February 20, 2013

The Pub In Pembroke Pines

Miami is known for its Latin cuisine but if you would like to feel like a Brit for a day, go on “holiday” and indulge in some British fare at The Pub. And, if you are feeling up to it, approximately half of the menu is made up of their several brands of beer, wine, and other spirits. The Pub is located in The Shops at Pembroke Gardens and, having been a Saturday night, it was pretty busy. However, they do take reservations, so if ever in doubt, just call ahead.

cazuela

I had a lovely evening with two friends and we had the goat cheese dip to start. Served with toasted pita bread, this warm blend of goat cheese and herbs was tangy and tasty. Who thought to pour a bit of marinara over top? The combination of flavors was excellent and the toasted almonds gave it a nice crunch.

I decided to have a classic dish which is commonly served at The Pub. The fish and chips had quite the generous portion and it came along with a wedge of lemon and a delicious house-made tartar sauce. I liked how the “chips,” or French fries for Americans, were thick and hearty. The batter was rather dense but I found it to be just fine and pretty flavorful. It was crispy on the outside and the fish was flaky and still piping hot when it arrived at the table. It went so well with the tartar sauce; the trick was to squeeze the lemon into the sauce.

food

The tipsy laird on the dessert menu caught my eye. I like a good custard and, typically, you cannot go wrong with pound cake. The custard and cooked berries were quite nice but the pound cake could have tasted better. It was fried which is fine, but I was able to taste the fryer and that is never good. I would have preferred that it were pan fried in butter but my assumption is that the kitchen did not have dedicated fryers for sweet and savory food items.

I understand that it was a busy Saturday night; however, our server should have been more attentive. There were no extreme issues, but one does not necessarily like to wait on a refill or entrée for too long. Regardless, I would return to The Pub. My appetizer and main course were both delicious and the tipsy laird was tasty with just one flaw. On a scale from one to four mouthfuls, one being poor and four being excellent, The Pub was really good, earning three mouthfuls.