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Chef Norman Van Aken goes back to his roots

James Beard Award-winning chef Norman Van Aken has made his long-awaited return to Coral Gables. As a chef and partner of Ad Lib, Van Aken brings his Florida cuisine back to the city where it all started. “Returning to Coral Gables is poetic,” Van Aken says. “While it was a little unexpected, it feels right.

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Reinvention is on the menu at M House in Coral Gables

Photos by Patrick Dolande Photography   Before debuting M House last summer, executive chef Abraham Silva knew opening the restaurant was a risk. “We know the food industry is a high-risk business in general,” he says. “With so many great restaurants in the area, we knew from the start that we needed to differentiate ourselves

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Celebrate International Sushi Day in Style

Kuro One Seminole Way, Hollywood This new sushi spot, located inside the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, treats guests to a fun and interactive dining experience.  Menu items include Tuna with truffle tofu, Seared Hamachi with cilantro and jalapeno ponzu and Scallop with sea salt and yuzu jelly. For a traditional Japanese experience, try

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Comfort Food

Photos by Eduardo Schneider Rick Vashina always answers the telephone by saying, “What’s cooking?” Sure, it’s a phrase that many say, but for this corporate executive chef, it’s who he is. For him, creating a dish comes from the soul. It is an artistic expression. The Coconut Creek resident says what first drew him to

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Celebrate National Bourbon Day at this Secret Bar

Seek and Find in Coral Gables boasts a prohibition-inspired bar and lounge tucked away on the second floor of the popular local restaurant. Celebrate National Bourbon Day in style with Room 25’s extensive specialty menu including, of course, the Old Fashioned cocktail with a twist made with Woodford Reserve bourbon and Angostura and Regan’s orange

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Better Brews at Veza Sur

Less than a decade ago, Marshall Hendrickson graduated college, packed his bags and jetted off to Colombia. As he worked to become fluent in Spanish, Hendrickson scored a job at Bogota Beer Co., bottling beer and cleaning kegs at the city’s first craft brewery. After a promotion to assistant brewer, Bogota Beer’s founder, Berny Silberwasser,

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Father’s Day Special: Steakhouses and Cocktails

Forget the sleeve of Titleist Pro VI golf balls. Forget the throwback shaving brush kit. And, please, lose the tie. If you have to go all cliché this Father’s Day (June 16), ditch the wrapping paper and give Dad something he can sink his teeth into—like a little USDA Prime. Fortunately, for those of us

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Five things to know about Bo’s Beach

Pictured above: Bo’s shrimp and grits   Where: 600 Seabreeze Blvd., Fort Lauderdale Beach Phone: 954.616.8315 Website: bosbeach.com   Bo Knows Best: On the heels of launching The Balcony, with its New Orleans-inspired fare, the four partners behind PDKN Restaurant Group (including former Miami Dolphins defensive standout Kim Bokamper) once again are setting up shop

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Southern Cuisine is Elevated at Root & Bone

Photos (except where noted) by Grove Bay   Bringing the Big Apple to the Sunshine State is no easy feat, but with a repertoire of renowned restaurants—Glass & Vine, Stiltsville Fish & Bar and Stubborn Seed—Grove Bay Hospitality Group makes it seem like a piece of cake. Or, in the case of its Root &

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Kitchen Creative

Photos by Eduardo Schneider When Betania Bastos gets an idea, she becomes restless. As a baker, she can’t relax until she goes to the kitchen and brings an idea to life. It’s that same drive that has helped the Brazilian native in her baked-from-home food business. While living in Venezuela, Bastos worked in the food

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High Adventure at Pirate Republic

Photos by Evelyn Suarez At most restaurants, diners expect to see salt and pepper on the table, and maybe some ketchup and steak sauce. But at Pirate Republic Seafood Restaurant, table staples are a little different. Four glass jars contain Brazilian peppers—dedo de moca, biquinho, malagueta and bode—to wake up the taste buds before the

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Find the Reel Deal at And Fish Kitchen & Bar

Having worked in kitchens at various Marriott properties for much of his two-decade culinary career, Eric Kaszubinski recognizes the value of restraint when creating a menu that has across-the-board appeal for locals as well as hotel guests. Still, when it came to staying relevant in an increasingly competitive market, there was no holding back the

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