Taste Of The Town: Owned By Miami Heat's Udonis Haslem & Dwyane Wade, 800 Degrees Woodfired Kitchen Brings Modern American Eatery To Aventura
AVENTURA (CBSMiami) – Udonis Haslem enjoys putting a pizza in the oven at 800 Degrees WoodFired Kitchen, the restaurant he co-owns with his best friend and former teammate Dwyane Wade.
The two joined forces with this west-coast based concept, founded by Executive Chef Anthony Carron, opening up the modern American eatery in Aventura.
"The name 800 Degrees is from what?" asked CBS4's Lisa Petrillo.
"800 degrees is all about the temperature in the wood fired kitchen," said Haslem.
So It's all about 'the heat' again," laughed Petrillo.
"For sure," said Haslem.
The concept is about the art of cooking with wood fire set at 800 degrees, where each hot item is infused with just the right amount of smokiness.
Chef Eddie mans the Aventura kitchen. For Wade and Haslem, it's a concept they were waiting for.
"I reached out to Dwyane and said hey we always talked about doing something together when we leave the city of Miami and when we leave the basketball court, and what can we do so that we still leave a legacy. This opportunity presented itself and we felt like it was a perfect opportunity," Haslem said.
The menu includes made-from-scratch-dough pizza, fresh produce, rotisserie chicken, meats, salads, bowls, veggies and more.
"We definitely want you to enjoy your food but also want to be health conscious in today's society, so in the kitchen we have the wood fire stove that's healthy from the jump," he said.
Cocktails with names like "Riley's Hair Grease" and "Pre-Game Warm Up" have the star basketball players' touch, as does the food.
Both players worked with Chef Eddie to create their own signature dishes.
For Haslem, his namesake wood fire wings are finger licking good.
"The problem is you gotta do this," said Petrillo licking her fingers.
"Yeah if you don't lick your fingers, the wings ain't good," said Haslem.
Wade's Burger has bacon jam, roasted garlic aioli, caramelized onions and white cheddar cheese.
"Me and D-Wade might not know how to cook, but we know what we like. All I can say is thank you to Chef Eddie for being patient with us," Haslem said.
On the healthy side, there's the power bowls. The one they sampled had woodfire salmon, quinoas, avocado and veggies.
Then, an 800 Degrees signature special: The Tartufo Pizza made with wild mushrooms truffle pecorino, roasted garlic and arugula.
"That's something special," said Petrillo after tasting.
"You don't mind if I keep going do you," said Haslem, taking another slice.
Just one last question for Udonis; with 16 seasons on the Miami Heat behind him, Petrillo went for it:
"Do you want to break some news on Taste of the Town? Are you coming back next season?" she asked.
"These wings are amazing, they are amazing," he said, ignoring her question.
"We tried, we tried," said Petrillo laughing.
They end on Fireman Derek's Dessert: Crack Pie made with caramel and salt and Red Velvet Cake.
800 Degrees Woodfired Kitchen is open seven days a week, serving lunch and dinner.
For more info visit www.800degrees.com/aventura.
