BEST BITES
Liz’s dishes of the year with 5 months to go!
I remember a particularly delicious almond croissant. There it was, fresh from the oven at Loic Autret bakery in West Palm Beach. Sure, our table was laden with a mixed batch of breakfast elements — smoked salmon, capers, baguette, fruit salad and quiche Lorraine — but after one buttery and flaky bite, this croissant was the only dish I would remember from that Wednesday morning in February.
The first seven months of 2018 have brought me a series of similarly memorable bites, some of them at fancy restaurants, others at unexpected spots. In most cases, it’s not the ambiance or exact restaurant — or even the meal — that pops to mind as I scroll through my photo archive. It’s that one dish, the one that floated to the sublime.
What follows is a roundup of the 13 most memorable bites I’ve had so far this year.
Hamachi Jalapeño
Yellowtail Modern Asian Cuisine and Sushi, Delray Beach
When at Yellowtail, it’s a good idea to have the namesake fish, particularly when it’s served as a crudo. The Hamachi Jalapeño dish here reflects the spirit and shine of the place that takes culinary inspiration from Japan, Thailand and China. It also reflects the talent of chef/ partner Andrew Marc Rothschild. Tender slices of fresh hamachi (yellowtail) from Japan are set over Florida citrus-scented ponzu sauce and crowned with jalapeño, green onion and a decorative tower of shredded daikon. It’s a delight for the eye as well as for the palate.
Yellowtail: 7959 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach; 561501-6391
Gnocchi Sapori
Café Sapori, West Palm Beach
Let me cut to the chase because these gnocchi are just too good: There’s sausage in the dough, friends. Let that flavor-profile daydream set in. These delicious dumplings are fluffy yet substantial enough to hold up to the sauce, a tomatovodka cream. The dish is so flavorful it requires no bling. This is why Café Sapori, the excellent Southern Boulevard mainstay, serves it simply, with just a sprinkling of Parmesan and a fragrant sprig of basil.
Café Sapori: 205 Southern Blvd., West Palm Beach; 561805-7313
Grilled Florida Snapper in Banana Leaf
The Regional Kitchen, West Palm Beach
Here’s a dish that arrives like a present to be unwrapped and celebrated. And it should be — it’s a gift to anyone who loves fresh and flavorful fish. Florida red snapper is filleted, tail on, and gently cooked in banana leaves. The leaves serve as a backdrop on the plate as well as in flavor as the ample fillets are served topped with roasted market veggies and a green tomato salsa verde. The dish speaks eloquently to the executive chef Lindsay Autry’s time spent cooking in Yucatan, Mexico.
The Regional Kitchen: 651 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach; 561-557-6460
Burrata Crostone with Eggplant
Sant Ambroeus, Palm Beach There’s a little-known happy hour going on at Sant Ambroeus, the stylish spot inspired by the grand cafés of old Milan. Except they don’t call it “happy hour” here — they call it summer aperitivo, and it’s a terrific time to visit the normally pricey spot. Every day from 4:30 to 7 p.m., the bar and café area pours signature cocktails, select wines and beers for half the price. But what makes that glass of Felice Rosato rosé truly special is the appetizer board you order on the side. The small bar bites menu offered at aperitivo lists a variety of excellent meat, cheese and crostini boards. My favorite is the large batch of grilled rustic bread that’s slathered with fresh burrata and topped with roasted eggplant, shreds of roasted peperoncino and scattered micro greens. There’s no gloopy dressing or overthought preparations. You taste the ingredients, every one of them. So simple. So perfect. (Summer aperitivo runs through Labor Day.)
Sant Ambroeus Palm Beach: 340 Royal Poinciana Way, Suite 304 at the Royal Poinciana Plaza, Palm Beach; 561285-7990
Haitian-style Griot
Le Bistro 2.0, Boca Raton At his newly opened restaurant, Le Bistro 2.0, chef Greg Romulus serves the dishes of his native Haiti as well as a few he learned in the kitchens of local Italian spots. His love of Haitian cuisine and respect for its nuanced preparations are well represented on the plates that emerge from his small kitchen. This was evident most deliciously in his take on Haitian-style griot — pork chunks that are citrus-marinated and fried. They’re tender inside, crispy on the outside. This griot needs nothing but a side of pikliz (pickled slaw) and the time to be savored.
Le Bistro 2.0: 9846 Sandalfoot Blvd., Boca Raton; 561465-5767
Dulce de Leche-Filled Meringue Puffs
Enzo’s Bakery and Café, Palm Springs
They seemed so demure, stacked beneath a glass cloche at Enzo’s, a new Uruguayan bakery near Lake Worth. But the sweet meringue puffs have evil intentions — they want to derail your diet. Why else would they be filled with exquisitely legit dulce de leche? Why else would they maintain their airy puff qualities while standing up to the weighty, decadent dulce? They want to be devoured and remembered. I did. And Ido.
Enzo’s Bakery and Café: 3792 10th Ave. N., Palm Springs; 561-660-5281
Plantain Chips (with or without the Shrimp Chowder)
The Catch Seafood and Sushi, Lake Park
When you settle in at your table at The Catch, a beautifully rustic spot tucked into a Lake Park plaza, you get a welcome like none other. It arrives in a small dish that’s filled with hot, crispy green plantain chips. The first dish is free and, after that, there’s a small charge. These are hot, crisp, salty and absent of any frying-oil residue. I have yet to resist a second dish. The rest of the menu, which leans Peruvian and Colombian, is tempting as well. And if you want a good, hearty companion for those chips, try the dreamy shrimp chowder. But, really, it’s the chips that will have you at hello.
The Catch: 766 Northlake Blvd., Lake Park; 561-842-2180
Croquetas de Jamón
Tapeo, West Palm Beach The new Spanish restaurant on Clematis Street serves a good range of tapas, bites that beg to be savored with a glass or two of tempra-
nillo wine. My favorite tapas here, the ham croquettes, are served in a bizarre metal tray that looks like a flipflop. But once I took a bite, I was smitten. Didn’t give that shiny sandal thing another thought. The croquetas are served hot from the fryer, perfectly crispy outside and creamy inside. Yes, they’re simple. (I mean, what’s more ubiquitous at a Spanish spot than croquetas?) But they are not basic — these are done just right.
Tapeo: 118 S. Clematis St., West Palm Beach; 561-514-0811
Stracciatella
Sardinia Enoteca Ristorante, Delray Beach
You know that rich, creamy center you find when you slice into an orb of fresh burrata cheese? That’s the stracciatella, the stracciato or torn part of the cheese. However, one doesn’t need an Italian-English dictionary to discern this truth from Sardinia’s presentation of the appetizer dish: It’s addictive. It’s not much to look at, a blobby mound of cheese middle. But it’s beautiful. I ordered it with a side of roasted peppers and devoured it with some warm, crusty bread. Seriously delicious.
Sardinia: 3035 S. Federal Highway, Delray Beach; 561332-3406
French Dip au Jus
The Honor Bar, Palm Beach
The menu at this sophisticated Palm Beach bar, which sits next door to its big sister in the Hillstone family, Palm Beach Grill, is small but just right. You won’t find 20 kinds of sandwiches offered here, just a handful of them. Among these, the French Dip stands tall in flavor. Expect a high stack of shaved roasted prime rib atop a crusty roll that’s baked on-site, plus a cup of rich beef jus for dipping. The crowning touch: a smear of horseradish that lifts the classic to heady levels.
The Honor Bar: 340 Royal Poinciana Way (in the Royal Poinciana Plaza), Palm Beach; 561-209-2799
Chicken Tinga Tacos
Zipitios, West Palm Beach
City appetites first met Zipitios’ tasty street food during “Tacos and Hip Hop” nights on Clematis Street. Today, owners Ricky and Niria Perez sling their popular tacos at Grandview Public Market. The Chicken Tinga tacos are thoroughly Mexican and rooted in love — it comes from Niria’s mom.
Zipitios: 1401 Clare Ave. (Grandview Public Market), West Palm Beach; 561-2010823
Florida Mango Pie
Jewell Bistro, Lake Worth
I had a few delicious mangoes this season and, truth be told, I’m counting Miss Marsha’s mango pie at Jewell Bistro as one of them. That’s because it’s made with backyard mangoes harvested within a few miles from the funky Lake Worth spot. Between a crumbly but sturdy crust and a mound of coconut shavings, the pie filling screams “Florida!”
Jewell Bistro: 830 N. Dixie Highway, Lake Worth; thejewell.menu
Almond Croissant
Loic Bakery, West Palm Beach
And, ah yes, the almond croissant. Fresh, flaky and filled with almond cream, this is not one of those cloyingly sweet croissants. It’s a caloric splurge, yes, but it feels so right with a steaming cup of coffee.
Loic Bakery: 480 Hibiscus St. (entrance on South Dixie Highway), West Palm Beach; 561-570-1425