nice seafood? it's at izzy's.

good seafood is hard to find, in fact, any seafood focused restaurant is hard to find. I can't tell you why and I don't have to tell you that we're on a peninsula surrounded by water, with the Gulf, the Carribbean and the Atlantic all available to us, but I can say with confidence that the Miami seafood scene is weirdly weak.

Izzy's, a new seafood focused restaurant on Miami Beach, is looking to lessen the burden a bit. Their menu is not only seafood driven, but it's exceptional. Oyster gnocchi anyone? Yes.

The restaurant is helmed by Jamie DeRosa of Tongue & Cheek, just down the block, and named after his daughter. A restaurant named after a little girl shoud have a really kick ass kids menu and Izzy's does. DeRosa proudly showed it off, it's the paper kind so that you can draw on it and fill in puzzles and little games. Don't let that fool you into thinking this is some sort of new take on TGI Friday's, the menu at Izzy's is decidedly grown-up and executed with an adult laser focus.

Everything was nice. Really nice. You say oyster card, I'm there, but it was the lobster roll that let me know I'd be back. As a New England inspired seafood joint, the lobster roll and the clam chowder really should be the standouts, and boy was that lobster roll a standout. I feel bad selling the delicious clam chowder short, and all the other terrific plates that I was served, but the lobster roll guys. Get the lobster roll.

I'd love to see a spin on this, maybe in another neighborhood (ahem, something closer to me like the Grove or the Gables) where we sheds the New England spin and puts together something seafood driven but particularly Miami influences, maybe drawing from bayou / Everglades / Carribbean influence. That's not a complaint, it's just a request for more.

CulturePatricia GuarchFebruary 3, 2016Izzy'sfish, food, miami beach, only in miami, restaurants