MAYAMI Mexicantina & Bar (127 NW 23rd Street) is the newest "it" place to be in Miami. Brought to us by the same people that opened El Patio, the location is a 10,000-square-foot Mexican-inspired indoor and outdoor restaurant and lounge that gives off total Tulum vibes with the mix of the artsy Wynwood neighborhood. Mayami is open for dinner, happy hour and brunch from with different operating hours, depending on the day of the week. Though, the place says it closes at midnight, the waiters pass out the tabs at 11:30, music is cut off and lights are turned on as a way to have all guests leave by midnight and have no one lingering around the premises.
From the outside the location looks like a simple restaurant in the middle of busy Wynwood but once you walk in, you become teleported to a Mexican temple. The restaurant is lined with stone sculptures, wood carvings, traditional mural paintings, with the main focus being the ziggurat-shaped ceiling replicating the inside of a Mayan Pyramid. The space mixes the nightlife feel of El Patio with a restaurant by featuring an expansive pyramid-shaped bar, multi-level Terrazas, stages, and numerous VIP booths.
Mayami menu is filled with Mexican-inspired dishes like guacalote, queso fresco and tacos with various proteins alongside larger dishes filet mignon. Meals can be paired with creative cocktails using Mexican ingredients. My favorite of the night was a surprisingly, easy-to-drink Mezcal-based cocktail, shaken with 400 Conejos mezcal, corn syrup, lime juice, real agave azul and egg white, served with a hibiscus salt rim.
Though this place is my new it place to drink, dance and smoke hookah, the food needs a lot of work. There was nothing wow or even tasty that I tried and was actually very disappointed in the presentation and lack of ingredients used to cook. I always find that Mexican cuisine should always remain as true to it's natural ingredients as it can. When you start to alter the dish and replace traditionally ingredients the flavor gets lost in translation. Overall, I would rate this place a 8 out 10 just taking points off for the food and early dismissal.
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