Sangria!

Ahhhhh...So, It's Friday, and we made it through another week. Time to put up my feet, watch some uninterrupted television and relax! "MAAAAAMIIIIII!!! Giada I said STOP it!!!" ***my dreams come to a screeching halt***

OK, so my life does not do well in a relaxed state, and well, neither does my family. But I happen to like the chaos that I live in, it makes me aware of how we are always teetering on the brink of insanity, and in all seriousness, there are days when you just need to pick up a drink and embrace it with a smile.
For days like these, I like to drink. Just sit and watch my mini people with a glass of wine in my hand. Or a shot of Patron, depending on how crazy it really is...
But not today. Today I will prepare for tomorrow. Today, I prepare Sangria.

Remember a few posts back how I mentioned that Mia goes to the greatest pre-school ever? As in the history of the universe? Yes? OK, so I've decided that I will start a family group, for all the parents who take their kids to this wonderful place of rainbows, unicorns and learning. Invitations have been sent for a play date and tomorrow is the big day. People are bringing all kinds of food. I am *gasp* providing drinks. I hope they end up liking me.

So, for the Sangria you will need:


1 large bottle of Sangria style wine. I like Carlo Rossi.
1 cup of spiced rum
1/2 cup of Grand Marnier
1 can of cocktail fruits (drained of the syrup they come in, I usually don't use the entire can)
2 large apples + any other fruit you like, I usually add oranges in thin slices, but I didn't have any today....
1/2 cup of sugar, I didn't have white so I used brown
1 cup of water
3 or 4 cloves
3 Cinnamon sticks
1 or 2 Bottles of Ginger Ale

In a small pot combine the water, sugar, cloves and Cinnamon.



Put it on high heat, let it come to a rolling boil.



Then lower temperature, and let continue to boil uncovered for about 15 mins. Let cool completely

Peel and chop your fruit into small pieces



Place in the bottom of a large container



Pour the wine on top of your fruit



Add the liquor (both the rum and Grand Marnier) and syrup (completely cooled)



Let chill for no less than 4 hours, best if overnight.



Transfer to a nice pitcher and to serve, pour over 1/2 glass of ice cold Ginger Ale.

Aaaaahhhhhhhhh!!! SO refreshing! What? What was that?? Oh, You're welcome! :)

Green Spagetthi - Tallarines Verdes - Pesto Sauce

OK, I'm a horrible person. I'm talking absolute garbage. I have a friend who asked me for this recipe about 8 months ago and ***hangs head in shame*** it is just now that I get around to doing it. I could make up all kinds of lies and say that I was busy with my girls, or bringing about world peace in some far away country. But the truth is, I get lazy about writing. So, there it is, the truth shall set you free, and I feel better already.

I have to begin by saying that it is a very traditional Peruvian recipe, so it is not your regular pesto sauce per se. My family LOVES it, and every time I make it I get rave reviews at the table. Mia would be happy if I made this EVERY.SINGLE.DAY, (and secretly I think Alfredo would be too) and since its fairly easy to make, I am only happy to oblige.

So here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 Container of Basil
3/4ths of a Bag of Spinach
1/4 of an Onion cut into thick slices (you'll blend this later so, no worries)
3 Garlic Cloves
2 cups of Milk
1 entire package of Queso Fresco
somewhere in between 1/4 and 1/2 a cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

First, saute the onions and garlic until caramelized

After this, add about 3/4 of the pack of Queso Fresco (cut into chunks) into the blender along with the spinach, basil, sauteed onions and 1 cup of milk.

Gentlemen, start your engines!!! Start blending this mixture and add the additional cup of milk to help with blending. You are going to have to have to stop and go a couple of times to help out with a spoon...

Once its blended and has a sauce like consistency start drizzling in the oil a bit at a time


Its going to end up looking like this:


Now you can go ahead and boil your pasta and cook to al dente.

Heat up a pot to medium high heat and add some olive oil. Once its hot enough dump the whole contents of the blender into the hot oil and stir until hot and bubbly.


You can now take out some of the cooked sauce and leave just enough to coat the amount of pasta that you have made. This sauce freezes amazingly well, just reheat in a pot and voila!


I serve this with some pan fried chicken, and today as usual, it was gone in a few minutes!

There! I feel like a much better friend already!

Pineapple Pie

Mia goes to the best pre-school ever. Yes, I said ever, as in the history of the entire universe.
She has these wonderful set of teachers who love her and patiently guide her little inquisitive mind in the path of knowledge. If you know Mia, then you know that anyone who is able to keep her entertained/active/engaged for more than 1 hour deserves a medal. Well, these teachers deserve a statue, but while I wait on my bronze delivery I will set off to make a yummy pineapple pie.
I've made this before to take to her school to thank them for all they do for my little hurricane, they loved it and kept asking me for the recipe. Again, as I've said before I don't use recipes so I couldn't share it. But this time I wrote everything down as I was making it so....here it goes!!

What you will need:



A ripe pineapple (smell the bottom of the pineapple, it should smell like a, well, pineapple...duh) You may have to buy a not so ripe one and let it ripen at home for 2 or 3 days.
1 cup of brown sugar
1/2 a stick of butter
2 tablespoons of flour
1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon of ground cloves
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 shot of rum (spiced rum is best, but you can leave this out)
Pie crust

Tear the top of the pineapple (the crown part) if you want to, you can reserve and plant this later on. They are super easy to grow in any pot and the taste of a homegrown pineapple will blow your mind away.

Cut off all of the skin off the pineapple. You could buy it peeled and cored but why?? You can use the peel to make yummy pineapple refreshment! The way I see it is I PAID for that peel (a peeled pineapple is the same price as an unpeeled one) so I'm going to use it.




So I will take these following lines to go completely off track and show you how to make some pineapple refreshment. Once you've peeled all the skin off the pineapple simply dump it in a pot with water. Put 1 or 2 cinnamon sticks and about 2 or 3 whole cloves. Put it on high and bring it to a boil, once it does, put the heat on low and leave it for about 30 mins. Remove as much pineapple skin as you can and then stir in the sugar to taste while its warm (it makes the sugar dissolve much faster). Once its cooled strain into a pitcher and add the juice of 1 lemon. Serve it up chilled.






Ok, back to the pie. Cut the pineapple up in bite size chunks, discard the core.



Meanwhile heat up a large pot or skillet and melt the 1/2 a stick of butter, once melted add the flour and mix to make a roux. Add the pineapple chunks and coat them with the roux. The pineapple will release its juices and mix up with the roux, continue stirring so that it doesn't stick or burn, do this for about 10-15 mins. Before adding the sugar taste this mixture, the pineapple may be so ripe and sweet that a whole cup of sugar may not be needed. Add the sugar to taste and stir to coat the pineapple, add the remaining ingredients (cinnamon, cloves, rum and extract). Turn off the heat and let cool.

Ok, there are days in which I feel like Suzy Homemaker and make HUGE batches of pie crust (it freezes real well) and then there are days that I totally cheat and buy the already made version that is in the cookie section. The finished product is yummy regardless.

Cover the bottom of a pie dish with crust and fill it up with the pineapple filling.



Cover the top with another piece of crust. Make some holes with a fork so that steam can be released during the cooking. Brush the top with some melted butter.


Put it in a 350 oven for about 30 mins or until the crust is golden. Let it cool and serve. YUM.

Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the finished product. My husband and Mia couldn't wait and started picking at it before I could get to it. They don't care about the "let cool" period.

Macaroni and Cheese please!

Ok, so by now you know that I am not American by birth. I came to this lovely country when I was about 12 years old, with a set of taste buds that were already deeply rooted in the Peruvian flavors that I enjoy so much. I didn't eat a PB&J sandwich until I was probably 16 years old, and that was thanks to an All American friend who refused to let me go through life without trying this delicacy. The same goes for Macaroni and Cheese. I tried this dish late in the game and although I liked it, it was never one of those dishes that I cared to re-create in my kitchen. Until now.

My daughter, although brown haired, brown eyed and cinnamon skinned is as American as well, flan. Don't understand? I guess you don't live in Miami now do you?

No, really, Mia likes Mac and Cheese as much as the next kid and while we lived in Memphis she tried this southern gooey goodness many times. But that was the South, and Florida is, well its the south too...but...really, its a world unto its own. Regardless of this, I had promised Mia I would make some Macaroni and Cheese specially for her and that kid has the memory of an elephant, whenever its convenient for her of course...

So I armed myself with about 10 recipes and took out bits and pieces that I liked from each one and made my version of Mac and Cheese. Again, I remind you that I am not American nor did I grow up eating this, so if I butcher this recipe or if you find it horribly different from the classic version that your grandma made, then please accept the apologies both from myself and my Inca ancestors.

So with my apologies made, on I go.

These are the items you will need:

For the Mac and Cheese

1 Box of Macaroni noodles (1# box)
2 Teaspoons of dry mustard
2 Teaspoons of Paprika
3 cups of Milk
3 tablespoons of butter
3 tablespoons of all purpose flour
1 egg
1 Pound of Sharp Cheddar
1/2 a pound of Monterrey Jack cheese
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
Broccoli
Red Bell Pepper diced in cubes
Thyme
1 bay leaf
Nutmeg

Salt Pepper

bread crumbs

For the Chicken

2 Chicken breasts

Breadcrumbs

1 egg

some milk

salt pepper

Please imagine the missing ingredients here...

Ok, so begin by grating the cheeses, I was going to buy the shredded kind, but all the recipes said that it was best to grate it fresh....so on I went. Actually, this was a great activity for Mia to help out in.


This actually was messier than I anticipated, especially for an almost 4 year old to try (I can't believe I have an almost 4 year old kid!) but it kept her entertained for a while. Kept me cleaning for a while as well, but that's life.

Ok, now that your cheese is grated you can begin. Cook the macaroni until a bit underdone, about 5 minutes, remember that this will go into the oven for about 30 minutes and will continue cooking!! Drain. Then, place a large pot and put on medium heat. Melt the butter. Once this is melted add the flour, mix well so that there are no lumps and continue to stir in order to cook this "roux" and take out the flour-y taste from the mixture. This should take about 5-10 mins top. Add the dry mustard and about a teaspoon of the freshly grated nutmeg. Now, add the 3 cups of milk, stir well so that there are no lumps. Add to this the thyme (about a palmful) and bay leaf. Keep this on medium heat and stir until it gets a bit thick another 10-15 minutes. Once it gets to a creamy like consistency, (don't worry if its a bit watery, mine was at the beginning as well) turn off the heat and add the Cheddar and Jack cheeses. The residual heat will be enough to melt this.

Next put the already undercooked and drained macaroni in a baking dish and add the cheese and veggies (I had to make it healthy)

Pardon our complete disregard to the pictures on the cutting boards, we're WILD!

You can put these veggies raw, I like my broccoli with a bit of a bite still in it if you don't then I guess you could cook it for a few minutes prior to adding it...but that's just another messy pan, so why bother?

Mix the cheese and veggies in the baking dish, cover with the breadcrumbs and top with the Parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Finish with the broiler on high until golden brown and bubbly on top.

Now on to the chicken.

I made some breaded chicken cutlets to go with this meal ("apanado" for my Hispanic peeps)

Butterfly the chicken breast into thinner sections add salt pepper and set aside. In a deep bowl mix the egg and milk and in a shallow large plate place the breadcrumbs. Heat a skillet with some olive oil. Coat each chicken section with the egg wash and then place on the breadcrumbs and cover. Fry until golden brown. Repeat with all pieces. Serve together with the mac and cheese.

Unfortunately I don't have a finished picture to show you because we were just too hungry to remember take one before we dug in. But it was good. At least as good as this Peruvian girl can possibly make!!

Chinese is Chineasy! :)

I must have inherited my Grandmother's aversion to throwing food away. I save all scraps of food and try to incorporate them into a dish in one way or another. I actually laugh at my mom for doing this, but I secretly and shamelessly can not turn away from this inherited gift to give any and all leftovers a face lift and turn them into dinner for some other night.

Being Hispanic, my family eats a lot of rice with our meals. I think over 80% of our meals include rice as a side dish, because of this, I also find myself with lots of rice as leftovers.

And so a typical Tuesday evening begins. I lie, there is nothing typical in my life...

I was actually craving Chinese food with all of its crunchy good for you vegetables, and I knew I had a pot of leftover rice from Sunday that needed to be utilized ASAP. It would not go to waste, not on my watch (and its always my watch),

So off I go, flying through the kitchen (don't worry its not a very large kitchen) looking for all the ingredients needed to make Chicken fried rice.


For this dish you will need:

6 Boneless/skinless chicken thighs cut into bite size pieces (You can use Chicken breast but I find this a bit dry) I've also made it with Shrimp and its oh so good!
4 cups of leftover white rice (you can make this ahead the night before)
1 Red bell pepper cut into cubes
1 pack of snow peas cut into pieces
1 pack of Scallions cut up
1/2 a medium yellow onion cut into cubes
About 1/2 a cup of Soy sauce
A dash of Worcestershire sauce
1 chunk of fresh ginger (ginger freezes real well, so you can use what you want and freeze the rest in a zip bag. The plus? you don't have to peel frozen ginger, the frozen peel actually never grates! You're welcome)
Sesame seeds
Sesame seed oil, you can use regular olive oil instead

Heat the oil in a large pot, wait until hot and sprinkle about a palm full of sesame seeds wait a minute until you hear them or see them popping and put in the chopped up onions. Caramelize. Add the chicken and leave it alone. Don't stir it, don't do anything, just let it be. I know, hard right? wait until about 10 minutes have passed by or until you see that it has developed a nice brown color on the side that is touching the pot. Now you are free to stir. Move it around and grate about 2 or 3 tablespoons of ginger into the chicken. Add about 1/4 of the cup of soy sauce and a couple of shakes of the Worcestershire. Cover and let it simmer on low until it is cooked through. Remove into a large bowl with all the juices.

In the same pot add a bit more of oil and add half the vegetables. You don't want to cook these veggies, you want them to stay crunchy and bright, so sauteing will only take about 5 minutes TOPS. Add half of the remaining soy sauce and shave about 1 tablespoon of ginger. Remove to a bowl. Do the same with the other half of the veggies. The reason why you don't want to do them all at once is because you want to stir fry them, if you crowd the pot they will just get watery and mushy.

Add the already cooked leftover rice to the pot and stir so that the rice can get coated with some of the left over bits of soy sauce and heat up. Add the veggies and chicken and mix in as well.

I usually add more ginger and soy sauce at the end to my liking.

(disclaimer: The pot in the picture was the first pot my mom purchased when we arrived to this country almost 20 years ago. Yes, it is old and battered and not very nice to look at but I will never get rid of it. I have made firm plans to be buried with it actually)

Finished! You have a dinner that is full of yummy good for you veggies (I like to add some bean sprouts as well, but I didn't have any on hand today) that was made in about 30 minutes. Seriously, no take out can beat that!

2011....Bring it!

Ok, so I love to write. It helps me relax. Cooking does the same thing for me, I am able to loose my self in the mundane chopping of the onions and forget that there is a preschooler at my feet asking to watch Dora for the millionth time or a Baby who (most likely) needs a diaper change. Fret not dear reader, that is why I married the man I did. He is the best Diego/Handy Manny/Dora role player and is a whiz at making sure that Giada's butt stays poop free. So off I go to cook.

I always get asked to share recipes by my friends and family, and I never have them. I don't really cook with a recipe. The dishes I make are dishes that have been in my family for generations and that I am sure reside in my Grandma's old and yellow handwritten recipe book. But for quick daily access I have stored them in my memory and at least up to now, it hasn't failed me once. So, now in this technology filled world, I will post them here. To forever be etched into cyberspace. How poetic. Bleh.

So, today is the first day of the year and to us that means Lentils are in the menu. They are supposed to represent abundance and its a typical dish to make as a year starter. Here is my version:

2 small bags of Lentils - soak for 2 about hours in water to soften (even though the instructions say not to do it...my grandma did it, so I do it too. Wanna argue? take it up with her)

1 palm full of Cumin

1/2 palm full of Turmeric

Ham Hocks (Smoked Turkey wings work also)

2 Bay Leaves

2 Medium Onions or 1 large one, chopped. I like to work with yellow or white.

Garlic to taste (to me this always means tons of it, but 3 cloves will do)

1 box and a half of Chicken Stock

Salt and Pepper

Olive Oil

In a pot heat the oil and place the bay leaves, cumin and turmeric stir and wait until its hot and stir. Add the chopped onions and chopped garlic. Let it sit with the spices for about 5 minutes and then stir. Wait until the onions and garlic have taken the flavors of the spices and have softened, about 15 - 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the Lentils (which after 2 hours should have soaked up the water they were soaking in) add the entire box of chicken stock and about 2 cups of water and stir. Season again with salt and pepper. Cover and let it cook on medium low heat until the water is consumed and lentils are soft and puree like about 45 minutes. Depending on your taste you can add more chicken stock to loosen up the lentils or leave as is. I like them real soft, the consistency of mashed potatoes so I add more stock at the end.

You can make half of this recipe if you wish, you will still get about 3 or 4 large portions of lentils. But I like to make this in a huge batch because it freezes well and can be later added to soups, rice, or even ground beef for a lentil based chili. Hey, I like to relax as well! And with the ever present gym classes, running late from work and other mind boggling tasks I am happy to always have "reserves" in my refrigerator.

I serve this with rice and chicken or as a side dish to a steak with salad. YUM. Additionally to being delish and jammed packed with protein and iron, this dish is also extremely healthy and dirt cheap. The bags of lentils were .89 each and I'm always fully stocked with onions and garlic, so I fed my family of 3 (baby doesn't count yet!) for about 2 bucks and change a plate....considering that I made some salad and steak. Plus I have lots of left overs to freeze for another night.

CVI.CHE 105

As you know, my husband and I are Peruvian, therefore we have a passion (OK, more like obsession) for Peruvian food. I will argue with anyone that it has got to be one of the most varied and delicious cousines out there.

But I digress. We had heard about this CVI.CHE 105 place from some friends and it was always in the back of our minds to go there if we where ever in the downtown area. Coincidentally, my sister in law called me one day and raved and raved about this new Peruvian place by her house....uhmmmm? What was the name? Once we certified that it was indeed CVI.CHE we made instant plans to go that weekend, but that week one of our hurricanes was sick so we had to push it back, ah, the joys of parenthood...

Two weeks later and with an army of friends who we had convinced to go with us (by convinced I mean randomly mentioned and they pounced at the idea...our friends are all food lovers as well) we went. Downtown Miami bound, armed with our GPS, coloring books and crayons for the little one we were excited to finally try this place.

Upon arrival, we found parking which is not an easy task in Downtown, we hopped out of our super cool van and we were on our way.

The restaurant itself is located at 105 N.E. 3rd Ave. Miami, FL 33132. Just like the restaurants located in the area this one is a very urban and trendy restaurant which as far as Peruvian restaurants go is a breath of fresh air.

Since Rashida (my sister in law) and Guillermo (my brother) had been there before, they recommended what items to try from the amazing sounding menu. We ordered some Ceviche en Salsa de Rocoto (Ceviche in hot peppers sauce) which was out of this world. I am not a spicy kind of person, but this dish was so delicious that I didn't mind the burning sensation from the heat. The second dish I tried was Pulpo al olivo (Octopus in an olive based mayonnaise) which was so tender it literally melted in your mouth like cotton candy. Alfredo had his classic Lomo Saltado (Sauteed onions, tomatoes with beef and french fries)and I had some Arroz Chaufa de Mariscos (Seafood fried rice). Our friends ordered a list of different dishes and everyone was equally amazed with their choices.

Since my fist (second, third, fourth and so on) visit was while I was pregnant I could not partake in the drinking that our friends were doing. But in the last visit, when our little one was just 1 month and half I was finally able to try a cocktail of Pisco and Passion Fruit Juice and it was as heavenly as I had imagined it. What we did notice in the last visit is that they don't have a baby changing station in the bathroom! This is such a pet peeve of mine, do they think that parents of young babies don't want to go to a restaurant? Do they not care to have us as customers? Seriously, if it wasn't such a good restaurant I think that would have turned me off going back, but it is THAT good so I will just have to hope that a diaper change can wait until our return to the car.

Pros: Great food, fresh seafood, modern ambiance, clean restrooms

Cons: No changing table!!, it may be hard to maneuver a double stroller once the tiniest hurricane is big enough to tag along in the jogging stroller.

Ok, so I'm back

After taking a break from this blog I realized that I missed it and want to get back in the swing of things. You see, I've always been a frustrated author and this gives me an outlet to get some of my words out to the 3 cats that may read this.

During my down time, I managed to bring another hurricane into this crazy world, hoping that, alongside her big sister they could finally act out their plan for world domination.

Now, without further ado, more reviews of child friendly (and not so friendly) places around South Florida.

Bravo Gourmet Sandwich

You see, I have this friend,she makes up 50% of team Lluberes, and when she tells me "you HAVE to go to this restaurant (fill in name here)" I listen, and I listen good. Until now, she hasn't steered us wrong.
So when Silvia told us about a sandwich place in Dania, we didn't say "oh its too far" or "only sandwiches?" we just said WHEN.

BRAVO Gourmet Sandwich is located in a non-descript shopping strip in front of a Home Depot, or it could have been a K-Mart. I'm not too sure, I was too busy trying to keep Mia awake through the car ride. No nap hurricane...but that's another story. Its address is 2925 NE 6th Avenue Fort Lauderdale FL 33334, so google it before going.

A tiny place with about 10 tables TOPS, we walked in with a group of 10 adults and 2 kids...well one kid and one baby. I'm going to be honest here, when we walked in, this place was empty and I have a thing against empty restaurants...so I was skeptical. Two, the place was really cold inside, so cold that I told the hubby to please go and get a jacket for Mia out of the car. Three, as soon as we set foot in this restaurant Mia asks to go pee. REALLY? NOW?! So I take my tiny hurricane THROUGH the kitchen to the back area where they have the lonesome bathroom. As I am walking through the kitchen Mia said hi to the only cook about a thousand times and I had time to see that everything looked really clean. A thousand "byes" later (she's a very well mannered girl what can I say) and we were sitting down in a noticeably much warmer restaurant. The owner had turned up the AC upon our request. Nice.

We ask for a child seat and they inform us that they don't have any...poo. Hurricanes and regular chairs just don't mix. At all. They allow too much freedom too early in the game. But we shruged it off and plowed on ahead. Alfredo had already ordered us some Chicha (the corn based drink that I have previously explained) and I see that they have various other fresh juices to pick from. I ordered an additional Lucuma juice and as far as beverages go, Team Gambarina was set.

The waitress/owner/cashier took our orders and the conversation began. This is why I love to take Mia out with our friends. She understands that conversation is part of eating and we hope that by instilling this value in her she will want to share her daily stories with us around the table well into her much dreaded teenage years. Paquiao won? No, Cotto doesn't train as hard. Yeah, we can mount a TV in your wall. Who's going to Peru? Camping, when and where? They closed down Tootsies!? What is your favorite food? That potato looks pregnant! Where all part of the nightly headlines of the table today.

Mia entertained herself by coloring and playing with her God sent sticker books. Those books provide us with hours and hours of sanity at restaurants. We have come to rely so much on them that we break out in a cold sweat when we think about the chaos that would ensue if we were to *gasp* forget them...the terror...

Then the food came. Now, I'm not going to lie, the wait was long (hence the varied topics of conversation) but it's because we went half an hour before closing time and there was only 1 cook for all 10 of us. Plus everything was done right at the time we ordered it (we heard the wild chopping in the kitchen)so really, there is no room for complaining.

The food was really good and everyone around the table was raving about their plates. From stuffed potatoes to the fresh juices to the sandwiches, all was delish. I ordered a Pan con chicharron, which is a typical Peruvian breakfast staple.



Yeah, one look at that sandwich and you wonder how all Peruvians don't weight 700 pounds each.

The sandwich is made up of fried pork chunks sliced in manageable pieces, fried sweet potato slices and onion sauce between two slices of bread. Sounds weird? well, in this case, weird works.

Alfredo ordered a Pan con Lomo Saltado. Slices of meat, tomatoes and onions sauteed and paired with french fries and then stuffed into a sandwich. While this was a very good sandwich, my sandwich definitely kicks Alfredo's sandwich's butt. Alfredo even said so....after taking 2 huge bites out of my dinner.

There were 6 Peruvians and 4 non-Peruvians in the table and we either a)Were intimidating them into lying or b)The non-Peruvians enjoyed their meals as much as we did.

After finishing up and taking a second trip to the bathroom, Mia downed 2 big glasses of Chicha, I spoke to the owners and told them how good the food was. This is the part I love about tiny establishments, they live for these kind of comments, they work for these kind of comments, and usually they work really hard. This was no exception, I really only wish that it wasn't so far away from us.


Pros: Good food, family owned, clean bathroom and kitchen, friendly service.
Cons: Small place (but this could be a positive!), no high chairs or booster seats.

Texas de Brazil - Dolphin Mall

Early this month we decided that a nice evening was long overdue. Now, if you know us, you probably know that we tag along with our tiny hurricane everywhere we go. We believe that children need to be as involved in all social activities as possible, this is why we have taken Mia with us to bars, clubs and were contemplating on Vegas until we heard about the pesky 21 and over rule....I mean, what gives??!!

All kidding aside (I WAS kidding) we believe that Mia should be exposed to different dining experiences in order to learn how to properly behave in different situations. From relaxed dining to nice restaurants, our tiny hurricane has made her parents very proud.

On a previous get together Silvia and I had stamped Sunday as "Death by Meat" day, aka Texas de Brazil. We have been there plenty of times, and we always leave with the uneasy feeling that we may just have overdone it this time. But it is so good that we keep coming back for more.

This time we made a date with the Lluberes again and brought Danny as well in order to thoroughly thank him for his help in moving us to and from Memphis. Danny, YOU ROCK!. He moves us, we buy him half a cow, and suddenly its even, this is a true friend indeed.

We headed over in the early afternoon (around 4pm) for two reasons, shall Mia act up, we wouldn't disturb a crowded restaurant but most importantly, we needed time for digestion before heading off to sleep. We met with Carlos and Silvia at the door and were promptly seated and our drink orders were taken a few minutes later. The passion fruit Caipirinha is to die for, if you do go to TdB this is THE drink to get. Its refreshing, crisp and tangy all at the same time, the nice buzz is just an added plus.

Then, THEY SHOW UP...countless numbers of sword wielding servers armed with the most debilitating weapon for a hungry person, meat. And damn good meat at that. So many of them that it almost becomes a sea of...well, cow. The meat is so tender that a knife is not needed, the fillet Mignon can be cut with a spoon, the picanha juicy, and the short ribs tasty and greasy like they should be.



By this time, Mia is off in her own little world, coloring and/or covering Carlitos with every My Little Pony sticker she can get her hands on. And this is good, because I'm too busy stuffing my face to pay attention. She actually ate very well, she had two bowls of lobster bisque and a Parmesan crusted chicken as well as some of my meat. Children under 5 eat free so this is a great restaurant to take your kids to. They will be impressed with the swords and the grown ups will be rolling out with a full belly of food. Please take the rolling out part literally.

After an hour of eating, we decide we've had enough, so we go ahead and order dessert. What?? Nothing wrong with a little sugar. Danny orders the Brazilian Caramel cheesecake and Silvia a slice of chocolate cake a la mode. We all eat. Both were scrumptious. The perfect end to a great meal.

The service, as always, was excellent. Texas de Brazil must take great pride in this and train their waiters very well as we've yet to receive even mediocre service, its always been top notch.

So we walk out to peruse the adjacent Dolphin Mall, in full hopes that this will aid our digestion...and we leave thinking, we may have just overdone it this time...

Pros: Large quantities of meat, great service, great food and drinks, beautiful ambiance, clean bathrooms, kids eat free until 5 years old.
Cons: Large quantities of meat, a bit expensive (but if you sign up for the TdB e-club they will periodically send out 50% off coupons for up to 6 people!), obviously not recommended for vegetarians!

El Senorio Peruano

I've meaning to visit this restaurant for a while since there were several people who had recommended this place to us. So after a day of lounging at the beach we decided to check this place out. We asked a couple of good friends to join us and insta-plans were made for a lovely afternoon.

El Senorio Peruano is located in 1127 N.E. 163rd Street, North Miami Beach. When we arrived, our tiny hurricane Mia was sound asleep after an exhausting day at the beach. Unknown to us, this would turn out to be a huge blessing.

We met up with the Lluberes family and sat ourselves in an almost empty restaurant. Normally this can be a bad sign, but it was around 3pm, so the lunch rush could have gone and obviously it was too early for dinner. I saw they had a ceviche that I really liked in the menu, but since nobody was willing to share with me, we all decided to get the anticuchos, which is basically a kabob made out of meat which has been marinated in a chili paste overnight. So an order of anticuchos and a pitcher of chicha, a corn based drink, was made and we waited, and waited...and then waited some more. Now, I am not the impatient kind at all, my husband may disagree, I can understand an order taking long because its a busy day. But again, it was an almost empty restaurant! There must have been two other tables (TOPS) who were being serviced!

The food and drinks finally arrived and it was very good. The chicha was refreshing and sweet and the anticuchos were seasoned and grilled so that they were juicy and very tasty. Alfredo also ordered some fried yuccas with Huancaina sauce, which is a cheese based sauce, and also no complaints there. I appropriated the corn, claiming that it would be for Mia when she woke up. It was a blatant lie, I ate that up, shamelessly denying my poor hubby of any taste.

We put in our orders for the main course (we Peruvians eat ALOT) and I shared a Jalea, a plate of fried seafood, with Silvia, Alfredo got a Lomo Saltado and Carlitos a Fish and salad. Now, this is probably my own pet peeve, but I HATE it when restaurants bring the food separately. It puts everyone in a bad position, the person who got the plate first is hungry, but wants to be polite and wait for everyone to get their plate...but really who wants to wait and then eat a cold plate of food? Well, they brought in Carlitos' food first, we told him to eat while we...waited....

Finally our food arrived, and Mia woke up on cue. Had our tiny hurricane been awake the entire time, we would have had a horrible time with a hungry, bored and irritated toddler. But the food was there and she ate up, shrimp, scallops, fish, calamari all perfectly fried to golden perfection served with yucca fries and a onion/cilantro/lime sauce on top. YUM.



I asked for some tartar sauce, and our waitress actually looked at me blankly and asked Carlitos (to whom she had brought some tartar sauce earlier) "Was your tartar sauce OK?" why? was it supposed to be bad? whatever the reason of her question, it was just awkward. We also asked for another pitcher of chicha and she said that there was no more.

Gluttons for punishment that we are, we decided (actually, it was Silvia and I) to get dessert and got some Picarones which are basically Peruvian doughnuts. Again, very good. Somewhere between the food and dessert Mia needed to use the restroom, which was located in the back of the restaurant and was not very clean.

While we had a great time with Team Lluberes (we always do) it was just a shame that a restaurant with such good food had such poor customer service. I really wouldn't go back there because of this. I can cook Peruvian food at home, if I'm going out to a restaurant what I am expecting is a certain attention that I can't get at home, and unfortunately for us, this time such attention was not given to our table.

Regardless, the company rocked and we made plans to see the Lluberes again, over a plate of food of course!

Pros: Good food
Cons: Poor service, slow, bathrooms were not clean

Flanigans - West Pines

So, when I was young-er, Flanigans was our meet up spot, our "go to" place when we had no plans, or just a place to get some decent ribs and beer. This past weekend, hankering for the good ol' days I ventured back.

The hubby was working the night shift this specific day so it was just Mia and I, but not to fear, two additional parent re-enforcements were joining us with their tiny hurricane. We outnumbered the tiny hurricanes 3 to 2, not excellent numbers, but still a hand up.

Upon arriving I realized that poor Mia had not taken a nap due to her being overly exited and playing with her buddy all day long. I had a chance to take her home and nap, but decided a girl convo with the Archbold's main lady was a much better way to pass time. Will she be cranky and ruin dinner? Will she pass out and let me eat and drink to my heart's content? Its such a toss up in times like these. Its like Russian roulette...minus the bullets of course.

We were seated fairly quickly for it being a weekend game night, but its the location that makes the difference. Had we gone to the Flanigans in Hialeah, we would have waited at least 45 minutes, no doubt about it. That is "the" Flanigans, that was the hangout spot I spoke about earlier. All the young kids go there. Its like Mecca for college students and college drop-outs alike. Alas, we are not that cool anymore, waiting anywhere for 45 minutes with a hungry sleepy child is not highly recommended in any of the parenting for dummies books I've skimmed through.

Quickly seated, we knew what we wanted, an all out consensus of wings. I liked the Archbold's even more when the adult drink orders all contained some percentage of well earned alcohol. Kids will drive you to drink.

Drinks and wings at hand we dug in. Juicy and hot, freshly fried. Mia also loved the chicken and the fact that she got to dip it into blue cheese all by herself. Next up, Ribs. Now, I've lived in Memphis, who claims to be the BBQ capital of the USA. I'm probably going to get hell for this, but Flanigan's ribs totally rock. Maybe its the fact that they take me back to my college days, maybe its just that they really are plain ol' good, or maybe a combination of both. Fall of the bone, saucy, finger licking good. Mia seem to like them also, as after not paying any attention to her for a few minutes I found her sucking on a meatless bone.

There were no complaints from our table in regards to food. The Archbold's also seemed to enjoy their plates as all was quickly consumed and no to-go boxes were needed.

I know that Flanigans is a chain restaurant, but sometimes you just want to go somewhere where you know they have both crayons for the kids and a cold drink for you. On Saturday night, this was the place for us.

I'd like to take this time to say thanks Angelo for the tomato slice that Mia swiped from your fish sandwich, I hope the experience was still enjoyable without it.


Pros: Consistent food and service; good beers.
Cons: It is a restaurant/bar, so if you don't want your kids to hear the occasional sh!t or f@ck when the game is on, I suggest you stay away; no drink specials!; the bathrooms could have used a clean up.

La Estancia Argentina

On Saturday, Team Gambarina decided to take a trip to BrandSmart to finally buy the over-the-range over I've been salivating over, uhm, I mean badly needed. First, I wouldn't recommend taking a 2 year old there. If it weren't for the help of my mother in law and (thankfully) the loop video clip of Michael Jackson's songs I may have gone insane at trying to keep my hurricane's little hands off of EVERYTHING.

After this, we decided to reward ourselves with something to eat. With Mia passed out in the car, we contemplated different restaurants. Ice cream? Father in Law didn't want any, Cuban pastelitos? I wasn't feeling it. All Mother in Law wanted was coffee, and the Husband is easy to please, so we pondered. I remembered La Estancia Argentina, on Miramar and a bit past Dykes. In the same shopping plaza as (ugh) Chili's.

I've been here before, but it was the Hubby's first time, so I hoped it impressed him. It did. I ordered a Chicken/Avocado/Bacon sandwich, he got a Choripan. MIL got an Empanada and shared FIL's Choripan as well as my chocolate cake dessert, which was moist, and not too sweet. Everything was really good. The sandwiches are served on baguette bread, which is crusty and soft at the same time, and is able to suck up all the juices from the chicken or Chorizo sausage. I call it juice, but yeah, I know its fat. Whatever.

This is a little quaint store, they have empanadas, all kinds of desserts and wine. They also have a bit of specialty items from South America such as Mate, spices and such. The hubby also purchased some Argentinean Salt for BBQ, because as you all know, American salt is so inferior... actually, I have no idea what the difference is, but when he bbqs it saves me from cooking (plus he's real good at it) so if he wanted to buy a golden grill, I think I'd let him.

La Estancia also sells special cuts of meat, sausages, cheeses and other butcher items. As an added bonus, on Monday and Tuesdays, they have a 20% off deal.

Upon leaving, we noticed that they have Happy Hour everyday from 5 to 8pm (our bedtime :)) where you get 12 empanadas and a bottle of wine for 25$, which given that its close to home and so good, we've penciled it in for next week.

Pros: A family owned place in suburbia, clean, friendly, excellent sandwiches, Illy coffee
Cons: A 10$ corkage fee seems too high for this kind of establishment!

El Fogon - Miramar

During the week, out of sheer exhaustion and not having an iota of desire to even think about cooking, I decided to go El Fogon, located in Miramar Parkway (2930 SW 160 Ave, Miramar FL) in the Home Depot Shopping center. This is a family owned Peruvian Restaurant whose specialty is Pollos a la Brasa or Rotisserie Chicken but Peruvian style. Different herbs and spices = delish flavor!

Now, my family likes this restaurant, I really think that it is mainly because of convenience since they are the closest Pollo a la Brasa restaurant to our house. Don’t get me wrong, I like it too, I’ve just had better. But better = further and on a weekday, this is just simply impossible sometimes.

The service is friendly, but not the fastest, so if you want to get in and out, call and place your order ahead. They even had an advertised special that stated that you get some % off your meal if you order on line, so problem solved for you impatient types.

I placed my order, waited around a bit and was able to get out. Now, for all you newbies to this kind of food, the sauces that are available are definitely part of the meal experience. They have a green, red and white sauce, try them all. I would describe and/or name them, but they are available on all the tables so there’s no need to. My favorite is the white one, it’s a mayo based sauce that goes very well, with the salad, and the chicken, and the fries and … well, you get the point.

This time though, I thought the chicken was salty, and, as my husband would quickly point out, that is a tough task, since I love salt. The salad was ok, nothing extraordinary can be expected from onions, lettuce and tomatoes, but the freshness goes well with the chicken so it’s a plus. The fries were also good, golden and hot, but there is very little you can do to mess up fries right?

All in all it got me out of thinking “what’s for lunch/dinner” , but it was not an impressive "OMG I want to go back and eat there tomorrow", or next week … or even next month for that matter. I guess we’ll be back when, once again, I lack the desire to cook.

Graziano's Meat Market

Ok, so we are in the process of moving back home. Fun Times. Crazy times. But I’m not complaining, I am glad to be back, even if means I have to live in a house full of boxes and clutter… not complaining, not complaini… oh who am I kidding, I AM complaining! I want to get my house back in working order, PRONTO!

But, this is not a home remodeling blog, so back to what really matters… FOOD!
This is not a restaurant, (although there is one next door ran by the same establishment, but we didn’t visit it) so this review will be short and different (just like me!). We were invited over for a BBQ at a dear friends house, where they bought the meats and other yummy treats from a Argentinean butcher shop, Grazianos. I’ve been in this store/shop before, but it had been a while since I had gone back, and I don’t really ever recall specifically buying meat there, so when we hosted our Labor Day BBQ we decided to get our grilling items here.

Graziano’s is located on 5993 W 16th Ave in Hialeah, tucked in a corner in an old shopping center.

The market is not big, but it is stocked with items from many countries from South America. Being an Argentinean market, they make pretty good empanadas. Not the best I’ve had, but good enough to satisfy a craving. But the topic here is meat, so let’s get back to the cow.
The husband was actually on meat purchasing duty, again the whole male-food-gatherer role from the cave years rears its head. But I gotta give it to the Hubby, he is exceptionally good with a grill and he knows about meat like nobody’s business. So I am confident to send him to this meat Mecca to make the final choices.

Their meats are very good, I don’t think it’s the meat as much as it is their cuts of meat, which are different than say Publix or Winn Dixie. But it is their other items that I personally love! Next time you are out grilling, try some Sweetbread on the grill, it goes by “Molleja” to Argentineans (an I believe to all Spanish speaking people) it’s delish! It has a chicken-y taste, but the texture is so soft, truly a treat! Don’t be scared by the looks of it, the flavor will more than make up for this! It takes a while to grill, I would say almost the same time, if not a bit more than a bone in chicken thigh. Then, you must try the blood sausage, I know, I know…BLOOD sausage??? Yes, I said blood. The red stuff that circulates the veins of the delicious cow you probably savored last night. If the animal is dead, might as well make the most of it right?? Yeah, don’t get all PETA on me now…

This sausage is almost black in color, and goes by the name of Morcilla or Relleno. Again, a slow cooker, but the taste is like an explosion of flavor in your tongue.
All in all, Graziano’s is a great place to get some grilling items for your next BBQ, plus the butchers know so much about meat, that they will make you look like a pro, even if it is your first time firing up a grill.

I’m happy to say that I will continue to shop there for specialty items and even happier to know that the Hubby’s culinary dreams are lived in our backyard! Truly, the best BBQs I’ve eaten have been at the hands of my hubby…I know, I know sappy…but I gotta make sure my chef is happy!!

Silver Spoon Japanese and Thai - Miramar

Silver Spoon is located in the Home Depot shopping plaza off Miramar Pkwy and I75, next to Coldstone.

Mom, Mia and I found ourselves hungry in the middle of the new Miramar Park playground the other day (did I mention that playground rocks? Just one thing, why are the benches outside the gated area? Are parents not allowed to sit down? Whatever, I digress), actually, to be completely honest, it was almost 6pm and Mia came up to me and stated "Mia numy numy peeeze" which translates to "I want food oh sweet, caring and fair mother of mine" or something ...

Mom said that there was a real good sushi restaurant nearby, and since I love sushi, we headed over. This is a fairly new place, at least it seems to be, the whole area is I think. After a quick look at the menu I decided that Mia would have some shrimp dumplings and I the Alaskan and Dynamite roll (I was also starved). Mom got the ginger duck with rice.

While we were ordering, hurricane Mia decided to unleash her wrath onto the poor and unsuspecting bottle of soy sauce, so by the time we looked over, she had poured almost the entire bottle onto a small saucer. I was the one who knocked it over. "No, no, no mami... no play food" Yeeeeeeahhhh, obviously MY mistake. I continued to apologize for making a mess (it was all over the floor) but the waitress was really nice and sweet and cleaned it all up in a second.

Mia peeled the wrappers off her chopsticks and proceeded to have a drumming session on the table. "Look bongos", "Mami, cool bongos", "Mia bongos"... I didn't have the heart to tell her that bongos were not played with drum sticks, much less sushi ones. Really, who am I to ruin my child's possible future career in music?

Our drink order came out alongside some fresh and delish ginger salad. The veggies were crispy and juicy and the dressing was to die for. Mia loved it as well, she ate all the cucumber and tomatoes in both (My mom's and I) salads. Just as and FYI they have a pretty good children menu, with shrimp and fish as options, alongside either rice or fries.

Just before the usual "more tomatoes" breakdown, our food arrived and it looked and smelled great. My mom's duck was juicy and crispy at the same time and my sushi was also very good. Mia's appetizer was ok, steamed dumplings filled with shrimp...which is exactly what I ordered, but I guess I was expecting something else... two out of 3 ain't bad. And the two that were good were really good.

I hate to be the one to say this, but whenever I go into an Asian restaurant (be it Chinese, Thai, Japanese etc...) I don't expect good service, I actually expect mediocre service at best. But I love this kind of cuisine so much that I am willing to put up with this low point (in my opinion). This restaurant was the opposite. From Mia's spilled soy sauce fiasco to how attentive our waitress was during our meal, I was pleasantly surprised. I will definitely return, and, since its in our neck of the woods, I expect to return soon and often.


Pros: Not too pricey for the quality of food, big portions, clean, great service.
Cons: Don't order the steamed dumplings for a kid, without the chili sauce, they are kind of bland.

Miami Metro Zoo

We were zoo members in Memphis, so when we moved, we decided to make ourselves members of the Miami zoo as well. When you have kids, these things are sometimes necessary in order to keep a busy schedule (i.e. exhaust the kids and reward yourself with some much needed alone time).

So, this weekend we headed to the Zoo. What made it different is that we were joined by the Archbolds. These are old high school friends of mine (by old, I am referencing to the past, not their age...)who were also crazy enough to create an offspring and even crazier...seem to have the most educated tiny hurricane I've seen.

We snuck in both hurricanes as our kids in order to save up some cash for the Archbolds, Lord knows the zoo can add up, but they graciously made it up by their awesome company and a much needed frozen lemonade and hot arepa. Bonus points for them!

We walked for what seemed like FOREVER, but most possibly only discovered 1/4 of the zoo. But the areas that we did visit were amazing.

For all of you (4 readers) that have not been to the zoo in a while, let me tell you that much has changed...at least in the area where we were at this weekend. It is made up of all the rain forests in South and Central America and is anchored by a pavilion (food court sounds so....1990's no?) called Fiesta. They have a water play zone for kids to get soaked in, so bring the bathing suits or an extra change of clothes because they WILL get wet, hell, with this kind of heat I was thinking about joining my tiny hurricane as well.

They have an area for parents to sit around in and supervise their kids from, plus they have pretty decent food. At least it is by far, the healthiest food to be found at the zoo. They have fruit cups, turkey legs, hamburgers with the fixings and humongous hot dogs. Prices are pretty high, but considering its the zoo, this is somewhat expected.

The hubby ordered a turkey leg for Mia and I proceeded to chase my hurricane around the entire area in order to get some food in her mouth. Repeat 100 times. I did this until I felt somewhat reassured that she had gotten some kind of nourishment for the day. After the kids were good and tired, the adults decided to get some food too. The hubby ordered what seemed to be a juicy burger and I went halfsies on my hot dog with the Archbold's queen bee. It was THAT big. Oh, FYI, they even sell beer in this area, actually the whole zoo does, (I love So Fla) so maybe next time I will try to get my buzz on at noon, just kidding, but really a beer with friends would have been a nice option. There's always next time.

We proceeded to direct our hurricanes out of the area to the sound of "noooo's" and "just one minute"... but really they were plenty sunburned and we wanted to explore some more. I can't say enough about this new construction, most of the displays are interactive (in English and Spanish!) and have really cool tidbits of information that even make the parents go ooooh and ahhh (admit it Archbold daddy, you were pretty stoked about that heat sensor!!! And the hubby was playing it waaaay too cool at that cougar display, he knew that cougar phone was awesome!)

There was an aquarium area with huge piranhas and some other fish whose name I can't remember. But all were equally cool, plus they were inside so the AC was a huge bonus. A rain forest cloud area (where the misters make you feel like you're walking on clouds), a rain cloud with actual rain, a working damn, and many many more hands on stuff for our kids. Truly a great place for kids to run around and discover.

Completely soaked from the water, and quite possibly sweat, we made it out of the park ready to head home. Dinner plans were postponed to a later date due to all of us being extremely tired, and again, quite possibly, stinky. Some Cheetos were shared and goodbyes were said, but not for long, as the two grown ups in the Archbold clan seem to be right up our alley. Hurray to parenthood and to zonked out kids right out of the zoo parking lot!


Pros: Clean restrooms (all the ones we visited, which were quite a few), fun for the kids, they sell beer!, decent food.

Cons: May be too hot in the summer, food is pricey, did I mention the heat??

El Gran Inka - North Miami Beach

This past Sunday, we packed ourselves with the strong intentions to head on out to the Children's Museum. For one reason or another, time flew by and we realized that it was already lunch time by the time when we finally made it out of the house.

Now, we (the Hubby and I) are both Peruvian and love this kind of food. So when many of our friends and family members kept talking up El Gran Inka we took note. Too bad at that time we were still living in Memphis...but that's another story.

So after our usual "what do you want to do, I dunno what do YOU want to do" game, and a call to one of our trusty friends for directions, we settled on El Gran Inka in North Miami Beach and were soon on our way.

The restaurant is in a pretty nondescript shopping center almost in front of the Oleta State park entrance. You would definitely drive by it if you didn't have some inside info...you know the 411 us cool people have...or a handy GPS mounted inside your very cool Nissan Quest MiniVan, but again, another story....

Walking up to the restaurant, we saw how nicely decorated it was, the Lineas de Nazca painted in the outdoor seating area, the relaxing patio furniture, bright table settings. The inside looked nice too, but it looked like a place that Mia could very EASILY get into trouble, with just too many breakable looking items, so we decided on outdoor seating. Although the fans were on, it was still South Florida Hot but we were looking forward to the meal and decided to overlook this small inconvenience.

As soon as we arrived, we were warmly greeted by our waiter, I want to say his name was Jorge (but I am horrible with names so it could have been anything else), a high chair was immediately brought out and all breakable items were quickly taken away from our hurricane's path.

We ordered a Pisco Passion drink for the adults and a Chicha Morada, a Peruvian purple corn based drink, for Mia which she immediately drank up. Poor baby was thirsty. Our drinks were divine, the right combination of Passion fruit tartness and sweetness add to that the Pisco taste combination and it was a winner in my book. Plus it was cold, so that alone was great.

We ordered some Chicharron de Calamares - Fried Calamari for starters and Mia dove right in, they come with a side of Yucca fries which were nice and crispy on the outside and deliciously cream like on the inside.

I was torn as to what to order as a main course, but the Hubby was quick to make his decision, so I felt the pressure. What to get, what to get....the waiter came back to take our order.....indecision sucks....I jumped to the Conchitas a la Parmesana wich are simply prepared scallops with melted parmesan cheese on top...yuuuummm. The Hubby opted for Seco de Cabrito a la Nortena, which is a lamb stew-like concoction made with a cilantro base served with potatoes, rice and beans...yes, carb overload, but who cares?

The food was all super, the scallops were extremely fresh and Mia enjoyed them very much as well. Hubby didn't share a bite of his food, which makes me come to the conclusion that it was extremely good, plus he kept making grunting noises every time he ate a bite of his plate...our primitive way of saying: Daaaaamn this is good!!

We were thisclose to getting dessert, but were too stuffed to even try, so now we have an excuse to come back. Plus, I asked if they had any specials and they said that on Fridays they have a ceviche happy hour in, which you get a free beer with an order of any ceviche and then can stay for their 5$ pisco drinks all night long. So, now we HAVE to go back.

All in all, this was a great place with great staff, the outdoor seating area could use more fans in order to make it more bearable in the summer, as it was a great area for the tiny hurricane to eat at and even dance a bit after she ate all her yummy food.

Can't wait to go back

Oh, by the way, Mia and I made a quick visit to the restrooms and they were very clean, I didn't notice if they had a baby changing station...but since I haven't used one of those in ages I wasn't really on the look out for one.

Pros: Great food, great atmosphere, friendly service, nice outdoor seating area.
Cons: Hot outdoor area needs more ventilation