PX This.

PX This presents THE F&F REVIEW

Hey, sorry we couldn’t make it to "Friends&Family," we were out of town/ had to work/ not invited. We’re really glad we finally managed to come by, though— it’s so nice to see you!
What’s that? You would still like us to take the time to fill out the F&F survey, because you’d love to take advantage of all our vast experience, knowledge, insight, and expertise as long as we’re already here? Because you invited 75 people to F&F, and afterward all you got was 41 "Congrats[es]!" 22 "Awesome[s]!" 3 "Ciao[s]!" and 9 "Best of lucks[s]!" ?
Of course, we’d be honored. Oh ha, yesss, we’ll be honest— brutally honest even, ha ha! After all, that’s what friends & family are for!
No no please, don’t send anything more, we’re stuffed, we can’t breathe, you’ll have to roll us out of here, ha ha ha… !

Hakkasan (Miami Beach)

What was your first impression?
yah this is very "miami" all right.

Please rate the Bar:
a little flashy for my tastes, personally, but whatever. it’s spacious and remarkably comfortable, considering its sleekness and obduracy.
the bartender strikes me as somebody who’s probably dealt with more than his fair share of "amateur diner" tourists, but he warms up as soon as he realizes you speak "[his] language" just fine— and by "[his] language" i mean Industry, not American.

Please rate the drinks/ cocktails/ wine:
oh shit did i even look at the wine list? no, i guess i didn’t (hey it was my third stop of the day, and i’m a half dozen drinks in already. i’m on vacation dammit). the cocktail list is good— fancy, creative, fresh exotic ingredients and recipes blah blah etc.
oh no wait come to think of it, i had a glass of rosé. from provence. it was quite nice, actually. and reasonably priced ($12?) if i remember correctly.

Please rate the Dining Room:
very dark. very Hakkasan. but smaller than i would have imagined. unless i missed a section of the restaurant? it’s rather like a maze in here…

Please rate the BOH:
very good, as expected. quite an extensive and almost daunting menu. the timing is right on point. nice presentation.

How was the staff?
good. adept. professional. no complaints.

What did you eat?/ How was the food?
duck spring roll: good. the "oyster" dipping sauce is cleaner and not as cloyingly sweet as most other places.
mushroom lettuce wraps: delicious. mushrooms aren’t my thing generally, but i’m really beginning to gain an appreciation for them.
jasmine tea-smoke ribs : very good. very tender. rich and hearty, but again, not cloying or overbearing. pretty perfect.
fried softshell crabs: very nice. also pretty perfect.
crispy szechuan shredded ribeye: sigh. ditto.
sauteed gai-lan in ginger sauce: fine, but the only dish i could say i’ve had better elsewhere.

What did you like?
the food was exceptional.

What did you dislike?
the ambience is just a wee "vegas" for me.

What was your last impression?
i’m so glad i got to try it.

Would you come back?
probably, except it’s a bit of a haul from the area of miami beach i usually prefer.

Thank you, and hope to see you soon!
thank you, it was lovely.

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