Weekly Nibble: Uncle Luke, TALDE opens, DASH benefit, P.I.G 6 and more

Each week, MIAbites features upcoming food happening and events in Miami. Please check ahead to confirm times, prices and other details.

SOLDOUT- Sunday November 8th-  MIAbites and The Liquid Projects will be presenting Taco & Tequila Showdown at the Vagabond Restaurant from 6- 9 pm   A benefit for non-profit Urban Oasis Project and Verde Garden and Farm, the event features 12 top chefs and bartenders creating and competing for Best Taco and Best Tequila cocktail. You get to VOTE for Peoples Choice along with a panel of judges led by Evan Benn, Gabe Orta, Adri Garcia and Nidal Barake @YoCulinario. AdvanceTickets $65 /At door $70 and available on Eventbrite link.  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/taco-tequila-showdown-tntshowdown-tickets-18300424061  

Friday November 6th- TALDE MIAMI BEACH , the Asian-American neighborhood restaurant & bar is set to open inside Thompson Miami Beach hotel on Friday, November 6. TALDE Miami Beach, a Mid-Beach neighborhood restaurant and bar features a creative menu of Asian-American cuisine. This third outpost of the award-winning Brooklyn and Jersey City eateries by Chef/Restaurateur and Top Chef alum Dale Talde and partners David Massoni and John Bush of Three Kings Restaurant Group. TALDE Miami Beach will be open for dinner at 6pm nightly, with late-night hours on the weekends. TALDE in The Thompson Hotel  4041  Collins Ave. Miami Beach, FL 786 605 4041.

Wednesday November 11th-  Mignonette hosts an evening of good food and hip-hop with Uncle Luke on November 11th.  Luther Campbell (aka Uncle Luke) of 2 Live Crew fame, University of Miami infamy and one-time Miami-Dade mayoral candidate, is hosting a dinner party with Mignonette's Chef/Owner Danny Serfer.  Serfer and his crew are cooking up a five-course meal of down home favorites and Miami classics priced at $90 per person (inclusive of gratuity, excludes beverage purchases). The menu, created by Serfer with input from Campbell features homemade conch fritters, olive oil poached halibut and a ‘tootsie roll’ for dessert.  Each ticket entitles guests to a signed copy of Campbell’s new book, The Book of Luke: My Fight for Truth, Justice and Liberty City (Amistad). Welcome cocktail and passed snacks will begin at 7:30pm; dinner starts promptly at 8pm. Tickets must be purchased in advance through www.mignonetteXuncleluke.brownpapertickets.com. Mignonette  210 NE 18th Street. 305 374 4635

Wednesday November 11th-  To celebrate Frank Sinatra's well-documented infatuation with The Fontainebleau, StripSteak by Michael Mina will host an intimate dinner with Chef Michael Mina on Wednesday, November 11, 2015 at 8 p.m. hosted by Jack Daniel’s which will feature a five-course menu highlighting some of Ol Blue Eyes’ favorite dishes. Each course will be paired with a specialty Jack Daniel’s cocktail presented by Whiskey Brand Champion, Michael J. Ring. Ring is a Certified Spirits Specialist, a member of the United States Bartenders Guild, Sommeliers Guild, and the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America Dinner is priced at $85 per person, excluding tax and gratuity. StripSteak in The Fontainebleau 4441 Collins Ave. Miami Beach, FL. 877 326 7412.

Friday November 13th-  Bulla Gastrobar and soon-to-be-opened Pisco Y Nazca are raising awareness and funds for Global Water Brigades, an international, non-profit organization constructing clean water systems in Nicaragua, Honduras and Ghana. The restaurants will be showing their support by serving bites at the 5th Annual Water Party MIA being held at The Four Seasons in Brickell on Friday, November 13 from 6:00 – 10:00 p.m. The goal of the event is to raise $12,500 to benefit the community of El Hatillo, Nicaragua which is home to 67 families in need of clean water supply. Tickets are $35 in advance $40 at door and available at:  www.empowered.org/Water-Party-MIA-2015

Saturday November 14th-  –Design and Architecture Senior High (DASH) presents the 8th Annual Taste of Design to be held from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, November 14 at the historic Moore Building located at 4040 N.E. 2nd Ave. in Miami. This year’s theme, “Art Starts Here” promises to underscore the dedication of Dr. Mancuso during her 17 years as principal of the 25 year-old school. A VIP reception will take place at the Palm Court with bites provided by Ella Café from James Beard Award winning chef Michael Schwartz who has supported the event for the past six years. Guests will also sample specialties from award-winning chefs Dewy Losasso from the RedLander and Chef Kris Wessel along with a smorgasbord of top Miami restaurants Buena Vista Deli, Divieto, Panther Coffee, CrepeMaker, Delectable by Design, Enchanting Creations, Soyka, Lisboa Grill, and Pieducks. Tickets are available for a donation of $100, with VIP tickets priced at $150 and for further information or to purchase tickets online and more information, please go to www.dashptsa.com. The VIP reception starts at 5:45pm and leads into the main event that starts at 7:00pm in the Moore Building, 4040 NE 2nd Ave.

Saturday November 14th-  Bradley Kilgore, chef-owner of acclaimed Wynwood restaurant Alter, will serve as consultant and training chef for the Vibe 305 food truck through the truck’s tenure at The Wynwood Yard. The truck will join Arabian Knife, Della Test Kitchen and Myumi at The Wynwood Yard (70 NW 29th St.), a culinary incubator and events space opening on Nov. 14, 2015. The almost two-year old Vibe 305 food truck is operated by young men from Empowered Youth, a non-profit aimed at providing inner city young men with training, mentorship and job opportunities. With Kilgore’s help, they are launching an exciting refreshed menu. Vibe 305 will serve lunch and dinner seven times a week. The new menu will focus on twists on Americana-influenced cuisine. The Wynwood Yard. 70 NW 29th Street.

Sunday November 15th-  Chef Jeremiah hosts his notorious P.I.G 6 Pork Is Good event from 3 pm- 7 pm at Gastropod at 160 NW 26th St. in Wynwood.  Tickets are $50 pp and include no less that 10 top chefs cooking up their versions of porktastic dishes, plus cocktails and more.  Tickets available https://gastropod.tocktix.com/#/home

New and Ongoing:

Continuing the Sinatra theme, thru December 6th, StripSteak by Michael Mina will offer a prix-fixe “Brunch with Frank” for $68, excluding tax and gratuity, every Sunday, 11:30 AM – 3 PM. Brunch will kick off with Frank’s preferred morning-after reviver, the Ramos Gin Fizz. Guests will have first course options of the wild mushroom crepè accompanied by sauce Mornay and fresh herbs or the savory Monte Cristo with mortadella, manchego and strawberry jam. Second course offerings include a choice of wood roasted prime rib with fresh horseradish or thebutter poached lobster with hollandaise and asparagus. Delicious artisanal pastries & sweets will also be offered.  StripSteak by Michael Mina 4441 Collins Ave. Miami Beach FL 877 326 7412.

Pincho Factory is celebrating five successful years with a 5 Years, 5 Days, 5 Chefs promotion.  To commemorate the milestone for the Miami-born fast casual brand, what better way then killer burgers and free beers?  For the promotion, Pincho Factory co-owners Nedal Ahmad, Otto Othman and Nizar Ahmad are drafting some of Miami’s hottest chefs and culinary personalities to create five unique burgers, with a different chef’s creation highlighted at both Pincho locations, one a day for five days Monday, November 9 – Friday, November 13, 2015. The official anniversary of Pincho Factory’s opening is Friday, November 6.  On that day, at both locations, all patrons can enjoy a complimentary beer with any food purchase (one beer per customer per order). Pincho Factory 9860 SW 40th Street in Miami and 30 Giralda Avenue in Coral Gables. 

( Information provided by various sources and subject to change. Please check websites or call ahead to confirm dates, prices and details )