Lychee Ceviche, right, and Asado de Tira, right.
Chotto Matte, with restaurants in London and Toronto, has a Miami location, which opened in April of 2018.
On the west end of Lincoln Road, the atmosphere is welcoming with a Japanese influence. The 19-ton boulder imported from Sicily can't be missed that's between the sushi bar and the regular bar.
While the rock weighs a ton, Chotto Matte's food is light and tasty and the presentation is as interesting as the atmosphere.
We were invited to dine as part of a press preview in preparation for Miami Spice 2021.
We always look forward to Miami Spice because it gives diners a chance to try new places. Sponsored by the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, restaurants come up with three-course meals and charge $28 per person for lunch/brunch and $42 per dinner.
This year, if your reservation is made on OpenTable, some proceeds will go to helping with Surfside relief efforts.
The Miami location is the first in the U.S. for Chotto Matte. The food is Nikkei cuisine, which is Japanese-Peruvian.
Lychee Ceviche, left, and Salmon Tataki, right.
They serve the Miami Spice menu at Chotto Matte from Sunday to Thursday.
We tried three of the starters, Lychee Ceviche, Salmon Tataki, and BBQ Chicken Karrage.
So for the regular dinner picking the Miami Spice menu items, you would select just one of those. We were given all three to try.
The fish was fresh in the Lychee Ceviche and although lychee is usually sweet, the chive oil gave a bit of a saltiness that set off the sweetness, creating a nice tart mix.
Next was the Salmon Tataki, which was beautifully presented with the salmon just seared slightly and a delicious mango salsa on the side for dipping.
The third was an amazing treat. BBQ Chicken Karaage, the presentation on this dish was amazing. Basically, Japanese fried chicken, this had a bit of a tang to it, in a good way, with the taste of the chili and jalapeno coming through.
At left, BBQ Chicken Karrage, right, Chocolate Brownie with lime sorbet.
Main dishes were Vegetable Tempure, Ebi Tempura Roll or Asado de Tira. The Asado de Tira is the recommendation, if you like beef. It's slow cooked BBQ beef and served with a purple potato puree, teriyaki jus, and chives.
For dessert, either you can have a Chocolate Brownie or the Strawberry Garden.
Of course, we went for the chocolate. A rich brownie is served inside a short glass and accompanied by lime sorbet and then topped with mixed berry coulis sauce. Coulis is a thick, yet smooth berry sauce and this one was bursting with flavor.
Miami Spice is a great introduction to Chotto Matte and their enticing Spice menu definitely makes you want to go back.
Chotto Matte, 1666 Lenox Ave #1664, Miami Beach. Website: https://chotto-matte.com/miami/
Find out about all the Miami Spice restaurants. Click here.
