Sunday, February 25, 2007

Miami Beach - Joe's Stone Crab

Talk about an upscale restaurant with atmosphere. This restaurant in the heart of Miami Beach opened as a lunch counter restaurant in 1913. Now it's well known for its stone crabs as well as many other items on the menu. My party of four got there on a Tuesday night at 8:30 p.m. and was told to expect a 2 1/2 hour wait.

Lucky for us, some inside connections got us to a table within 30 minutes. Waiters and hosts were all dressed in tuxedos, and the service was first class. This is a tablecloth and fine china type of place.

I started with a hearty bowl of Manhattan Clam Chowder to go along with the basket of bread they brought out. This was followed by an order of "Jumbo" stone crabs. Wow! Were they ever big and good - served with butter and a creamy sauce for dipping. We also ordered hash browns, creamy spinach and sauteed mushrooms. We topped off the meal with some very tart Key Lime pie.

Buyer beware - the tab for this dinner of four came to more than $400.

But, the menu is extensive and there were several entrees available for less than $10.

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