Brazil’s Coco Bambu opens first U.S. restaurant in Miami Beach
Coco Bambu
955 Alton Road, Miami Beach, 786-348-0770, CocoBambu.com
This 16-year-old chain, founded in Brazil with 28 locations, has unveiled its first U.S. outpost.
“We kept most of our numerous dishes and signature drinks from our other locations,” says Afranio Barreira, founder with his wife, Daniela. “However, we also created new drinks and dishes for our first U.S. location to include local ingredients, like different crabs (stone, king and snow), new steak cuts and new flavors.”
The extensive menu, focusing on global-inspired seafood dishes, features crispy pastries with shrimp, lobster, beef or cheese ($7-$22); gratins of house-cured meat, shrimp or beef and bananas ($10-$15); crab stew for two with snow crab legs and coconut sauce ($44); whole roasted snapper for three ($89); and seafood paella for four to six ($89). Ratatouille ($13) and eggplant lasagna ($19) are vegan options.
Coconut cake, called baked cocada ($10), and creamy banana cake ($9) are a couple of the 15 desserts.
Signature cocktails are the Frozen Caipi Coco with vodka ($14) and caipirinhas or caipiroskas ($12.)
Dinner is served nightly amid seating for 450 with a tropical palette of burnt orange and avocado green, mineral tones of copper and gold, an eclectic mix of furniture and fixtures, and glass wine cellars.