, wasabi, pork chicharrones: I wasn't sure if I was going to like this one and was pleasantly surprised.  The star of this was the cucumber "taco shell".
- Dragon Fruit Ceviche tuna, pecans, lime, hibiscus: I think this was the all-around favorite.  Tuna-style sushi covered in foam all inside a carved out dragonfruit. 

- Not Your Everyday Caprese

cherry tomatoes, liquid mozzarella:  Christopher practically insisted on this one.  The cheese was burrata style, almost straight from Capri and the tomatoes were on a bed of amazing pesto.  I considered licking the plate.

- Brussels Sprouts lemon purée, apricots, grapes, lemon air, banana: A big hit in our group, the brussel sprouts were light, tasty and, yes, foamy. Again, with the foam.
- Papas Canarias salty wrinkled potatoes, mojo verde, mojo rojo: These potatoes were a suprising hit.  Tiny potates that were almost air-popped had two spicy dipping sauces.  I let this dish rest right next to me so I could keep partaking.
- Sautéed Shrimp garlic, parsley, lemon, guindilla pepper: Simple, yet excellent.  Shrimp is also an easy sell with this crowd.

- Banana-Mojito

Mojito sorbet, mint and caramelized bananas: We didn't even look at a dessert menu, but we had to pick one and this was Christopher's rec.  Looking back at the menu now I probably would have preferred to get Key Lime Pie which is my all time favorite dessert, however, this creation was good, too.  I enjoyed the graham cracker crust over the mojito sorbet immensely, but I skipped the carmelized bananas. 

- Drinks: How could a pitcher of white sangria and dessert wine ever be a miss??

MISSES:
- Pollo al Ajillo Cubano slow-cooked chicken leg, black garlic: OK, so this might not be fair.  Ever since my niece Jessie said at around age 5 "Who would eat a chicken's leg" - I don't.  So this gets an automatic miss for me.  
- Cuban Coffee Rubbed Churrasco passion fruit: Disppointing and boring, and its rare (no pun intended) that I don't like a steak dish.
- Cubano’ In Honor of Café Versailles: Again, not really fair, since I'm not a ham person, but still it didn't make much traction on the table.  It did come at the end though, when we reaching capacity.
- Black Rossejat paella-style pasta, squid ink, shrimp, alioli: Another disappointment.  From the menu description we almost ordered two of these, but Frodo told us one would suffice and he was right.  The paella-like pasta was overwhelmingly fishy and really, I usually love squid ink. 
- Empanadillas de Bacalao salt cod, honey: These were quite forgettable. Sweet and airy is an odd combination for cod. 

There were so many more items on the menu we could have had.  If only we could have stayed in Miami one more day. 

Bazaar is an experience.  It's not bizarre, it's amazing. And best of all, they are expanding.  There is currently another Bazaar in Beverly Hills AND they are planning to also launch in New York and Vegas within about a year. 

If you ever get a chance to go here, do. 

Until our next berger,
KLB


The Bazaar
1701 Collins Ave.
Miami Beach, FL 33139
(305) 455-2999
sbe.com/thebazaar