Taste Of The Town: Enjoy the flavors of Lebanon at Amal
MIAMI - It's a celebration of Lebanese culture and spirit at Amal in Coconut Grove.
The stunning 180 seat restaurant with dining inside and out is inspired by the sandy shores of Lebanon, bringing diners an elegant and zen experience.
"The whole idea is to really create this comfortable and bright environment as well as an environment that really dims down at night and becomes cool and sexy," said Charles Khabouth, founder of Ink Hospitality the group that owns Amal.
The first opened in Toronto, Canada three years ago. Amal means "hope" in Lebanese, which speaks to the hopeful spirit associated with the country's culture.
"We like the word hope. It means hope and 'hopefully' it's a good meal," Khabouth said laughing.
Khabouth and his team felt Coconut Grove was the perfect spot to open Amal, he said guests are guaranteed good value.
"Miami is known to be super expensive. It's definitely one of the most expensive cities in the world," he said. "And Amal is a place that offers you a high-end experience, very good quality food, and service at a very reasonable price for what you're getting."
Back in the kitchen Managing Director Fadi Abdulnor prepared modern interpretations of the many popular and sharable dishes of his homeland, like traditional mezze plates with babaganoush, muhamarra, and hummus served with home baked fresh pita.
"It's a melt in your mouth hummus," said Petrillo, "And I love the hot fresh pita bread!"
Then came pistachio kababs made of minced beef and lamb with grilled tomatoes.
"The texture of the kabob and the acidity of the tomato brings it together with a crunch of the pistachio. That's excellent," Petrillo said.
"It's really the icing on the cake," said Khabouth.
Petrillo deemed the popular black cod with tahini, cilantro, and pine nuts superb.
"It's all in the bite and this fish is so tender, juicy, and elegant with the sauce," she said.
"It's become one of our heroes on the menu," Khabouth noted.
They ended with three mouthwatering desserts; mastika ice cream with cotton candy, traditional baklava, and date cake with vanilla ice cream and butterscotch sauce.
"It's the perfect ending to this type of meal," said Khabouth.
"I agree 100 percent," said Petrillo.
Amal Miami is open seven days a week serving lunch, dinner, and brunch on the weekends