JOE'S STONE CRAB, MIAMI

The Miami experience is incomplete without Joe's Stone Crab. The iconic joint, which is known for being the favorite of celebrities, two hour wait and Stone Crab. Founder Joseph Weiss, discovered the Florida specialty, Stone Crabs ,and the rest as they say is history. One claw of a Stone crab is harvested, and it regrows. It makes it a pretty sustainable way of sea food fishing, I must say.

Joe's does not take reservations, hence you realize why you always have to be prepared for a two hour wait. Located in the southern part of South beach, and is a walk away from Ocean Drive. A 100 year old institution, which still keeps up its old world dinning charm, in every possible way. A very rare feat of being both Classic and Hip, without compromising on any thing

Joe's is always buzzing with people, who are all waiting for their tables. I tried my best, to see if I could recognise any of the faces, when we finally made it inside. But I had left my glasses at the hotel. Yes, this is the spot, where you easily spot celebrities, any time of the week. People watching game was quite strong, I must add.

While we were waiting for or table, I could not help but notice a plaque(board) which had a list of Dos and Don'ts. Among the many things it mentioned, Cut Off shorts not allowed. So presumably, Joe's has a subtly enforced Dress Code. Make sense to not head from the beach, with flip flops. Good for us , that we love dressing up. From all my previous visits to Florida, I knew that if you are planning a dinner at a hot joint in South Beach, then you should take the time to plan out your outfit.

Tuxedo clad servers hovering, dark woodwork all round, impressive and ornate ceilings, I almost felt if I had taken a trip back in time. Service was impeccable, even if the servers seemed a bit too serious . Our seat was a cross between a booth and a normal table. A bit of exclusivity, in an otherwise crowded and bustling restaurant. Date Night brownie points, for our Maitre'D for sure.

Sadly enough, there was nothing special for kids, in the menu, so we went head and ordered French Fries for our daughter, and an order of Fried Green Tomatoes for us.

 It was time for our piece de resistance - Stone Crabs. Stone Crabs claws are graded according to size and priced accordingly. We ordered a plate of Large Stone Crab Claws. They come boiled, and cold. The shells are cracked, and ready to eat. Served with their famous Mustard Mayo(sorry, forgot to take close up shots). The stone crab claws, with their black tips, were quite a pretty sight, on the white table cloth laden table, amidst a room of ornate wood work.

The crab flesh is pretty sweet, and quite quite fleshy. As we dunked our crab meat in the mustard mayo , we did have to be careful for the juices running by. I know there were paper bibs placed on our table by our server, but we managed pretty well, without them. It was distinctly different in taste from the Dungeness Crab, or the King Crabs of Alaska, or the Blue Crabs of Baltimore. For sea food lovers , it was quite an experience. Stone Crab Claws are harvested in the Crab Season, from October to May. We were there for our Christmas break, and the crab claws could not be any fresher.

As we had expressed a soft regret, that there was no Kids Menu, our server surprised our daughter with some house made Raspberry Sorbet, at the end of the meal.

The food was pricey, like any other fine dinning joint, but the experience was surely very exclusive. Date Night perfection . So if you are planning a trip to Miami Beach, make sure you have time for Joe's Stone Crab.

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