Miami and Key West Eats

It's allllll about the key lime

I recently traveled down to Florida for a family trip. I was especially excited for the food scene as there is so much diversity in Miami and the Florida Keys. Shortly after landing, I found myself in Little Havana where I could smell the aromatic Cuban delicacies and cigars at every corner. Having come from 20 °F in Boston and still wearing long clothing, I was in need of something refreshing. I found the “coco man” and had him crack open a coconut for me.

Here I am with my first Miami eat (or should I say drink):

My immediate family members are mostly vegans and vegetarians. Our hunger started to present itself after our walk through Little Havana, so we found a cute fast-casual vegan spot for lunch in the Brickell District called The Cocinita. Here they serve Latin American and Mediterranean fare. Our memorable meal included bowls and burritos with plantains, black beans, avocado, green tahini, cauliflower protein, and fresh squeezed orange juice. Everything was delicious, and the manager even came out to give us some orange chocolate bites. This is a high-quality spot, especially for vegetarians and vegans!

Burrito, tofu bowl, cocinita bowl, green bowl, chocolate orange bites, fresh squeezed orange juice.

The next day we stopped by a little coffee shop on the water that looked like a cargo shipping container. Raccoon Coffee and Kitchen offered a beautiful selection of pastries, sandwiches, and beverages. We were drawn to the croissants and unexpectedly ordered 3! Apple, almond, and Nutella. My mouth is watering just mentioning them… We started our 3.5-hour drive down to Key West, with stops made along the way in Key Largo, Islamorada, and Marathon where we got to see sea turtles!

Matcha, cold brew, nutella croissant.

When we arrived in Key West, we found a local restaurant that served meat, vegetarian, and vegan food named Moondog Cafe. My parents and I ordered a grilled vegetable charcuterie, spinach artichoke dip, avocado & veggie salad, porcini mushroom tortellini, and blackened tofu tacos. My only complaint was that the tacos were a tad oily, Everything dish was a hit, but the star of the show was dessert. Mini vegan key lime pies. Somehow, we managed to order the last two that were available, and lucky we were. When traveling to the Florida Keys, it is MISSION CRITICAL to try key lime pie. This is not something that I find in New England too much, and if I do find myself coming across this dessert on a menu, it probably doesn’t live up to its potential. By the end of this post, I will share with you the 4 key lime pies that I tried throughout this trip.

The next day we grabbed a quick beverage and pastry from Moondog Cafe, the same spot we had dinner. This held us over while we toured the Ernest Hemingway home and went on a glass-bottom boat tour before returning to Miami (but of course, we grabbed some snacks from a convenient store for our drive). After arriving back in Miami, we rushed over to our reservation at Planta South Beach. If you don’t remember, I wrote about Planta Queen some time ago, and this is now the third location that I have tried. Each location is slightly different from the other but has some staple sushi and salad dishes. It is exceptional in its quality, but my one complaint would be that the menu is not curated well. It offers everything from sushi to salads to pizza to pasta dishes. In my opinion, the menu should focus on one type of cuisine so that the dishes an entire table orders will marry well. Our meal consisted of a “spicy tuna” hand roll, eggplant “unagi” nigiri, 1000 layered potatoes, roasted cauliflower, eggplant rollatini, stuffed mushrooms, lettuce wraps, and crispy mushroom bao (not pictured).

Before I get to our key lime pie discussion, I want to mention one last spot. Miam Cafe is a trendy brunch cafe where I shared a meal with my family, including our newest addition 👶. The cafe had a DJ performing outdoors, and cool decor inside. I ordered a simple omelette, but the star of the show were the fluffy Japanese style pancakes that I shared with my father. Other honorable mentions include the acai bowl, and breakfast burrito.

And finally, we’ve reached the most important part of this trip: key lime pie!

I don’t think I’ve ever eaten this many of the same desserts in such a short span of time. Each variation was unique in its own way. The first one came from Moondog Cafe. This one was made with a vegan meringue and pastry crust. There was absolutely no way to tell that this was vegan as the meringue had no off flavors, the custard had set, and the pastry crust was buttery. This was simply a joy to try. The second day we stopped by Moondog Cafe, my father went to tell the pastry chef what a great key lime pie it was, and she mentioned that it has taken her years to perfect it, and it really shows. The second key lime pie was a classic American-style pie with a graham cracker crust and creamy base. This came from Key West Key Lime Pie where you can see the entire production area, and meet the baker herself. The creamy center does not set the same way a custard does, but the lime came through which is what matters. For me, this key lime pie was slightly sweet, but my father thought it was perfect and was reminded of his mother’s lemon pies. Next, we tried the vegan key lime cheesecake. While the flavor of the lime was present, the coconut cream overpowered the dessert overall. The last of the 4 pies came from Chez Bon Bon. This key lime pie was pure art! The green lime white chocolate shards to the creamy filling and cakey crust were beautifully done and such a nice treat. I had the pleasure of sharing this with my father before returning to Boston. I ended my trip on a sweet note and fond memories of key lime pie.

Should you find yourself in Southern Florida, please go and try some key lime pie. You won’t regret it.