Miranda
80 Berry St., Brooklyn, NY 11211 (nr. N. 9th Street)
CUISINE: Italian and Latin American
PHONE: 718.387.0711
HOURS: Mon and Wed-Thu, 5:30pm-10:30pm; Fri, 5:30pm-11pm; Sat, noon-3pm and 5:30pm-11pm; Sun, noon-10pm
SUBWAY: L at Bedford Ave.
MAP: Click here
MENU: Click Here
PRICES: $14-$24
CARDS: All Major
BOOZE: Beer and Wine Only
RESERVATIONS: Reservations are only accepted for groups of five or more.
WEBSITE: Click Here
NY MAG SAYS: Miranda is a mom-and-pop shop done up in the simple style of a neighborhood trattoria. Sasha Rodriguez, the Queens-bred daughter of a Dominican father and Irish-American mother, runs the kitchen, while her fiance, Mauricio Miranda, of Guerrero, Mexico, works the dining room like a young Silvano Marchetto--greeting guests as if they were long lost relatives, recommending bottles of (often organic) wine, and occasionally breaking into a little cha-cha-cha dance whenever the joy of owning and operating a restaurant with the woman he loves becomes too much.
The couple met while working at Verbena, started dating, and soon dreamed of opening a place of their own. What kind of place they didn't know. Subsequent stints at Alto and the C.I.A. Italian program (Sasha) and L'Impero and Spigolo (Mauricio) convinced them that combining the Latin American cooking they grew up on with their love for Italian food was a good way to go.
And for the most part it is, thanks to the fact that the menu doesn't hit you over the head with the fusion conceit. The problem with cross-culinary cooking of this sort is that it can seem far-fetched or forced, like the gastronomic equivalent of an arranged marriage. Not so here: Latinized arancini are a little too soft and crumbly on the outside, but they're dappled with a bright tomato sauce and filled with a winning mixture of chopped spinach and Mexican chorizo. A salsa guajillo is a good, smoky match for breaded and fried smoked mozzarella. Other appetizers, like mussels marinara, and a sparkling salad of baby romaine, ricotta salata, and sun-dried tomato, for example, simply forgo fusion altogether.
Comments
I moved to Williamsburg 2 weeks ago and visited Miranda last night for the first time. The cozy look of the reaturant was very inviting.
The food was amazing. The salads were fresh and the pastas wre one of the best I've had in the US. We had 2 pasta dishes, both home made pasta with just the right amount of sauce AND we could actually taste the fresh herbs, just like in Italy. Excellent. WE'll definitely come back!
Posted by: Gali | September 1, 2009 08:00 PM
We love Miranda - My girlfriend and I have been in 4-5 times (for dinner - haven't tried brunch yet) since it has opened and have had really great food every time we have eaten there.
Our favorites - to start we like the arancini (fried risotto balls), the soup specials (usually something using a seasonal veg married with some sort of mexican spice like chipotle), any of the salads (last night we had a beautiful heirloom tomato salad with buffalo mozz and micro basil).
We almost always get pastas here, though the pork loin and fish specials have stood out in the past. My favorite is the pappardelle with lamb ragu with mole sauce. This is a dish that we were pretty skeptical about at first because we feel like you just shouldn't mess with Italian food - so the idea of a adding a chocolate chili sauce sounded like danger. But it is freakin delicious. So good that I had it last night on a hot, humid evening when I should have been eating something much lighter. The garganelli (peas, cheese, hot sausage) is also good, as is the agnelotti (half moon ravioli filled with cheese).
The desserts I have tried are also really good - especially the three milk cake (not visually that appealing, but tastes amazing), the flan and the ices - which are delicious and perfect this time of year.
The wine list is small, mostly Italian, but with some Spanish and Chilean wines as well. It is pretty reasonable, with most red bottles around $35-40.
Four out of the five times we have brought in out of town guests or friends everyone has really enjoyed it.
One of the things I like about Miranda is that it is has a very unique point of view in its food. I don't think it is for everyone, as it is full flavored and some dishes are very spicy (which I love). And it isn't traditional Italian, which might put off some. I also enjoy that it is a casual spot, but that there are a few good service touches - new silverware for each course, etc.
One change I would like is that I would like to see some occasional pasta specials (they have a daily risotto one) or some new dishes more often...
As someone who eats out a lot and used to be in the business (my g-friend still is) - we really love that this is a couple that is living their dream - and that they (the chef and manager who own it) are there every single time we are there.
As our neighborhood keeps changing we hope for more restaurants like this pop up (a chef with a vision - not a marketing plan to hipsters - great food, but not trendy, overpriced or just average).
Posted by: Jeff | September 6, 2008 04:46 PM
Been twice now, wasn't massively impressed the first time with the food but gave it a second chance, was equally unimpressed. Service was very slow too. Sad, I want to like this place for some reason - probably because it's so close to my apt!
Posted by: RobertP | July 7, 2008 12:55 AM
we went last night. i was pleasantly surprised. we had the scallop appetizer- one of the best apps i have had in recent memory. we also had the mussels as an app. the slightly spicy tomato broth was delicious. top notch. for pastas we both had app portions. i had a mushroom/fettuciune combo and the hubs had the chorizo/peas and half moon pasta. everything was really great and tasty, served PIPING hot and timely. i have no complaints. we each had a glass of wine. the bill was $62. not bad. the service was nice but a little bit TOO attentive which sort of freaks me out. it was in no way bad though. friendly and our waiter (who may have been an owner) was genuinely pleased and proud when we complimented the food- which is always nice! i will def. go back again with friends.
Posted by: meowella | March 6, 2008 12:21 PM