Swine Southern Table & Bar Shines In Miami

The 1855 Black Angus burnt ends at 50 Eggs Restaurant Group's new Swine Southern Table & Bar ($18) are almost too indulgent to eat by yourself.

But they're also too alluring to share: A butter knife slices through the fatty beef brisket cubes perched in Kansas City-style molasses mop sauce and punctuated by fried squares of grits.

Joseph Fantigrassi, who mans the smoker, rubs the luxuriously fatty cut, or deckel, of beef brisket with salt and pepper. The rub caramelizes into delicious crust as the meat smokes with hickory, cherry and mesquite wood. Fantigrassi is a firefighter who has barbecued competitively for years.

Chef de cuisine Justin Starks perfected the tomato-and-molasses mop sauce that adds a tangy punch to the smoky meat. Executive chef Phillip Bryant (formerly chef de cuisine at Yardbird) wisely seasons his grits cubes minimally, for a texture and taste counterpoint.

Burnt ends are served at dinner only. It would be wise to make a reservation, given how diners have thronged the new restaurant. Fortunately, the smoker is never off in Swine's 24-hour kitchen. "That's the only way to truly make everything from scratch in a smaller kitchen," says 50 Eggs CEO John Kunkel.