Views and open kitchen rival the delicious food at Obra Kitchen Table
Brickell Bay Drive is the quieter street with a wonderful waterfront view, that runs parallel to the always bustling Brickell Avenue. It's also where you'll find Jade at Brickell Bay Condominium, home to Obra Kitchen Table.
Venezuelan Chef/Owner Carlos Garcia recently opened the restaurant where besides the food, the star attraction is the open kitchen with wrap-around counter seating for 25. It's the ideal spot for watching the menu being created right before your eyes.
At a recent dinner there, Chef Garcia presented some of his signature dishes, all of which wowed in both presentation and taste. Had to kick things off with a cocktail though and the Menina, made with Yaguara, citrus, acai and basil was a great starter.
A nice thick cut bread with a rich brown, garlicky spread for dipping and the traditional Venezuelan "sopita" a delicious broth based chicken soup that's called "Barriga Llena" (full stomach) presented in a small Mason jar and topped with a tiny arepa started things off.
After that nice introduction and warming soup, came the colorful, bright orange/salmon-colored sea urchin, laid atop a fried egg (with crispy edges which I loved) and under all of that, a bed of french fries. The scallion garnish added a nice pop of color.The next three courses were so fantastic it's hard to choose a favorite:
Rich, yet delicate octopus buccatini carbonara was light and the tender octopus was a really nice unique addition. The hiramasa (a yellowtail king fish with white, firm flesh) a la brasa topped with roasted sunchoke salsa verde was tasty bite after bite. The choice of sunchokes for the salsa was a nice surprise and the bright green color made it look even better. The crispy and creamy potatoes on the side were heavenly. But the melt in your mouth rack of lamb with plantain mole, fried eggplant and lime was also delicious. Plantain mole? I saw that on the menu and was immediately intrigued and once I tasted it, intrigue turned to full on yum.
A couple of very different desserts closed out the meal (which was really more of a "dining experience"). There was the very deeply intense and chocolately Toxic Chocolat. The cake was so delicate the fork needed barely a push to cut through. The chocolate dusting on top and on the side of the plate added to the full-on chocoholic decadence. Then the coconut tres leches was the polar opposite experience. A creamy concoction filled with coconut flavor and topped with a toasty meringue where every spoonful was sweeter than the one before.So although choosing a favorite is impossible I tell you, go to Obra, you're sure to love their menu, the kitchen where it's prepared and the open feel of the interior. Plus, dine there and a portion of the proceeds from their $21 prix fixe menu goes to Garcia's Foundation Barriga Llena Corazón Contento. You gotta love doing something good while dining on such incredible food.Obra Kitchen Table, 1331 Brickell Bay Dr., Miami, 305.846.9363
