Ortanique-On-The-Mile Still Has It - Miami
A fruit that tastes like bread at Ortanique
Ortanique-on-the-Mile still buzzes with diners, 14 years after it opened.
And its down-to-earth chef, Cindy Hutson, still keeps her head down in the kitchen, covered in her signature bandanna.
The Coral Gables mainstay serves Caribbean-inspired dishes like ceviche ($16) and Cornish game hen in a velvety jerk sauce ($22).
If they're available, you must order the breadfruit fish tacos ($15). Hutson thinly slices and fries Caribbean breadfruit, transforming the fruit into sturdy taco shells. The starchy fruit tastes like fresh bread or potato.
The taco, all satisfying snap, encases mahimahi dusted with toasted cumin and coriander, black beans, juicy pico de gallo and cilantro cream.
Hutson introduced the dish to effusive Miami diners at April's Bali Ha'i at The Kampong party. Breadfruit fish tacos had already been a menu staple at Hutson's Ortanique outpost in Grand Cayman.
In Miami, the dish is a weekday special, depending on when Hutson get can breadfruit delivered from Jamaica or the Cayman Islands (it does not grow well in South Florida). Regulars craving the tacos keep an eagle eye on the restaurant's daily email. Keep your eye on it too: Hutson plans to offer the fish tacos again as a lunch special next week.