Lunch With The Chickens At Juvia Miami – a little photo essay

I was craving a particular dish that Juvia only serves on Fridays, Chirashi, so I took the chickens on yet another culinary adventure to this restaurant situated on a rooftop on Lincoln Road, South Beach.

Cravings at my age are not frequent, so when they come along they have to be indulged. Chirashi, also known as Chirashizushi, is scattered sushi over rice and served on plates or bowls with many colorful toppings. Chirashi was calling me, its voice loud and clear.

My chickens were with me so we also ordered other dishes. First they brought cancha to the table which was a snack made of roasted or deep-fried corn kernels. This is not something that we have fallen in love with yet, even though we have been eating it for years: a bit too gritty for us but still nice, just nice.

The next dish was quite unique, Unagi Chocolate –served with causa and chocolate sauce. Unagi is the Japanese word for freshwater eel and here it was embellished with a sprinkling of chocolate and a serving of causa. Causa is a Peruvian dish made with papas amarillas, yellow potatoes that resemble Yukon golds. The potatoes were mashed and seasoned with lime juice and aji amarillo. The flavors of the unagi were intense, the strong taste of the unagi contrasting beautifully with the delicate causa that was topped with micro greens. Chocolate, eel and potatoes: a combination made in paradise.

The chickens ordered bento boxes. The Korean and the Sophia Bento, both with short ribs and jasmine rice, one with avocado salad and the other with French fries, each with a different dessert. The Korean marinated short ribs from the charcoal grill deserve a special mention, as they were delicious, smoky and packed with flavor.

Now for the main event, the much awaited and coveted Chirashi. This is a lunch special served only on Fridays, it was not even on the menu. This special began as a Friday afternoon tradition, where Executive Chefs Sunny Oh and Laurent Cantineaux would prepare a beautiful and generous Chirashi bowl for management. Happily, this dish caught the attention of a few curious guests, and now it’s offered at the restaurant every Friday during lunch.

This dish took traditional Chirashi to a whole new level – a warm bowl was filled with seasoned sushi rice and topped with sashimi selections like toro, hamachi, tako (octopus) and salmon, among tender slices of wagyu beef, tuna ceviche, king crab, rock shrimp and tiradito. The toppings change every Friday, depending on what is available.

The Chirashi was incredibly substantial, hearty and delicious. It was a fun dish filled the flavors of the ocean, each component adding something special to this really thoughtful bowl of insanely good food-orgasmic ingredients. The rice at the bottom of the dish was warm, a pleasant and unexpected temperature-differing touch that was exceptional.

This can easily be one of the most extraordinary dishes I have ever eaten, no lie. It’s often cooked for celebrating special occasions. This special occasion? Life, simply life, and what a life indeed.