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Estrella Damm Chef's Choice: Downtown and Brickell

Estrella Damm, the only beer brewed in Barcelona, is bringing its Mediterranean flair and flavor to Miami with a special Chef’s Choice experience from May 14th-29th, featuring delicious 3 course meals prepared by 46 top chefs all over the city.  With prices ranging from $30 to $70, each meal is paired with an ice cold Estrella Damm beer and an entrée featuring rice and are available only from May 14th – 29th. 

Last week we were invited to join other food media to take a tour highlighting some of the participating spots around Brickell and Downtown Miami.  We made four stops including COYA, Toro Toro , Tuyo and 1111 Peruvian Bistro.  All of the chef’s creations were delicious with a Spanish flair and all very filling – you can expect to see us in some of these kitchens again very soon.

COYA

Chef Gareth Rhodes

We started our tour off at Coya where we were served Arroz Nikkei as our entree.  This traditional Peruvian seafood and rice dish was absolutely amazing.  It was so creamy and flavorful that I could have easily filled myself up on the first stop of the tour but I knew I had to trek on.

APPETIZER

ROBALA TRUFA CEVICHE

Striped bass, truffles, ponzu, chives

ENTRÉE

ARROZ NIKKEI

Estrella Damm, chistorras, clams, shrimp, fish

DESSERT

QUINOA PUDDING

Quinoa and rice pudding, Josper pineapple, quinoa ice cream

$45PP

TORO TORO

Chef Eric Do

Next we moved on to Toro Toro located in the Intercontinental Hotel in Downtown Miami.  Here we had Arroz con Marisc, another seafood and rice dish.  Made with Bomba rice which is commonly used for paellas it was just that – bomb! This rice was fantastic and overflowing with fresh seafood and parmesan cheese. 

APPETIZER

HEIRLOOM TOMATO SALAD

Heart of Palm, watermelon, avocado, balsamic chipotle vinaigrette, burrata

ENTRÉE

ARROZ CON MARISC

Bomba rice, saffron, calamari, clams, scallop, shrimp, parmesan

DESSERT

CREMA CATALANA

Vanilla custard, orange alfajores

$49PP

TUYO

Chef Victor Santos

For our third stop we visited Tuyo, which is located on a rooftop of one of the Miami Dade College buildings in Downtown Miami and features gorgeous views of Biscayne Bay and the American Airlines Arena.  Tuyo is part of Miami Dade College’s Culinary Institute.  This was the only stop on our tour that presented a dish that did not include seafood, which was a very welcomed treat!  This Estrella Damm-cured Breast of Duck was served over a fried rice with a lovely sweet and sour mango sauce and a poached egg.  All cooked perfectly and complimented each other very well.

APPETIZER

SPANISH OCTOPUS CARPACCIO

Thinly sliced octopus, fingerling potatoes, crispy garbanzo beans

ENTRÉE

ESTRELLA DAMM-CURED BREAST OF DUCK

Roasted beer-cured duck breast, fried rice, mango sweet and sour sauce,
topped with a perfect poached egg

DESSERT

POACHED PEACH TART WITH CARAMEL-BEER ICE CREAM

Tart with hazelnut filling, peaches, served with Estrella Damm caramel-beer ice cream

$39PP

1111 Peruvian Bistro

Chef Diego Muñoz

Our forth and final stop of the evening was 1111 Peruvian Bistro located in the Axis building in Brickell (near El Tucan and Marion) on a dark side of the street that often gets passed without notice.  1111 Peruvian Bistro is one that deserves notice.  We were served Parihuela, a traditional seafood soup that was turned into risotto.  Much like our first two seafood dishes it was full of every kind of fresh fish you could dream of.  I loved the addition of the rolled zucchini for a nice pop of green.

APPETIZER

POACHED CHICKEN & KING CRAB CAUSA

Soft yellow flesh potato, poached chicken with citrus emulsion, King crab

ENTRÉE

PARIHUELA

Traditional Parihuela soup of crab, fish, mussels turn into a risotto with little neck clams, scallops, scallops, prawns and zucchini

DESSERT

LUCUMA CASSONADE

Soft Lucuma custard, black and white sesame seeds, chocolate sorbet

$45PP

It was very enjoyable to see each chef’s take on their rice dishes and how well they paired with the Estrella Damm.  I recommend checking out at least one of the 46 options during the next two weeks. 

The full restaurant listings and menus and more information about Estrella Damm can be found on their website www.chefschoicemiami.com.