Taste of the town: Abiaka serves authentic Spanish cuisine at Hollywood's Guitar Hotel
MIAMI - Set outside the lush pool area of the Guitar Hotel known as the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood is Abiaka, a large restaurant known for its fire grilling technique.
At the helm, Executive Chef Daniel Gutierrez.
"Abiaka is woodfired grill-inspired food with a lot of dishes from Spain. We have a lot of mixes from South Florida as well as Peruvian and Mexican, Latin flavors into the mix," said Gutierrez.
This open-kitchen concept gives guests a look into the action. The look and vibe of the restaurant, which seats 128, is lively and fun serving vacationers as well as locals who want to feel like they're on vacation.
"It's great. It's like a hidden gem within the hotel," said Gutierrez, "because it's kind of secluded from the main building. The food is great and so is the ambiance."
This weekend, Abiaka is back participating in The Orange Bowl Food and Wine Celebration presented by Florida Blue at the Broward County Convention Center.
CBS News Miami's Lisa Petrillo returns as guest emcee of the event, which includes a food competition voted on by guests.
"There's around 30 restaurants participating in The Orange Bowl Food and Wine Celebration. We're going to be competing with each other for a great cause," said Gutierrez.
The event benefits Make-A-Wish of South Florida, Special Olympics, and Orange Bowl Cares.
Abiaka won "Best Bite" last year and is back defending its title with a Seared Scallop with a cauliflower purée and a chickpea stew.
They expect to serve some 2,000 plates.
"It's perfectly seasoned, soft, and tender. There's a nice sear on the top and I love the creaminess of the cauliflower purée and the chickpea stew," said Petrillo.
"You're going to do well at this event."
Chef prepares other items from Abiaka's dinner menu which include a fresh and delicious shrimp cocktail cooked over the open fire with a side of horse radish and then Spanish-inspired Jamon Cinco Hotas, or toasts with Spanish ham, olive tapenade, roasted garlic and red wine jam.
"I'm going to keep eating these", said Petrillo. " I love the savory with the olive tapenade and the fresh bread and then the sweet of the jam and also the crunch. It is my kind of appetizer, great combination."
And finally, Abiaka's Mac Daddy dish is the 18-ounce Josper Charred Prime Rib with blistered peppers, horseradish cream and rosemary mustard.
"I love the fresh rosemary sprig, because I actually tasted the aroma of it in the meat It's also perfectly cooked medium rare, as I like it," said Petrillo.
They end on pure decadence with The black forest tart with vanilla mousse, cherries and chocolate ice cream.
The Orange Bowl Food and Wine celebration is on Friday, April 28th at 7:30 p.m. at the Broward County Convention Center.
Abiaka is open Wednesdays through Sundays and serving dinner.
For more info on OB Food and Wine Celebration, click here.
For more on Abiaka, click here.
