Why Pilar?
The name "Pilar" comes from an icon of both Miami and Cuban history, Ernest Hemingway. Pilar was the name of Hemingway's boat when he lived and fished in Havana. The name of the boat for the eatery is particularly fitting given that she was built in Brooklyn in 1936. We call it an “Eatery” rather than restaurant, because the space is small (seating for about 10 inside, with outside seating for about eight). Also making it more like an eatery is that the service and setting is more informal than a traditional restaurant.
Cuban Food, like all Latin American and Hispanic cuisines, has a unique character, with its Spanish roots being its most prevalent feature. Traditional Spanish stews, such as Caldo Gallego and Fabada (both rich bean stews), croquettes, which are sold all over Spain as well as in Miami, and the prevalence of Spanish chorizo in many dishes, all reflect Cuban food’s deep Spanish roots. That combined with the parallel African influences and tropical ingredients (black beans, plantains, corn, yuca) gives Cuban food its distinct taste.
At Pilar, we aim to capture the essence of Cuban food, serving many traditional dishes, but from a modern, updated approach: we use the best ingredients, and utilize local suppliers as much as possible, make everything from scratch, and strive to find the perfect balance in all our food. Our Cuban Paella, for example, uses imported Spanish Saffron and Spanish paprika (Pimenton), and is served with local Striped Bass and shellfish from the South Shore of Long Island, as well as gulf shrimp and Chicken. It also includes our own house-smoked Spanish chorizo, which is flavored liberally with Pimenton and garlic, and gently smoked for eight hours (chorizo appears in several other dishes as well, such as Garbanzo Frito - sautéed chickpeas). The dough for our Empanadas is made from scratch, we make our own mayonnaise and all our stocks, and roast our own red peppers (a common ingredient across many dishes.
The food at Pilar is the type of Cuban cuisine one can get at many of Miami’s well-know Cuban restaurants, its many open-air markets, or family kitchens. In other words, we aim to bring the full spectrum of Miami Cuban food to the city. In addition to the dishes most people are familiar with – Cuban sandwiches, roast pork or (Pernil) and ropa Vieja (shredded skirt stake) - we offer food much less common outside of south Florida: ham and cod croquettes, Tamal en Cazuela – the stew version of the Cuban Tamal, which is made with fresh corn, Boliche, a type of Cuban pot roast stuffed with Spanish chorizo and carrots, and served with a rich, dark gravy, and various Potajes (bean stews typically flavored with a combination of smoked pork, chorizo, and vegetables).
While we keep the traditional dishes, traditional, we also leave room to play around a bit, employing different ingredients in typical recipes, such as our smoked and braised short-rib empanadas in a corn and yuca dough, served with a guava barbeque sauce. There is also a corn and fish empanada, which corn in a béchamel sauce, local bluefish, a hint of Vermont Cheddar, and scallions, in the same yuca-corn dough. Our Sriracha Chicken-Mango wrap, has our mojo-marinated Rotisserie chicken (distinctly Cuban) in a house-made Sriracha (Chinese chili paste) flavored mayo with diced mangos and Arugula.
Cuban food typically does not have many vegetarian options, but we’ve included at least one vegetarian item in each food category on the menu. We have vegetarian empandas and croquettes, vegetarian soups and sandwiches (our Pilar grilled cheese, with fried plantains, Vermont Cheddar, served with and espresso mustard sauce on the side), and some vegetarian main dishes, (a vegetarian Paella and Garbanzo frito). There’s the vegetarian special (white rice and black beans, plantains, and a tomato and avocado salad). In addition, we offer several salads that reflect the ingredients and tastes typical of Cuban cuisine, including our signature salad of field greens, orange segments, butter beans cooked in paprika and garlic, pickled red onions, and Spanish Manchego cheese. Our traditional Spanish omelet or “Tortilla Espanola” is an excellent item for our vegetarian patrons. It’s made of potatoes and onions cooked in extra virgin olive oil.
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