Located in the acclaimed (and gorgeous!!) Faena Hotel on Miami Beach, PAO by Paul Qui is a very unique and EXCEPTIONAL restaurant! In your travels, you might find wonderful Italian food, top-notch steak or seafood restaurants, Farm-to-table, etc., but you might not find very many...restaurants like PAO. Acclaimed Chef Paul Qui (James Beard Award winner, Season 9 Top Chef winner, etc.). Paul Qui, of Phillippines heritage, and of great restaurant success in Austin, TX was recruited by Faena Hotel to open a grand restaurant on Miami Beach -- Mission accomplished!
The foods have a nod to filipino flavors (along with Japanese, Thai and other far East tastes). The restaurant interior is gorgeous (and outdoor patio seating faces the Atlantic Ocean), and service is superb. We loved the central round, leather bank of seats divided into 4 sections each for lovely seating for couples! We enjoyed the following food items:
Top notch cocktails:
Margarita ($23) - excellent
Old fashioned($22)- VERY excellent!! (Japanese whiskey, Drambuie, bitters, smoke)
For appetizers:
Complimentary amuse buse - a spiced watermelon cube - quite good
Unicorn($36) - not-always-on-the-menu - a MUST TRY DELICIOUS rich corn soup with
uni, chili, and lobster broth -- a most unique dish!
Fried chicken w/ banana ketsup($23) - very tasty
Entrees:
Skull Island prawns w/ squid ink rice noodles($65) - YUM!!
Duck Kare-Kare($60) - perfectly cooked with crisp duck skin (melt-in-your-mouth resembling a duck confit texture) w/ kare-kare sauce (NOTE: This a strong peanut flavor sauce; order sauce-on-the-side if not your fave)
Desserts:
Kidavoa Chocolate Stone Banana Chutney, Ginger Lime Ice Cream($14) - if only choosing one dessert, I would say that this unique dessert is MUST TRY!
Mille Crepes Cake($14)Light Cream Cheese Mousse, Vanilla-Passion Fruit Syrup - really DELICIOUS!!
Complimentary chocolate cookies - melt-in-your-mouth
In summary:
Ambiance - gorgeous
Service - excellent
Food quality - OUTSTANDING
Price - dinner is a solid $150-200 per person
POA by Paul Qui is a most unique restaurant with exceptional quality and
unique foods/flavors that you'll not find elsewhere. Dinner here is a wonderful treat
and/or a really special occasion.More