Welcome to Miami
Beach time, karaoke, and many forms of cheese
Hi friends,
I’m writing to you from Miami Beach—there are palm trees everywhere and a few hours ago, I was swimming in the ocean like a mermaid with sunscreen on. Dale and I came here to celebrate his birthday and we’ve had such a nice time. It was my first proper visit to to the city and I loved the music, the food, and the celebratory energy everywhere.
If you’re reading this, I hope you’ve voted or are ready to do so tomorrow! If you have some time this evening, this phone banking event targets young voters with March for our Lives. I’m only writing one newsletter this week as we’ll be plenty distracted with bigger things (and I’m hard at work on this year’s gift guide, which is coming soon).
Now, let’s dive in.
Something to cook:
I did very little cooking last week since we left for Miami on Wednesday. I did bring frozen dumplings to work for lunch one day, which honestly is always pretty satisfying.
Isa and I are going to cook something comforting tonight, maybe soup and garlic bread? Seeking all the comfort food suggestions!
I can’t wait to go grocery shopping and get into some cooking this week. I want to roast some squash and make some kale sauce.
My mom made this apple cider donut cake from
and I might bring it to Thanksgiving (Dale’s mom is vegan and so is this recipe)Something to order:
Ivy, Cristina and I went to hear Angela speak at an Empowered Economy event with snacks from Gotcha Focaccia and Bezi labneh, both of which are very good.
Dale and I celebrated his birthday at the Heat Game, where the Knicks won. I love seeing the food options at different arenas and the Heat had tequeños, which were delicious.
We caught up with Lissette and Justin (and got to meet Athena) at Ol Days in the Design District. The gluten free banana bread was so good and obviously the company was the best part.
After drinks at Soho House with Jess and Chris, we got dinner at Casa Isola, which they claim has better spicy vodka pasta than Carbone. Now, I have never been to Carbone, but the pasta was really good, as was the focaccia with calabrian chili honey butter.
Around the corner from Casa Isola and attached to Miami’s Lucali (it felt wrong for my first Lucali visit to be in Florida) is Bay Club, which hosts karaoke on Thursdays. It was a blast with a great range of songs that reminded me of nights out when I lived in Guatemala. A bunch of the staff from Casa Isola came after work which was really fun.
Chris grew up in Miami and added us to their reservation at Cafe La Trova in Little Havana so we could have some Cuban food, The restaurant is like a party with live music (even the bartenders play instruments) and we had delicious apps and drinks—get the potato and cheese empanadas. They even had a mushroom version of ropa vieja and portions were generous. For Dale’s birthday, they brought out flan, tres leches, and bread pudding.
On Saturday, we basically went to Greece at Mandolin, a stellar rec from Cristina. Sit outside and have some Greek wine, saganaki with fresh bread, and seafood (I got the mussels and Dale got the branzino). It’s a beautiful setting and I will not share how many Mamma Mia references I made through the course of our meal.
After dinner, we met Sam and Ale at Dante’s Hifi, a vinyl bar in Wynnwood (also a Cristina rec). Make a reservation to grab a table (you pay a deposit that’s applied to your bill) and get a delicious cocktail while you listen to DJ spin vinyl. You can easily walk to other bars, like the speakeasy inside Coyo Taco.
Other highlights from Miami were virgin piña coladas by the beach and the pool, walking around the design district, massages, and lots of time to read and laugh and spend time together.
Something to read:
I packed two fun beach reads: Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez, a very sweet book about two people who always date people right before they meet their soulmates, and The Pairing by Casey McQuiston, a very horny book about two exes who find themselves on the same European food tour. It will make you want to buy a flight to Italy.
Happy to see my childhood pizza spot, Dani’s, on the NY Times list of the best pizza in the city.
Roll out the red carpet for Bald Ann Dowd
Kentucky gardeners fight hunger with little free produce libraries
We celebrated seven years of This Needs Hot Sauce last week, thank you for all your nice messages!
How celebrity novels really get made
Happy tenth anniversary to 1989, a near perfect pop album and the soundtrack to my senior year of college.
Hillary recommended this gochujang pasta with tofu and I need to try it
It’s Nora Ephron season—an interesting essay on her version of New York
If you’re feeling election anxiety, you’re not alone
Meet The TikTok Anthropologist Mapping L.A.’s International Grocery Stores from
You can find a sample ballot here and get all the info you need to vote here. Down ballot races are so important and if you’re in New York, vote yes on 1 and nix 2-6 (power grabs from Eric Adams)
I’ll talk to you next week! Sending only the best vibes!
xo, Abigail