Downtown Brickell has a new kid in town today!  Restauranteur Claudio Giordano, who brought us Altamare on Lincoln Road, as well as one of the most fondly-remembered Italian restaurants of the '90s, La Bussola, is venturing into the bustling business and nightlife neighborhood of Brickell with his new restaurant, TIKL Raw Bar & Grill.  Focused around small plates and sharing, Chef Simon Stojanovic, the executive chef at Altamare who was nominated for Food & Wine's Best New Chefs of 2012, has formulated an internationally-inspired menu of tapas-style dishes that are meant to be shared.  In tune with today's culinary trends, Chef Stojanovic will focus on local and seasonal products that will result in an ever-changing menu that is sure to satisfy seasoned foodies and savvy business people looking for a relaxed bite to eat.  The restaurant promises an unpretentious, loungy ambiance with an industrial décor accented by steel beams, exposed concrete columns, and Old Chicago brick walls.

Snacks priced at $3 to $6 will include such dishes as bacon toast, duck spring rolls, and Bloody Mary bruschetta, while the raw menu ($8 - $16) will offer dishes like a hamachi crudo with yuzu, olive oil powder, wasabi and scallion, as well as a cured Tasmanian ocean trout with scallops, hearts of palm, and preserved Meyer lemon. Lovers of carpaccio will fall in love with Chef Stojanovic’s Wagyu carpaccio with artichoke, crispy fennel, ponzu, and truffle oil.

The “small” menu ($8 - $18) will offer such tantalizing specialties as a warm veal rillettes with a slow-poached duck egg and pickled horseradish served with toast, as well as crispy snapper “wings” with Vietnamese bok choy salad. Asian influences are repeated throughout the diverse menu, especially in TIKL’s Japanese double robata grill offerings ($6-$18) that include such items as Korean skirt steak with citrus soy, kimchee and scallion, as well as a more European-inspired vegetarian dish of eggplant with Romesco sauce.

Make sure to save room for some of Pastry Chef Michelle Cabrera’s innovative desserts like her robata grilled peaches served with a jasmine reduction, bruléed vanilla bean pound cake and caramel ice cream. Claudio Giordano, who has had several decades of experience curating impressive wine collections at his various restaurants, has also carefully chosen a wine list with offering that will pair beautifully with TIKL’s globally-inspired menu.

To celebrate the restaurant's grand opening, a portion of all proceeds today will go to Share Our Strength, an organization that is putting an end to childhood hunger in America.  As if that were not reason enough to check out TIKL today, the restaurant is also participating in Miami Spice with prix fixe lunch menus for $19 and dinner menus for $33.

TIKL Raw Bar & Grill
1450 Brickell Avenue
Miami, FL 33131
(305) 372-0620
www.tiklrestaurant.com