FIM EATS: Farm-to-Table
Terms like “organic” and “farm-to-table” have been buzzing in the South Florida culinary scene for quite some time now (see, most prominently, Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink in the Miami Design District), although bona fide restaurant options in these categories are still lacking. Two new places, however, are certainly promising: Market 17 in Fort Lauderdale and Sustain in Miami.
The first is located at the Portside Yachting Center in another one of those nondescript commercial complexes that seem to plague the South Florida sprawl. Inside is a vast, yet elegant space with tasteful artwork throughout. And the mouthwatering menu, which changes seasonally and extends various elaborate, flavor-forward dishes, speaks for itself. Notable local meat options include, for instance, a grilled Okeechobee filet with sautéed broccolini, crispy potato, thyme, garlic, shallot rosti and caramelized apricot, and a grilled Ocala grassfed beef ribeye steak with potato and sage gratin, glazed root veggies, roasted cipollini onions, veal glace, red wine compound butter, and a cabernet reduction. We recommend you try the chef’s tasting menus paired with wine.
As for Sustain, located near Mercadito in Midtown Miami, the emphasis is obviously on sustainable foods, with a menu divided by “Bites”, “Starters”, “Salads”, “Mains” and “For Two”. Highlights include their “50 Mile Salad” (a delectable combination of wood oven roasted beets, pickled onions, Paradise Farms brassica, and feta cheese) and their extra-tasty burger, served rare, with smoked bacon, cheddar cheese and caramelized onions — two dishes whose flavors pleasantly burst on the palette. Also, don’t miss the BBQ grilled quail; a delicious yellowtail snapper with roasted Jerusalem artichokes, slow-cooked tomatoes and olives in an ocean broth; a porchetta pork loin rolled in herbs, wrapped in pork belly, and slow-roasted for 12 hours; and interesting desserts like a peanut-butter-and-jelly flan and a to-die-for pecan pie with chocolate ice cream. On the other hand, the décor is somewhat austere, mostly due to the unwelcoming white lights (at least during dinner hours). Warmer hues would be much more inviting.
After eating at both these restaurants, we can conclude that organic, farm-to-table meals simply taste better, whether they’re healthier or more sustainable or not. We hope to see more places like these opening throughout the state.
Top to bottom: Market 17’s pan roasted duck breast with grilled endive and jicama salad, sweet potato purée, and blackberry maple gastrique; one of the dining spaces at Market 17; Sustain’s wood roasted poulet rouge chicken with cumin honey-glazed squash and maple-vinegar sauce; Sustain’s dining room.
