The Early Word on TALDE Miami Beach

With much fanfare and anticipation, TALDE opened its doors inside the Thompson Hotel in early November. The restaurant, named after its chef and former Top Chef contestant Dale Talde, serves up a variety of Asian-American eats inspired by Talde’s upbringing. The restaurant has two outposts in the northeast — the original in Brooklyn and a second in New Jersey — that have both received much acclaim. So has the Miami version of TALDE lived up to the hype? Here’s what the early reviewers had to say.

The Culture Mash Up: The Miami New Times’ Laine Doss visited the restaurant just days before Thanksgiving and was thoroughly impressed with its Thanksgiving ramen saying it is a, "gorgeous interpretation of what college students have probably been doing with their mom's leftovers for decades." Other items that seemed to impress? The restaurant’s one dessert offering, the halo halo, which she says, "just the right amount of sweetness needed after a meal but without the heaviness and guilt." [Miami New Times]

The Hipster: Over at Tasting Table, they add that the Miami Beach location doesn’t miss a beat with decor. The publication says that, "this location is industrial hip with a serious street art mural and a giant semi-irreverent (read: hipster crass) picture of Talde with two scantily clad models." And they also note that if you want to "fuel revelry" this the spot to go with its late night noodle offerings on the weekend. [Tasting Table]

The Great: Over at everyone’s favorite review site, Yelp, Jacquie G. says that TALDE made her "swoon" with standout dishes oyster and bacon pad thai described as "unreal" (in a good way). She even mentions that Talde himself is on-site and spent half an hour talking with them and even shared restaurant recommendations for them in their native New Jersey. [Yelp]

The Not-So-Great: Like they say, you can’t impress them all and that seems to stay true for TALDE. Ana G. notes on Yelp that while TALDE’s "decor and the atmosphere were very cool" the crispy rice cakes were "nothing impressive" and the brussel sprouts came in a "insanely salty" sauce. But not all was lost, with her noting that they did indeed like the "lobster noodle soup with coconut broth." [Yelp]