South Beach and Downtown Miami blew me away last week! I had the pleasure of staying 4 days and 3 nights in this amazing city. I successfully ate Gluten Free food the whole time.
I admittedly did not have high expectations for Miami. During my travels I have seen many awesome cities and just didn’t think Miami would be that great. Man, I was wrong! Miami has so much to offer! The food, the people, the shopping, the hotels, the beach, the public transportation and the atmosphere were all wonderful. I would say it isn’t a very family-friendly place though. It is an adult playground.
I stayed in a hotel in downtown Miami that was right next to a major bus and metro rail station, so getting around was a breeze.
Here is how I ate my Gluten Free way through Miami!
The first night I made reservation at Yard Bird in South Beach. Then I invited some blogger friends, whom I’d never met, to join me for dinner. Side note, when it rains in South Beach the streets and sidewalks flood!
This is us wading into the restaurant. We were calf deep in water!
I picked Yard Bird for one dish – Gluten Free Fried Chicken. Yes, you did read that correctly! When we sat down the waitress saw I had the Gluten Free menu and said the fried chicken was cooked in a shared fryer. She must have noticed all the excitement leave my face. She said she’d go talk to the chef and would be right back. She returned with wonderful news, they were going to change the oil and clean the fryer just for me. I almost cried!
Our table of 4 people ordered 1 appetizer, 2 entrees, 5 side dishes and 4 desserts. I’m not going to mention the adult beverages other than saying anything with bourbon that comes in a mason jar is worth drinking.
We ordered the deviled eggs, fried chicken, bacon fries, cauliflower steak, oyster stew, mac n cheese (not GF), charred okra, and the whipped sweet potatoes. See the menu to make sure you order the dishes without certain toppings.
The star of the show was the okra! I have never known okra to be so amazing, tasty and flavorful. We could have eaten 4 plates of this goodness. The fried chicken was everything good fried chicken should be. I even ate the crunchy skin. My other favorite dish was the bacon french fries, I believe it is obvious why I loved this dish.
I finished dinner with a peanut butter and chocolate sundae. Yummy!
One day we enjoyed lunch at Rosa Mexicano in Mary Brickell Village. We ordered the table side guacamole and it was awesome! Not much beats fresh guacamole and chips! Rosa Mexicano has a Gluten Free lunch and dinner menu.
I ordered the Flautas de Pollo and was very pleased. They bring rice and beans to the table for eveyrone to share. Luckily everyone with me ordered Gluten Free dishes so cross contamination wasn’t an issue.
The final night we went to Espanola Way. It is an adorable pedestrian street lined with restaurants. We decided to try Hosteria Roma. It is an Italian restaurant about half-way down the street. There was a live band playing, lots of candles and procuitto ham legs on carts. The menu is extensive. They do not have a Gluten Free menu, so you just have to work with your server to know what your options are. They do have Gluten Free penne pasta available that they can use with a number of the sauces.
I ordered the Spaghetti a’ Carbonara with the Gluten Free penne pasta. I made sure the waiter knew to have the chef cook my noodles in fresh water. He said it wouldn’t be a problem, but it would take a few more minutes. The dish was amazing. I all but licked the plate clean. The pasta was cooked perfectly and the sauce was so creamy with the egg, cheese and bacon. It was a fabulous meal. However, there was an $8 up charge for the Gluten Free pasta!
Overall Miami exceeded my expectations. I ate and drank my Gluten Free self through the city without any problems. I can’t wait for an excuse to go back, only this time Hubby is coming with!
Happy Gluten Free travels!
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