TWIF#5: Great New Things I Ate This Week: Blue Collar, Sugarcane, The Federal, Josh’s Deli

This past week I tasted some great new things courtesy of four of the soundest, best local restaurants in town, for which all Miami folk should be proud: Sugarcane, Blue Collar, Josh’s Deli & The Federal.

First off, I’m so sorry I spent so much time without going to Sugarcane. Their food is so good and I am not surprised it is always packed, as everyone tells me. I went there for the Miami Spice menu last Friday and had a really good pork shoulder sandwich with BBQ sauce, but the new great thing for me was their flatbread of the day, which happened to be with duck prosciutto, olives and rocket. Crispy, fatty, savory at its best.

Next, it seems I can’t go on a week without trying something amazing and new to me from Daniel at Blue Collar. This time I went for the braised spicy Ox-tail, another new to me since I had never had it. I had no idea the tail of an Ox tasted to good! It reminded me of short ribs, my favorite cut, and the spiciness made them even more enjoyable (I love spice). Not happy with being an amazing braised piece of meet, the tail comes with some of the best potato mash I have tasted recently.

That same day I paid a visit to Josh’s Deli, another Miami joint that is putting out good stuff like there’s no tomorrow. On this visit I was particularly lucky, since Joshua was “experimenting” with a “Duck Meatloaf” and I got to taste it. One of the best things I have tasted this year and hopefully his experiments will continue to make it to his counter and on to the menu for us all to enjoy.

Finally I paid a visit to another great Miami place I am sorry I don’t get to more often, The Federal. The job Cesar, Aniece & Co. are doing there is paying off well, since the place was jammed (and it should be). They are not just putting out some of the best flavors in town, they are also doing it very cleverly, the way they are segregating their offer between days and subjects. I had a succulent “bistec a caballo” (haha), but was blew me away was their Jar-O-Duck, one of their staples and something I hadn’t tried before. What a clever combination. The duck pate, with the pickled sweet potatoes and merengue? yes merengue! Go there, and add a bit of all three things on to the toast it comes with. Beyond good.