Taste Of The Town: Wynwood Hotspot Serves Up 'Food, Glorious Food'

Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter

MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- It's "food glorious food" coming out of the kitchen at KYU-  a Wynwood hotspot offering a creative and diverse menu designed by Chef Michael Lewis.

"To keep it simple, we describe it as wood fire Asian cuisine. There's a lot of love in this kitchen. I love Asian ingredients and there's a barbecue element to it," Chef Michael said.

The space itself, with cement floors and a cool exposed warehouse design, including an open kitchen, it feels like a funky eatery you might encounter in Brooklyn or SoHo.

"To me, Wynwood is kind of Williamsburg Brooklyn maybe 10 years ago. I've always been drawn to Wynwood for many years because I grew up in New York. That's what we were going for," said the chef.

Chef Michael has traveled the world, fine-tuning his Japanese barbecue grilling practice. He wants his guests to savor every moment and flavor.

"From the chef side of things, I want them to be thinking about flavor. It's simple food. We are a neighborhood restaurant in Wynwood. We're not fancy but there are some really cool flavor elements going on," he said.

So let's get to it!

The hottest appetizer on the menu is the roasted cauliflower with goat cheese, shishito in an herb vinaigrette.

"Wow, packed full of flavor," said CBS4's Lisa Petrillo, after tasting the dish. "There's a kick and wow do I taste it , but it's not overwhelming. There's a crunch and the sauce is just smooth."

Next up was a roasted grouper with sake braised white beans.

"The fish is so light and fresh and has a seer on the top and the sake beans bring it all together and makes you feel as though you're in another country," Petrillo said.

The final dish was a KYU specialty - Mom's Coconut Cake.

"This is my mom's recipe. I grew up with this cake. My stepfather loves coconut but doesn't love super sweet, so she spent many years 'Frankensteining' this recipe together to get this really great coconut cake," Chef Michael said.

"Your mom is a genius," Petrillo said after tasting the cake. "This cake is not too sweet. It's layered perfectly with the right amount of cream with the batter, and then the crunch with coconut ice-cream on the side. It could be the best coconut cake I've ever had."

KYU is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner and brunch on Sundays.  Click here for more information.

CBS4's Lisa Petrillo would love to hear from you. Please send us a suggestion at tasteofthetown@cbs.com. You can also contact Lisa through Twitter or Facebook.