Sunny’s at The Hall South Beach: Chef Spike Mendelsohn Interview
We had the opportunity to stop by the boho chic boutique hotel, The Hall South Beach, and check out the new menu at Sunny’s, a super causal beachy outdoor restaurant headed by restaurateur Chef Spike Mendelsohn, a former Top Chef contender. We’ll go over the highlights of our dinner at Sunny’s at The Hall South Beach, and then dive into an interview with Chef Spike Mendelsohn himself.
Here are is my recommendation for your cocktail, appetizer, entrée, and dessert from Sunny’s All Day Menu:
Start off with one of Sunny’s staple cocktails, the Shugga N’ Rum. This rum cocktail is made with fresh Guarapo and Lemongrass Stalks that are passed through a sugar cane press to extract the raw juice. The juice is shaken alongside 1.5oz of Blackwell Spiced Rum and served over ice. The Shugga N’Rum makes the rum the star of the show while contributing fine flavors from the supporting cast. It is not overly sweet and you can taste the flavors of the rum while enjoying the lemongrass flavor and sweetness from the guarapo.
The Risotto Balls were simply delicious, this is a MUST HAVE! Sicilian style rice aka Risotto is mixed Mozzarella, and Peas, and with perfumed with Saffron. Rice balls are formed and deep fried in panko then paired with Lemon Aioli sauce on the side. The prominent saffron flavors shine through and pair well with the lemon aioli. The contrast in textures from the crunchy exterior and decadently creamy interior embodies a true foodgasm. The risotto is mushy and creamy on it’s own, but the addition of mozzarella takes the creaminess to the next level. The peas add a nice punch of flavored sweetness with each bite. This is easily one of the finer foods I’ve eating in some time.
The Panther Coffee Spiked Strip Steak is my recommendation for entrée. I have an affinity for steak, so a perfectly cooked strip steak is about as good as it gets for me. The strip steak is sliced against the grain, garnished with some Pickled Red Onions then paired with Shishito Peppers and Mojo Sauce. The strip steak is cooked without blemish with a slightly crusty exterior and soft melt in your mouth interior.
I’m a huge fan of the Orange Dreamsicle for dessert. Be forewarned, this may put you into a sugar coma, this dessert is for those who have an affinity for sweetness! The Orange Dreamsicle is layered with Vanilla Sponge Cake, homemade Orange Curd, Orange Cream Cheese Mousse and toasted Coconut Crunch. Orange is not part of your typical dessert flavor profile, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. The soft cakey texture from the sponge cake paired with the soft, mushy and creamy mouth feels from the orange curd and mousse contrasted by the crunchy texture from the toasted coconut shreds and frosted flake combo was stellar.
After our sweet dinner, I had the chance to interview Chef Spike Mendelsohn:
JB: How did you first enter the culinary world?
Spike:
“I come from a restaurant family, so my family history dates back from Montreal, Canada. Big Greek family full of restaurateurs. Started washing dishes, line cook, sautee cook, back to dish washing, haha. You know a little bit of everything. That’s how I started in the industry.”
JB: What is your connection to Sunny’s?
Spike:
“Sunny’s is my conceptualization. It’s the name of my grandfather who used to come down to Florida all the time and he loved it and we would always meet up for breakfast. So when I had the opportunity to open up an all day restaurant I named it Sunny’s. The partnership made sense because it’s a great hotel group, good people at the table, great location, great vibe, and that’s how the concept started.”
JB: Describe Sunny’s concept as a restaurant.
Spike:
“The concept for Sunny’s is about beach food, laid back stuff, food from around the world that we’ve eaten in our travels whether were at Bali eating chicken in a bag or in Vietnam eating beef salad with pummelo, radishes ,and pickled vegetables. It was all about enjoying beach side food. Mixing that with healthy items as well like a juice bar, turmeric shot, acai bowls, avocado tacos, all that kind of food you know, easy going. We like to call it beach eats by beach bums.”
JB: What is your favorite menu item?
Spike:
“My favorite menu item, has to be the short ribs. The grilled short ribs. They’re sliced super thin and they’re served over coconut rice and green scallions with a romesco sauce. I love that one. The poke bowl is off the charts, you have to come back for that one!”
JB: Who or what have been your biggest culinary influences?
Spike: “My biggest influence would have to be my family because they’re all in the business, so that just came second nature.”
JB: Are there any South Florida hidden gems that you like to eat at?
Spike:
“The restaurants here in Miami have been awesome. Recently I’ve been enjoying Mediterranean food at Mandolin. I thought that was great. Dale Talde opened up his place which I thought was really cool. Puerto Sagua, I been there three times this week. I’m going there again in about an hour again. I’ve been really busy on my property so I haven’t had time to enjoy the outdoor eating as much as I usually would. But once this property is fully launched, I’ll get out there.”
JB: If you were forced to eat just one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Spike:
“If I were forced to eat just 1 thing for the rest of my life.. so if I said pizza would I be allowed to have like a vegetarian pizza one day and like a pulled pork another day?? I think I’d do pizza because you can probably do anything for toppings. So if I wanted tacos, alright, I guess it’s taco toppings on a pizza today!”
JB: What do you cook the most at home?
Spike:
“Sandwiches. I make killer sandwiches, I should open a sandwich place. But yea those gems are for me only and my friends. The other day I made like a chicken salad sandwich. It had munster cheese, turkey, bacon, tomatoes, lettuce, mustard, and it had like all these layers. I like making these big sandwiches that you see at delis and just sitting in front of the television and pounding them by myself.”