By Fernie Ruano Jr.
If your girlfriend gets trashed on Evian water and goes to bed with her Fendi handbag, it’s likely she swears on Coral Gables, the cozy and ritzy-Mediterranean hub known for attracting Miami’s upper class.
But Coral Gables probably isn’t her first choice when it’s time to dine, especially if she lives in or around The Minorca Building (2030 S. Douglas Rd.) and enjoys finding off-the-beaten-path restaurants in ‘City Beautiful’; or hasn’t discovered The Seven Dials, the American gastropub which opened in late-August.
Fueled and operated by British chef Andrew Gilbert, known in the 305 for his days at Michy’s and Local Craft Food & Drink, the menu is sexy and innovative from its lentil papadum, a thin and crispy cracker made from black gram and served with tamarind chutney and cilantro, to the crunchy and chunky Fried Kalamata olives which are served on top of yogurt and chilled oil. And that’s just for starters.
You or your girlfriend would be wise to follow up with a Miami clam chowder soup, a steamy fusion of shrimp, mussels, clams, and smoked bacon oyster crackers. And if you’re in the kind of mood my girlfriend was on this particular day try the tomato soup, which came dotted with basil and saffron and Brazilian cheese bread (pao de quiejo), making it even sexier.
By the time you have finished your starter and soup, you’re going to forget Seven Dials doesn’t serve liquor. But have no worries because there’s plenty of beer and wine to choose from and to go with your soft roasted eggplant and miso aioli. But if eggplant isn’t your thing you won’t go wrong with the bone marrow, which is served with sesame toast and chimichurri for your dipping pleasure.
And there’s little chance you’re going to leave without ordering the British bread and butter pudding with custard, a well-balanced delight that will leave you wishing for more of Seven Dials, a reasonably-priced gastropub just getting its feet wet in Coral Gables.
Do you want to know more about this 305-reeking, beach-bumming, Cuban food-obsessed dude? Well, then.. You can connect with Fernie @wordbyfernie (Twitter) and Fernie Ruano (Facebook) and visit http://www.latinbeatsvibe.blogspot.com . Who knows? If he really likes you, he might even give you his email.
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