Bottega Grill, It’s Not From South America – It’s From Your Neck Of The Woods – It’s A Gem In An Industry Where There Are Few!

Bottega Grill
2411 SW 147 Ave,
Miami, Fl.33185
(305) 220-1335

By Paul Stevenson

Chairman & Group Publisher

At first glance it may seem odd place to build a restaurant, at the end of a dead-end street, but the way the area is growing all around it, you know this location was no accident and as much thought and planning went into the location choice as the entire restaurant. And it is all good!

I have to confess I live close-by the place, I had watched it being built and saw the sign for months in advance touting the opening of Bottega Grille. For a while I thought it was going to be yet another South American steak place, but while they do have three different steaks on their menu, this place has such a large menu, if you ate there three days a week, you would not be stuck for choice.

We’ve eaten there many times since it’s opening almost eight weeks ago, and we’ve eaten a sampling of many of the excellent appetizers and main courses, from the inspiring Crispy Avocado Egg Rolls, with their cool avocado, sun-dried tomato, red onion and cilantro filling, to the ever popular Grilled Portabella Mushrooms, which are grilled to perfection by the talented grill masters, and served with sauté orzo, red onions, capers and a delicious, not too sweet demi-glace.

Bottega Grill is a big place with over 200 seats, and yet it has a nice flow of rooms and spaces so if you want a big family dinner or an intimate evening, you’ll find it all here. There’s even a nice sized room which can be used for private parties, and while it can get a bit noisy, especially on weekends when the place is packed and the wait is about 30 minutes, it has a great atmosphere and the staff are very polite, knowledgeable and attentive.

For starters the Calamari are cooked to perfection with a light breading and oh so tender insides and two delicious dipping sauces, a home-made marinara that you’ll want the recipe for, and a cool Cilantro aioli that you’ll want more of. Crabcakes come two to an order and are big enough to share, filled with succulent lump crabmeat and served with a tasty remoulade sauce. Crabcakes are also available as a main course with the addition of one more cake.

The Carribean Nachos are not like anything you’ve had before. Made from Plantain chips, sliced length wise, and covered with Italian sausage, green onions, black olives, drizzled with cilantro aioli and topped with melted cheese, this dish is not for the small eater. It’s big, hearty and very, very tasty.

Santa Fe Grilled Chicken salad is just one of about eight salads on the menu and it came with nice tender pieces of moist grilled chicken breast, corn, tomatoes, black beans and cheese to give it that South Western flavor, and like many of the dishes here it is big enough to share.

On several occasions we tried one of their pizzas, which are cooked in a wood burning oven, and have that glorious taste only produced from wood burning ovens, and from the Pizza Margherita, with it’s tomato sauce, mozzarella, basil, fresh tomatoes and herbs, to the Pescatori Pizza, covered in a delicious light white sauce, roasted peppers, green onions and shrimp, or the Tuscan Pizza with tomato sauce, sausage, roasted garlic, tomatoes, green onions and mozzarella cheese, all arrived perfectly cooked, with a delicious crisp thin crust, and toppings so fresh you wonder how you can eat pizza any other way.

Both the New York Strip Steak and the Rib-Eye are tender pieces of terrific beef, cooked to perfection to your specifications on a very hot grill, and served with your choice of pasta with sauce or real mashed potatoes you’ll fall in love with, and still lightly-crunchy grilled vegetables that even your kids would eat. The New York Strip is a generous 14oz while the Rib-Eye is a man-sized 16oz, but both are very reasonably priced at $17.99.

We have to admit we never got around to trying any of their signature dishes in the first eight weeks, we found so many other great things on the menu. If you seek simple comfort food to make you warm and fuzzy, the home-made meat loaf and mashed potatoes with grilled vegetables and crispy onions will do the trick. The meatloaf is the one you wished your Mother made, but never did! It’s moist and flavorful with just the right seasonings and smothered in  gravy you’ll mop-up with the house French rolls.

Exceptionally good veal pounded just right, is sauté with a blend of mushrooms and roasted garlic in a Marsala wine sauce for a truly enjoyable Veal Marsala, served with a side of pasta to soak-up the delicious sauce.

The Crispy Orange Peel chicken caught our an on an early visit and it is lightly battered and fried chicken, still moist and tender in a not too sweet, but tangy orange sauce served  over white rice with mixed vegetables. It’s light and delicious even though it’s friend, and the sauce will leave you wanting more.

A plethora of pastas offers a wide range of noodles with different sauces and accompaniments, from the Pasta Quattro Formaggi with it’s penne pasta covered in a light four cheese sauce and tossed in a tomato and basil red sauce, for a smooth and creamy flavor that lingers with every bite, to the truly excellent home-made Lasagna with layers of blended Italian cheeses, zesty meat sauce and baked in their wood burning oven till it’s just right, you won’t want to go anywhere else for your pasta dishes. Try the really delicious Ravioli Di Pollo, we don’t think they make them there, but you couldn’t tell and they come covered in a creamy tomato sauce that also demands mopping-up with the French rolls.

Several seafood dishes offer a very rounded menu, and we especially liked the Tilapia Parmesan, which was breaded ever so lightly in corn-bread and cooked to perfection, served with a buttery citrus wine sauce.

Deserts here are big and hearty and definitely enough to share, although we always found that two deserts were best shared by two people. Mile-high chocolate cake is so moist and rich you’ll know you’ve broken your diet, but you won’t care. And a variety of really good “New York” style cheesecakes in different flavors usually brought our meals at this truly wonderful establishment to a great end.

When you go to Bottega Grill, you’ll find something amazingly familiar even when you first enter, but you won’t be able to place it, at least not at first, not until you’ve tasted the food several times and perhaps chatted with the restaurants very amiable owner Becky. Then you’ll know what it is. Becky Prieto, the owner, was a general partner at the Macaroni Grill on Kendal Drive for almost eight years and she’s brought that experience with her to her very own place.

Everything is well thought out, from the size of the portions to the side dishes, and it’s all put together very well for a memorable dining experience, whether you go there for a special occasion, or just for a plate of pasta or a pizza with a friend at the end of a long day.

You know what they say, you can’t get perfection in the restaurant business, but this place comes as close to it as possible, and you’ll enjoy the friendly service from a serving team that’s second to none.

I know we’ll be going there for a long time to come, but then again, I know good food when I find it.