We are always excited to visit Miami, because of all of the awesome Latin food there, and because we get to see our friend K & M, who are both awesome people and food pros! One of M’s friends recommended Patio D La Morocha (2175 SW 1st St. Miami, FL 33135) for dinner – it is owned by a friend – and it was truly an awesome local spot. The restaurant is Uruguayan – a new restaurant country for us – our only experience with Uruguayan food was previously on a beach in Rio de Janeiro. Like many of its neighbors, the food of Uruguay is meat heavy, and a lot of the food culture revolves around the almighty grill.
This is a little out of the way place, but the main feature is in fact the roaring, wood-burning grill. It may be better to call it a “fire,” since it is basically just an open blaze stacked with cherry wood and meat. We are talking, smoke, fire the works! The meat is just seasoned with salt, and you pick and choose what types of meat you want, all of which are served to you in a giant chafing dish, and you eat on wooden planks. Kind of a primal experience.
As a group of 5, we chose the mixed parrillada of tripe, skirt steak, Short ribs, stuffed chicken, roast chicken, morcilla blood sausage. Seem like enough for the group? There was definitely something for every taste and appetite, and it was great to get the meat hot off the grill. M’s favorite part was probably watching the grill itself and the artful grillmaster. Even with just the simplest of seasonings, all of the meat was delicious, charred and super flavorful. Along with the meat, we got a number of side dishes, some of which were cooked on the grill, too, including roasted cheese with chimmichurri. In terms of cold sides, we got the “Russian” salad (basically potato salad with carrots and peas) and a green salad.
The atmosphere inside was festive, and there was even a Nicaraguan singer who arrived halfway through to belt out boleros. Judging by the amount of balloons and families, we could tell that this was a very popular for parties. The nondescript interior definitely does not give a hint into what lies inside La Morocha’s! It was a fun experience, with an absolutely insane amount of food for a low price.
Eating The World 