16 JANUARY 26 - FEBRUARY 1, 2023 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | 1/26/23* miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | FILM | ART | STAGE | NIGHT+DAY | METRO | RIPTIDE | LETTERS | CONTENTS | Zuma and Michael Schulson’s now-shuttered Monkitail. When Lee opened his Korean-Japanese restaurant, Takato, at the Conrad Fort Lau- derdale in 2020, it became well-known for of- fering the two Asian cuisines he’s most familiar with. With Tanka, however, the idea is to marry the chefs’ respective strengths for a more in- spired menu. Over the past several weeks, Lee and D’Agostino spent countless hours de- veloping the fusion menu, using their com- bined experiences to present familiar Chinese dishes given their own signature touch. D’Agostino tells New Times his goal is to offer an approachable menu with recogniz- able dishes. “Not your typical American-Chinese menu, and not the high-level style of dishes you’d see at upscale Chinese restaurants, but somewhere in between,” says D’Agostino. “We want people to look at the menu and find food they can recognize, but prepared with a contemporary approach.” Tanka’s intimate setting offers diners a new gastronomic experience, one that aims to capture that same izakaya-fueled energy of a Japanese gastropub paired with new twists on Cantonese, Shanghai, and Szechuan-style Chinese fusion. Everything about Tanka, from the open- concept dining room and 30-person lounge to our menu, has been carefully curated to create a unique social dining experience, adds Lee. Set in the historic Grand Condominium complex, Tanka opened its doors on January 25, just in time to recognize the Chinese New Year with dishes that range from fried rice and dim sum to seafood dishes and riffs on handheld items. Diners can celebrate with D’Agostino’s fa- vorite dishes, ones that he says marry various cooking techniques and new flavors to en- hance the depth of each dish. Take the duck and watermelon salad, where citrus and spice offset the sweet notes from the watermelon and hoisin dressing while cool, crisp vegetables pair perfectly with warm slivers of tender confit duck leg. Moving on, delicate spring rolls are stuffed with blue crab. Fried rice begins with a day- long preparation process that dries the rice enough to crisp and hold the flavors of a hot wok and is topped with marinated and braised short rib or flavored with savory gar- lic miso butter. And although the salt-and- pepper calamari is prepared in a traditional manner, it surprises with a sambal-spiced dipping sauce. For more traditional Chinese fare, the kitchen churns out half and whole Peking duck with a tableside presentation. There is also an entree-sized plate of barbecue-slath- ered spare ribs, while a dedicated dim sum chef hand forms Wagyu-stuffed dumplings, siu mai, and spicy wontons filled with minced mushroom, pork, and shrimp. It wouldn’t be an izakaya, of course, without a stop at the 30-person lounge, where guests can sip on retro-style drinks given an Asian twist. They include the “Kung Pao Paloma” sweetened with Szech- uan honey, the “Panda Colada” crafted with Chinese five spice, and the “Hong Kong Sangria” accented with lychee and sweet vermouth. “With Tanka representing my second culi- nary concept in South Florida, I’m looking forward to taking the plunge into Miami’s thriving dining scene,” sums up Lee. Tanka. 1717 N. Bayshore Dr., Miami; 305- 374-8888; tankamiami.com. Daily 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. NICOLE DANNA ▼ LITTLE RIVER UNDERSTORY OPENS WITH A ROTATING SELECTION OF FOOD, WINE, AND COCKTAILS Understory, located in the former Center for Tropical Affairs space, opens this Thursday with food, drink, music, and activities in a lush, green setting. The space will offer weekly live jazz, con- certs, yoga, dance classes, and more, with a robust calendar of events. If all that music and activity makes you hungry, leave it to Will Thompson and Carey Hynes to sate your appetite. The co-owners of Jaguar Sun are charged with operating the food and beverage pro- gram at Understory — and they’ve enlisted the help of some of Miami’s best and bright- est chefs for the space. Carey Hynes explains to New Times the concept behind Understory. “We think it’s a really beautiful and unique space, and it rep- resents a direction that we would like to see Miami move toward.” Hynes says that Un- derstory will help cultivate a new group of tastemakers helping shape Miami’s culinary landscape into something unique. “I certainly welcome restaurants here from other cities, but I would like to see more unique-to-Miami experiences.” Hynes says that although the Miami food scene is growing by leaps and bounds, the cadre of small, independent restaurateurs is closely knit, and he tapped his colleagues to create food for this project. “These are all people that we know one way or the other. It can seem like there are a million restaurants in Miami, but it’s a small community.” Understory will host a revolving roster of pop-up food from some of Miami’s best-loved spots, including Flour & Weirdoughs, El Ba- gel, Tacotomia, Sidewalk Diner, Lazy Oyster, and Tigre. The Jaguar Sun team starts the se- ries this Thursday with an evening of pizza and oysters. Karina Iglesias of NIU Wine and NIU Kitchen will offer wines at her weekly pop- up bar called Bad Seed. In addition, Jaguar Sun’s Will Thomp- son will create cocktails for the space. Each Thursday, the chefs will have a choice of cooking food from an onsite food truck (equipped with re- frigeration and fry- ers), a wood-burning oven, or on the grill. Hynes says that chefs from across the coun- try will eventually be invited to collaborate on casual dinners. He says chef friends in New York are especially keen on taking their skills to Miami. “Who wouldn’t want to grill outdoors with palm trees?” he adds. Hynes says that food programs for other days are still in the works, but on Wednesdays, expect tacos from Isel, a local taco vendor that, according to Hynes, makes fantastic tacos. Hynes is used to turning nontraditional spaces into restaurants. Jaguar Sun, he says, was never meant to be a restaurant, and Sunny’s Steakhouse — opened as a temporary alfresco answer to the COVID-19 problem — turned into one of Miami’s most-loved establishments. Understory, he says, is the first time he and partner Thompson know precisely what they’re getting into. “This is the first time we’re doing this on purpose. It’s a fun, outdoor tropical space. There’s live music. This is meant to be a fun party.” Understory. 7135 NW First Ct., Miami; ins- tagram.com/understorymiami. Wednesday through Saturday 7 p.m. to midnight. LAINE DOSS Tanka photo Tanka is the newest establishment from chef and restaurateur Taek “Taka” Lee. “IT CAN SEEM LIKE THERE ARE A MILLION RESTAURANTS IN MIAMI, BUT IT’S A SMALL COMMUNITY.”
