8/26/19 - 10 minute read
By: Alicia Rinaldi

You may pass by PM Buenos Aires, Fish & Steak House on your daily commute and not even know it! On the corner of the S Miami Ave traffic circle tucked behind towering hedges is this stylish Argentine spot. With the towering columns, wine bottles, and wall art, the vibe is always right whether you sit in one of the indoor dining rooms, the outdoor terrace, or one of the 2 swanky bars. But no matter which atmosphere you choose, the polite wait-staff, sophisticated brick walls and opulent wooden accents are a constant reminder that you’re dining among Miami’s most elite.

PM is the perfect spot to celebrate a special occasion, treat your bae to a luxurious date night (HINT HINT to all you men reading this 😉), or even impress a client with a lavish meal.

It’s easy to see the staff’s passion for food and service. Alex, the GM, took some time to chat with us about the restaurant and food (and he even told us the secret behind their puffy potatoes - more details on that later)!

We're lucky that Brickell is home to PM's only location in the states. There are 4 locations between Buenos Aires & Mexico City, where the restaurant is better known as Puerto Madero, named after a port city in Argentina. They have a total of 3000 employees!

If you’ve been hibernating all of August, let me enlighten you about Miami Spice! For all of August & September, Miami’s best restaurants offer 3-course fixed-price menus with lunch for $23 and dinner for $49, giving residents and visitors alike the opportunity to expand their palates and try new places.

Some restaurants keep their Miami Spice selection very limited—PM is NOT one of those restaurants! There are 60 Miami Spice dinner menu combinations you can try (one for each day of Miami Spice!), and that’s not even counting the 3 entrée upgrades! Although the Miami Spice portions are sightly smaller than the regular dinner portions, don’t let that scare you—we were STUFFED.

Appetizers:
​Sadly, my stomach is not big enough to try all 60 meal combinations, so we picked our favorite plates to try. For the appetizer, the octopus salad looked so tempting, but I decided to hold off on the octopus for the entrée, and we were feeling a bit more adventurous than a caesar salad, so we went with the prime beef empanada and the salmon tartare.

WOW! The empanada was among best I’ve ever had (and anyone who lives in Miami has had their fair share of empanadas). The outside was crispy and flaky with moist and flavorful prime meat on the inside. The salmon comes drizzled in mustard-lime soy sauce with lemon & jalapeño accents, a dollop of caviar, and a basket of bagel & pita chips for [Brickell] scooping. It is soft like butter and melts in your mouth.

Main Course:
According to Alex, the best way to ensure the highest quality is to source the ingredients from the same place. Thats why all their delicious octopus comes from the Gulf of Mexico off the Yucatan Peninsula, and all their meat comes from Greater Omaha, which is ranked as one of the top 10 beef producers in the US.
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All the meat at PM is prime quality, but what does that mean exactly? “Prime” describes the highest quality of beef & other meats in terms of tenderness, juiciness and flavor based on marbling (amounts of fat in the meat) and maturity of the cow (younger cows tend to be more tender). On average, only 3 cows out of every 100 qualify as “prime” which is why it can be rare and very pricy.

It goes without saying that the entrees were excellent—just look at the pictures! The Octopus was charred to perfection and the steak was a perfect medium rare, just how I like it! It came with sweet carrots and tangy, flavorful chimichurri. If you’re feeling fancy, you can even upgrade your entrée to a prime ribeye, surf & turf or a tomahawk!

Dessert:
Why does dessert always come when I’m already full? 😢 We tried our hardest to make a dent in the Alfajor and Creme Brulee. An alfajor is a traditional Argentine sandwich-cookie with variations among other Latin American countries.

​At PM, they make it with dolce de leche provided by San Andrea and chopped pecans. Definitely a must-have if you’ve never tried one before. If you’re more of a creme brulée fan, this one will satisfy your sweet tooth with a hidden layer of dulce de leche on the bottom!

Miami Spice is kind of like New York restaurant week—but only better because Miami Spice is 2 months long! During these tasty 2 months, Miami’s best restaurants offer 3-course fixed price menus for $23/lunch and $39/dinner—what a steal, right?!

Appetizers:
Growing up fully Italian, I am a tough meatball critic, but these definitely passed the test! The flavorful meat & fresh tomato sauce would make any Italian's dreams come true! The other 2 appetizers are simple salads, one with arugula & creamy burrata cheese and the other with mixed frisée and shaved pecorino cheese. 

In Chef Carlos's opinion, simple foods are always best. Speaking about the Miami Spice menu, he said, "When you combine the best quality food with a nice season balance, you don’t need to go too crazy. You can taste the quality."

Main Course:
In true Italian fashion, the main courses are generously sized! If you were at the Miami Spice Kickoff & Heritage Showcase, you may remember this ravioli—it was a huge hit, and I can taste why! It’s made from home-made pasta, stuffed with ricotta cheese & kale, topped with shredded short rib. Then there’s the risotto, a beautiful arrangement of rice, wild mushrooms, and fresh green herbs. My favorite dish was the salmon. It comes on a bed of asparagus & topped with tomatoes, olives and capers and a ricotta & lemon stuffed squash flower on the side!

​By the way, if you’re really feeling fancy, you can MAKE IT RAIN truffles on any dish for an extra $5! Do it for the gram!

Dessert:
I love playing with my food, and we clearly had a lot of fun with this one! The key lime pie was the perfect ending to this filling meal--light enough that we couldn't say no! There's a little dropper with tangy raspberry sauce playfully stuck into the side so you can unleash your inner culinary artist!

Is your mouth watering yet? Enter to win a free dinner for 2 now

Donna Mare is the "new kid on the block," and they're looking to break into the Miami Beach scene with some irresistible offerings just for you!

• New Menu Items Starting TODAY, August 19th, there will be brand new never-before-seen menu items--including a black forest cherry cheesecake 
• All-You-Can-Eat Breakfast Buffet is available for only $25 every day (ends at 11 on weekdays and 12 on weekends). They also have a full breakfast menu
• Late Nights at Donna Mare Sunday through Thursday from 9 - 11 p.m. toast to the night with $5 Pink Flamingo Rose, Goose Island IPA and Veza Sur local draft bars or $10 Aperol Spritz, Hurricane or Watermelon Mule. Nosh on Italian bites like Bruschetta, Meatballs and Calamari available for $7 - $12.
• Live Music every Thursday, Friday and Sunday night

Upcoming events to find Donna Mare:

• September 13th: Burgerfest on South Beach
• October 3rd: Miami New Times Iron Fork 

Special thank you to Azeez Bakare for the incredible photos! Check out more of his work here