sugarcane raw bar grill

good food, poor drink service. overall i like the place, however, there's one big problem. my friend and i both ordered beer, right after sitting down. it was sunday evening and the place was half-empty. it took 20 minutes for our beer to arrive. the waitress apologized, telling us the the bar was always backed up, due to the fact that their "signature cocktails" took a long time to make and kept the bartenders very busy. we ordered beer. imagine how long we would have waited on a saturday night. mr. owner, are you listening, hire another bartender. you're losing sales and alienating your customers.

the wait staff, although willing to please, seemed really inexperienced , poorly trained and completely without supervision on the floor. the place is like a boat with no captain on deck.

food was very good, but not great. we ordered a broad sample of smaller plates.

i liked the ambiance, music and the overall vibe.

sugarcane raw bar grill opened a few months after we started organizing cobaya experiments and chef timon balloo was one of our initial targets. he was cooking interesting and unusual food that was packed with great flavors. tripe, bone marrow, sweetbreads, chicken necks and pig ears were on full display for mainstream miami to enjoy. sugarcane was packed nightly and there was a buzz in the food community. timon had turned the food scene up a notch. his bold menu knocked down culinary barriers in miami and paved the way for the next wave of chefs to follow. sugarcane opened in january of 2010 and the following year they were a james beard award semifinallist for best new restaurant in the country. that same year timon was nominated for best new chef in the gulf coast by food & wine magazine. unfortunately, despite several attempts and getting close a couple of times, it took four years to finally get timon locked into the cobaya kitchen. the wait was worth it. forty gourmet guinea pigs

the problem with miami food scene. i don't go places to be seen. i know food. and this place is everything hat is wrong with the culinary world these days.

oh you love it? you're part of the problem.

not every experience is the same. i gave this place a 2nd and 3rd try.

but it is not good. and to say it is, is mainly the reason the culinary world has be bastardized in miami.

restaurante acolhedor que prima pela excelente qualidade e diversidade dos pratos.
a forma cuidada como são apresentados os pratos deixa-nos com água na boca, só de olhar. e o sabor corresponde totalmente às espectativas!
escolher dois ou três pratos e partilhar, as doses são pequenas.
as sobremesas são divinais. não esquecer de deixar um espacinho para o pecado final.

very eclectic menu but has your standard fare (sushi sashimi). ask for the specials as i had the "head cheese"... don't ask but it was excellent. service not the most efficient but overall a pleasurable experience.


-----05 mar, 2010-----

this is the new place to go in mid town. ambiance is great and the food is fantastic.

delicious and gorgeous visually. the place is very tropical colonial, cozy and welcoming. the dates are a must! we also had brussells sprouts, lobster sugarcane roll that was luscious, shrimp, skirt steak, and outstanding short ribs. desserts could have been more interesting. the service was just ok, but the food made up for it!

beautiful place to see and be seen, but it unfortunately ends there. the drinks are too expensive, the dishes are not specific to any cuisine and not that delicious. just a fusion of i don't know what.

place is nice and drinks are good and well elaborated . some of the dishes are good and with the right size but in other plates they need to improve. the area is blooming and happy hours are crowded. decoration is nice .

we went for lunch. food was good but really outrageously expensive for what it is. 6 orders, bite size, and 3 mijotos 150$. and we did not choose the most expensive items from the menu. for instance : 5 very small fried cheese balls for 9$ (it is fried food after all ! nothing expensive or fancy !) 1 tiny piece of just grilled salmon with cherry tomates and salad 22$! salmon is the cheapest fish you can find. nice decor and good service although very slow. i know it is miami but way overrated for what it is really.

i was just in miami visiting a friend for a few days and having my priorities straight i traded days at the beach for food. seriously weather was not that great but since i love food and miami has a lot to offer in that area it was perfect. since my friend knows me well, she recommended a few place for me to try, one of them was sugarcane. the restaurant is located in the wynwood/edgewater area and is easily accessible from the downtown area  or south beach.

sugarcane is exquisite. i've came here solo, with friends, with family, on dates...the ambiance is so chill you forget you're in midtown. it is mostly share plates, which i've always enjoyed sharing and tasting as much as a restaurant has to offer. the goat cheese croquettes are an absolute must as well as the bacon wrapped dates and the brussel sprouts. hell to be honest, everything is amazing. i've never had a dish i didn't enjoy; they have some tasty cocktails and desserts as well.

if you're looking to impress someone or be impressed yourself, come to sugar cane.

globally-inspired small plates come from three distinct kitchens - a robata grill, raw bar and hot kitchen – and provide eclectic selections inspired by executive chef timon balloo’s celebration of local spirit and flavor. embarking on quest to celebrate the simple pleasures in life.

we ordered the brunch items and each dish was one better than the other. we were so glad to have fresh pressed juice than to get stuff out from a juice box carton :)

dishes were delicious. the idea of small plates like tapas so you can taste very different things is great !

sugarcane is part of samba brands management which also manages bocce and sushi samba. its ambience and outdoor bar has made it the best gathering place in midtown. we suggest you order “family style” so you can all share small plates and enjoy a wide array of specialties that range from sushi and oysters to meat, and waffle & duck. sugarcane is also known for its wide rum selection.

i tried sugarcane for the first time on a wednesday night. it was fairly busy for a weeknight in wynwood but the hosts were excellent and seated us within three minutes of walking through the door. the decor and ambiance were great which is why i was surprised that the bathroom looked awful. the garbage was overflowing onto the floor and there was no way to dry my hands. service was a bit lackluster due to our server having a 12-15 top with my table and 2 others. the food understandably comes out as it's ready but the timing was awkward. my table received our first dish and then waited 30 minutes for the rest of our dishes to come out at once. the food was great, however. dishes we really enjoyed: the seafood tower (came w/oysters, king crab legs and key west pink shrimp), short ribs (so so so good), grilled octopus (amazingly tender) and bone marrow (quite heavy but very delicious). dishes we probably would pass on next time: salmon gravlax roll (it lacked flavor completely), salmon poke (meh) and chicken pate (good at first bite but just too heavy for our palates).

one of my favorites restaurants in miami!
the food is great (don't miss the goat cheese croquetas!) and the service is very good!
perfect for a great meal to share with friends!