My favorite burger in the Gables...

Pastelito Burger.... When eating a burger between glazed donuts gets boring, why not switch things up. The pastelito burger at Pincho factory is destined to be an explosion of flavors that will hit your tastebuds and make you question yourself "Am I really eating this right now?" What makes a pastelito burger? Two guava pastelitos (those delicious flaky Cuban pastries) that sandwich the moist and flavorful Pincho meat patty (100% Humanely raised, anti-biotic/hormone free), topped with melted cheese. It's one of the oddest yet most delicious things I've tasted. They only offer it on Sundays as part of their brunch menu, and it can be sold out if you don't make it out early enough.

 

That isn't the only thing that keeps me going back to Pincho Factory. The chalkboard specials that change monthly are always great, just look at the picture above! This months special is the Gua-Ow burger, their signature meat patty topped with jack cheese, caramelized onions, spring mix, tomato, papitas, and GUAVA ketchup (I chose to replace the buns with tostones)

There are endless delicious combinations that Pincho can create for you. One of my frequent orders is the perfecto burger, their signature beef patty topped with jack cheese, caramelized onions, potato sticks, and cilantro sauce. I love this one with tostones replacing the buns, this isn't a problem at Pincho because they allow you to customize any of their sandwiches to your liking.

Another favorite, that comes every once in a while as a chalkboard special, is the croquetesa burger which was an Amstel Light Burger Bash winner. The croquetesa is made of the same beef blend used in the signature Pincho Burger (Chuck, Brisket, and Short Rib) which they turn into a croqueta patty and lay it on a brioche bun with swiss cheese, mayo, mustard and pickles.

I am a lover of all things sweet potato, if you share this love, try their sweet potato tater tots with apple butter, be warned they are highly addictive.

I could go on an on about the menu options at Pincho, I have yet to order something there that I haven't liked. If you're in the Gables and looking for a great filling meal, check them out.

Tia Maria's Corner

New page to the blog: Tia Maria's Corner will feature my aunt Maria's recipes. Click on the page link to the right to learn more! Here are some pictures to give you a sample of some of the delicious recipe's that will be added to the page.

Salmon Rilletes

Cornish Game Hen in a maple/thyme reduction, almondine haricot verts and Wild Rice.

Disney has hidden gems, and I love finding them....

Many people have the misconception that Walt Disney World is only long lines, loud children, and heavy crowds. What you may not know is that Walt Disney World is home to some of the best dining experiences one can have!

I love Disney, any opportunity my husband and I have we take to sneak off for a little weekend get away. We have been passholders for quite some time and I am proud to say I am quite knowledgeable when it comes to good eats around the "World." In this post I will share a few places we visited this past weekend so that you can get a feel of what I'm talking about.

Breakfast options:

The Wave at the Contemporary Resort

Located on the first floor of the contemporary resort, past the lobby check in counters, is one of my favorites, The Wave restaurant. Come morning time you can enjoy an all you can eat breakfast buffet for under $25 per person featuring locally and regionally sourced ingredients. Items on the buffet line include, eggs benedict with Florida key lime hollandaise, sweet potato pancakes with pecan honey butter, cheesy bacon grits (amazing,) biscuits and gravy, fresh fruit, bagels, salmon, pastries, mickey waffles (I'm a kid at heart,) bacon, sausage, and so much more!

Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge

Boma is located below the lobby on the ground floor of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Resembling a lively African marketplace, Boma is a favorite among many for it's offerings and beautiful details throughout. Boma is a term used to describe a livestock enclosure, usually a fence made of sticks that forms a safe enclosure for gathering, you see details of this kind of fence along the entrance to the restaurant. Once seated, a must order is the jungle juice, a mix of passion fruit juice, guava juice and orange juice. If coffee is more up your ally, you'll love theirs, it's Kenyan. At the buffet line you'll find a carving station, made to order omelets, French toast bread pudding with a warm pecan sauce (amazing,) sticky buns with pecan caramel topping, cereals, oatmeal, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, fresh fruits and African dishes like the African-Spiced Corn Beef Hash which is my favorite!

Dinner Time:

California Grill at the Contemporary Resort

Fine dining at Walt Disney World? Yes, courtesy of California Grill. It can be hard to get a reservation here so be sure to book months in advance (yes, months unless you're ok with sitting at the bar) and keep in mind it will be pricey, but no worries, it will be so worth it!

To reach the restaurant you need first get to the second floor to check in, you are then escorted to the restaurant on the 15th floor by private elevator. As soon as the elevators open you are greeted and if your table is not yet ready you can wait at any of the tables by the bar. First thing you will notice is the amazing view of Magic Kingdom, scoring a table here around Wishes will be an experience you won't forget, the restaurant lights are dimmed once the show starts and the music and dialogue are connected like if you were watching it at the park, it offers quite an amazing view of the fireworks. Another favorite time of mine to make reservations is around sunset, very romantic!

Service is top notch, your server will know what he is talking about, listen to his recommendations and feel free to ask about anything on the menu. As for the food, I have yet to order something off the menu I do not like. Favorites of mine: goat cheese ravioli, filet mignon, THE SUSHI (spizy Kazan and dragon roll to be specific,) three meat signature meatballs (seasonal,) and the pork two ways.

I could go on and on with more WDW hidden gems but I'll leave you with these three for now...

Jeremy Ford will be the next Top Chef (because I say so)

 
Matador room at the Miami edition is one of my favorite restaurants in Miami Beach. I've visited a couple of times after a relaxing spa morning at the Edition or at neighboring hotels and enjoyed my lunch there every time. Its outdoor dining area is beautiful, you're guaranteed to sit down and automatically feel swanky, only feet away from the beach, the cuisine by chef Jeremy Ford (top chef season 13 contestant) puts the icing on the cake.Waitstaff has been very attentive, friendly and knowledgeable every time.

I've tried the sweet pea guacamole as an appetizer. It's great, bright flavor, slightly different as per the sweet peas but makes a delicious combo, if you're a guacamole fan, give this one a try.

The roasted Cuban turkey sandwich is bursting with flavor. Packed with ham, turkey, gruyere, aged cheddar and homemade pickles. The side of string fries are crunchy and the rosemary sprigs give it a great subtle taste.  

The Mexican spiced french toast with brioche that has been soaked for 24 hours, crunchy outside and creamy inside, comes with two spiced roasted apple slices and syrup.

If you're looking for an amazing place for lunch around the beach, this will be it for you. Make reservations soon, once Jeremy wins Top Chef, booking a table will be quite difficult.

A small town with big flavor

I had been meaning to make it out to Homestead for quite some time now, the reason? Many are familiar with the town from November thru April because Knausberry is open for business! I made my way out with some friends expecting to make the famous hour(s) long line, only to drive in and see that THERE WAS NO LINE! ::Cue the harpist:: We just walked right in and with only one person ahead of me, I placed my order. "I'll have one dozen cinnamon rolls, half a dozen bacon cinnamon rolls (limited supply of these cinnamon rolls with Miami smokers bacon added) and one individual cinnamon roll please." Oh the delicious smells coming out of that kitchen, I bet you'd appreciate some scratch n sniff action on your monitor right now.

I walked right out with my order, the dozen/half dozen for my family's enjoyment later and the individual warm one for my enjoyment right then and there. Biting into that cinnamon roll is pure bliss, it's warm, it's gooey, it's soft, it's... perfect.

Being that we were already in Homestead and it was around lunch time, another popular foodie thing to do is to hit up some Mexican food. For me, authentic delicious Mexican equals Taqueria Morelia, a small hole in the wall dining establishment adjacent to a gasoline station. It was also Instagram favorite, Taco Tuesday, so we just had to have some tacos. I went with a trio: carnitas, carne asada and al pastor. The carnitas were good, but my favorite was the al pastor with the carnitas a close second. The meat in the al pastor is bursting with flavor. Usually with these tacos the pineapple is served fresh on top, what's different about theirs is that the pineapple is cooked right in making it extra special. I love that a slice of avocado is included in each taco, I love Avocado! They also have a nice variety of homemade salsas that pair great with their complimentary chips basket.

Suggestion: Make the hour (for some slightly less) drive from Miami out to Homestead, you'll find some good eats!

Spring hasn't arrived yet but great chicken has....

I made my way out to newcomer on the South Miami block Spring Chicken yesterday for lunch. As soon as I heard of their opening I was excited, already salivating at the thought of Yardbird chicken. Spring Chicken has the same masterminds behind it as Yardbird and Swine so I just knew it was going to be good.

It is only a few days old so as you would imagine it was packed, a line outside the door packed. I still made the line and within 20 minutes I was at the register placing our order. I gaze at the menu and notice mama's biscuits, could these possibly be the same delicious ones I get at Yardbird? I just had to order them with some honey butter for the taste test. I then went with the Yardbird sandwich as that is their signature item, some waffle fries, a small macaroni and cheese (to share with the hubster) and a homemade lemonade. The sandwich is decently priced at $5.95 and for the most part everything else on the menu is too. About 15 minutes went by and our buzzer went off, our food was ready to be enjoyed, and boy did we enjoy it.

The biscuits were exactly what I wanted, soft moist inside with a crunchy exterior, perfectly buttery, honey butter on the side for extra buttery sweetness. YES they were just as delicious as the ones at Yardbird and this makes me happy. The sandwich was delicious, being that it's made with chicken thigh it's more moist than chicken breast sandwiches, the seasoning and the perfect fried exterior is reminiscent of its sister chicken from Yardbird. The waffle fries unfortunately were underwhelming, I kind of feel that the oil wasn't changed or they weren't very freshly fried as they had an odd crunch to them. Their mac n cheese though is on point, delicious blend of cheeses with a little crumbly topping. Lemonade was good, tasted homemade, not overly sweet.

Overall I think this is a great addition to the South Miami scene, I am looking forward to going back and getting the chicken sandwich in biscuits next time.