Erba is big and sexy, but it cares about the food too - Review - Miami - The Infatuation
"Miami has no shortage of big, glamorous Italian restaurants. And Erba has a lot in common with these extravagant spots: a giant glass chandelier, a VIP table next to the kitchen, and enough velvet to make you feel like a shiny ring in a jewelry box. But what distinguishes it from these opulent places with little substance is Erba’s deliberate use of local ingredients and care put into each dish. In other words: unlike those other guys, the food here is actually really good. You don’t go to Erba to be seen and not eat, you’re coming here for the rich agnolotti with wagyu beef cheeks and a juicy porchetta chop. There’s no need to pull out the faja for an evening dress (although you can and won’t feel overdressed). It's a comfortable restaurant with attentive servers who are just as excited about the food as you—and are always prepared with extra focaccia for your butter candle. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc Pause Unmute Yes, a butter candle—the start to every great meal here that really sets the tone for all the delicious plot twists to come. The restaurant is most alive on weekend nights, when it’s packed but not cramped—and the parking garage isn’t a chaotic mix of Trader Joe’s shoppers and UM students peeling the tires off their white Teslas. Erba is very flexible. It’s parent-friendly, a great place to catch up with friends, and there’s a large private dining room for events. But it really shines when it comes to dates. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc Pause Unmute We’re not sure if it’s all the naked cherubs scattered around, the pink marble bartop, or the way the cocktail list is signed “XOXO Erba”—but this is a romantic restaurant. Sure, it’s a little showy. But eating here is a lot like finding out that crush you’ve been shamelessly flirting with is more than just a pretty face. It’s respectful, well-mannered, and wants nothing more than to cook delicious food for you. Food Rundown Butter Candle Jack be nimble. Jack be quick. Jack better grab a piece of bread and drag it along the soft butter that gathers at the bottom before everyone else eats that candlestick. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc Farm Pesto Corzetti You’ll remember this pasta for the rest of your days, but it’s not because of the housemade corzetti discs. It’s the green pesto sauce so vibrant, Home Depot should sell it in paint buckets. But then you’d be licking your walls all day. PlayMute video credit: Virginia Otazo Agnolotti We want to shrink ourselves Rick Moranis-style and take a nap on these delicious pockets of pasta filled with sweet caramelized onions and creamy robiola bosina cheese. Then we will drive a shrunken truck through the clusters of tender wine-braised beef cheeks interspersed between the pieces of pasta. For such a heavy-sounding dish, everything about it is surprisingly delicate. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc Sicilian Eggplant Lasagna The crunchy edges of this lasagna look like curled pages of an ancient book. Thankfully, its chapters have less to do with how to steal a dragon’s eggs and more to do with smoky walnut romesco and creamy bechamel. PlayMute video credit: Virginia Otazo Pistachio Gelato This fluffy, creamy work of art has thinly sliced pistachios holding on for dear life from its slanted peaks. The gelato is made using Bronte pistachios from Sicily. It’s rich, slightly salty, and coats your mouth with pure joy. photo credit: Courtesy Erba" - Virginia Otazo
