February 01, 2011

660 At The Angler's

Sometimes I feel like a dog and it is only my fault as I trained myself that - after a busy and stressful day - I must get a reward. Well, when I was younger, busy and stressful days didn't come very often (I lived on Height and Ashbury in San Francisco if that gives you an idea), but now with so many things going on in life I reward myself too often sometimes. Rewards in my life come in the form of dishes at restaurants with that perfect chilled glass of wine, but you know how Miami is, it's almost impossible to find a decent glass of wine for less than $15 a pop (I hate that).

I am walking on Washington Avenue (which by the way I think some of the best restaurants at the beach are on Washington), and I am thinking where can I go to get my prize to give closure to the day. I sat at a Vietnamese restaurant, a hole in the wall that I have been trying to go for quite a long time now, but as soon as I sat down and asked for the wine menu, the waitress in a very timid manner says "we don't serve wine" - I was out of there before she even finished the phrase.

Then Giorgio Rapicavoli came to my mind. If you don't know yet who this chef is, you should. Giorgio Rapicavoli is a young local chef, born and raised in Miami by an Argentine father and an Italian mother (want better food influence than that?). He is on his 20s and he runs 660 at The Angler's. This is a very big accomplishment and you'll only understand when you visit this place.

First 660 at The Angler's is beautifully lit outside. When you walk in you know this place has to have great cuisine because the ambiance, besides my first favorite restaurant on Washington by Chef Douglas Rodriguez, the ambiance here is rare to find in South Beach. Not pretentious, not over the top white-plastic everywhere, just perfect lighting, perfect music tunes, perfect for a foodie just like me.

660 at The Angler's

Hand-Cut Pappardelle Carbonara

With applewood smoked bacon, egg yolk, truffle ragu, bread crumbs. The pasta was cooked to tenderness-perfection, the sauce was never overpowering, the bread crumbs just added a slight accent, the bacon... bacon does not need an introduction.

Seriously this dish is only at $18, do you know what that means? It is up there just side by side in my rating scale of Michelle Bernstein' Carbonara at Michy's with the difference that Giorgio Rapicavoli' Carbonara not only kick ass but it's half the price. Please understand Giorgio Rapicavoli uses very high quality ingredients on this dish, just like Michelle Bernstein does but at Michy's you get half a portion (which it is very small) for $18 and here you get a full dish. Now, for someone like me (and I am different from most Miami women), I like to eat.