area 31

perfect tropical night. the setting: we were lucky enough to sit outside on the 16th floor terrace on a perfect tropical night with electric view of downtown miami.
the service: top professional service.... welcoming, helpful, and efficient.
the food: we've been here many times in the past, but they just re-opened with a new chef: wolfgang birk...putting the emphasis on quality ingredients and local sourcing. snapper and flounder were cooked to perfect temperature and texture. desserts were unique. you can choose 1,3, or 5 small bites from a variety of sweets. we chose 3 each. all winners.
you won't find a setting anywhere in miami like this withserviceand a great menu to match.

finely manicured.... ...except for the frog's legs. or is that pedicured? i know they are frog's legs and can tell that they are fresh and tasted great but didn't need that much untrimmededness staring back at me. everything else? beautiful and delicious. expertly prepared, uniquely and brightly flavored dishes matches up to 'wow factor: 9" open bright and clean setting which appears surgical room spotless by early evening and must be stunning by night alas we left before dark. expert dinnerservicewaitstaff. sparse bar still worked.

very satisfying. as guests of the epic hotel we ate here twice during our stay for lunch. both times theservicewas impeccable. view from balcony is pretty nice. food is fresh, and unique without being too weird. had various soups, fish taco, steak special, mahi special - everything was good. it's a hotel restaurant, so a bit overpriced, but not horribly so.

beware! i had dinner here recently with four friends, all of whom are experienced travellers and have dined in very fine restaurants all over the world. this place was so pretentious and phony chic (well, it is miami) and i felt like we had been robbed.servicewas immature, slow, and inappropriate. example: our waiter "congratulated" each of us, one by one, for our "excellent choices" when we ordered- i don't need a 20 something kid to approve of my choices! (we were all 40-50 age range). i could give a list about the poorservicebut won't. the food is all served in tapa size portions- i understand the art of creatively pairing ingredients but just know that you will be paying around $30 a plate for about two or three bites of food! and no, i do not judge food quality by its portion size. maybe this place gets great reviews from people who have never had a really nice meal, or from people who feel better about themselves after throwing away money and later telling their friends how cool they are (again, this is miami). the views outside on the balcony are nice, and i'm glad so many were wowed by this place but my advice is think twice- this place is pretending to be something that it is not

area 31 for miami spice lunch today-food andservicewas awesome!!! semifreddo dessert was delicious and light. recommend the snapper-light and cooked perfectly crispy. will definitely return!

excellent food. went for brunch, thevplace was empty but the food was very good. stick to the seafood.servicewas ok.

service sucks. excellent food, but unfortunately the experience was soured by the incompetent service. basicservicemeans bringing the food ordered. our waiter failed there, perhaps because he didn't write anything down. a good trick if it works, but unbelievably stupid if it doesn't. the mistake was then compounded by the arrogant claim that the food brought was the food ordered. a mistake that was made twice! ultimately a chef had to confirm that the food brought was not what was ordered, and the consolation? free dessert. no thanks. how about basicservicestandards? there are a lot of restaurants closing in this economy, and a lot of good waiters available. a restaurant of this caliber should not be hamstrung by incompetent waiters.