Bar Bucce — Restaurant in Miami

Editing to update

My original review is below, along with a response from management, inviting me to email them to discuss what happened. I did in fact take the time to email them, and received a reply a week later apologizing profusely for the delayed response, but with no actual solution or discussion, asking me to now please provide a contact phone number and convenient time so that someone named Claire could call me. Foolishly, I actually bothered to oblige them with their requests, and I NEVER HEARD BACK from them again. Zero stars.

——————————————————————————- Original review:

We went when they first opened. The food was delicious and the service was perfect UNTIL…

We dined at the bar and were raving about the food and service to the bartender who was looking after us. The couple next to us had been offered small samples of espresso martini and after we finished our food the bartender INSISTED we try the espresso martini too. It was heavily implied that they would be a little gift from the bartender. We declined several times but I finally relented and accepted it, and my partner declined altogether. But the bartender would not let up and finally convinced her to try the ice cream instead of the martini. We didn’t receive a little taste of either- they were both full size. Also, I had tried their sparkling wine by the glass which I found to be delicious, and the bartender showed me what it was and informed me it was available for sale in the shop.

We also briefly met the owner and discussed the really horrible mosquito situation which killed the ambiance because all the guests were being eaten alive. He said they were working on it.

So after having a totally delightful evening (minus the mosquitos), raving about the new neighborhood spot, and beyond generous welcoming (ha!) we were presented with the bill that included an espresso martini, an ice cream parfait and a bottle of wine which I did not actually order. Turns out the martini and ice cream were not gifts, and the bartender had taken it upon himself to put a bottle of wine to go on our bill. Since I had planned on buying one, I was displeased that he went ahead and charged us when I hadn’t asked, but did buy it. When we looked at the bottle at home, it had already been partially opened (the foil had been removed but cork intact).

This beyond pushy upselling was a deal breaker and so we won’t be back. Really too bad because the clams and pizza were totally delicious and we LOVED having this spot as an easy...

Besides being a totally feel-good name to scream out loud, “Bar Bucce!” makes the best pizza (sauce-to-crust) in town. Being from New Haven, and of Italian descent on every side possible, we pride ourselves as being legit pizza snobs. "Apizza," as we call it, is our lifeline. Growing-up, Friday nights were “Pizza Nights,” stemming from an old Catholic tradition of abstaining from meat on Friday. Fridays were white sauce with broccoli, tomato pie (no cheese), button mushrooms galore, and the occasional, anchovy. These Miami pizza places with their honey drizzles, leeks, and truffles can be tasty, but mostly, feel cookie-cutter and precious. Bar Bucce is original, straight-shooter goodness. The dough is wizard-like magic of sweet, sour, and savory that makes its toppings the supporting star. The crust, with just enough dusty oven-char to make your lips messy, is a bonus meal, all by itself. It makes me feel like a kid again, collecting everyone’s pieces of crust as if it were garbage (ha!) I dream of Chef Mike’s Amatriciana (which I can never pronounce correctly) with its wafer-thin triangles, melty onions, and eye-candy nuggets of guanciale. And the caponata is so tasty that it might convince you to become a vegetarian, cajoling you with its gobs of sweet-and-sour tomatoes and eggplants. Who knew eggplant was this sexy? Then, there’s the wonderful element of surprise — the excellent pizza-friendly beverages that roam the globe. I love that you can place your take-out order and cool-off with a mineral-bomb glass of Slovenian white, then jump over to France in their bottle shop for a classic Premier Cru Chablis. Of course, there’s other treats like artisanal amari, sake, beer, and summertime spritzes, but this is a Pizza Loves Wine (and Wine Loves Pizza) kind-of joint at...

I visited Bar Bucce on Friday with friends and unfortunately left feeling disappointed. While I don’t mind paying higher prices for great food and service, the overall experience didn’t match the cost.

There is a $20 corkage fee for wine, even though you must purchase the bottle at the restaurant. You then have to pick it up yourself, take it to the cashier to open, and bring it back to your table, there’s no table service for wine. The same applies to food orders; you have to get up from your table and order at the cashier, as no one comes to take your order.

The pizza was $32, which I would gladly pay for an exceptional pizza, but it did not meet that standard compared to other places I’ve been. On the positive side, the Grill Shrooms and the Lamb & Beef Spiedino were excellent and definitely worth ordering.

On top of that, the location is right next to the train tracks, so when a train passes by, it’s so loud that you can’t talk because you can’t hear anything for a while.

Overall, I appreciate unique concepts and am happy to spend money when the quality and service match the price, but in this case, I left disappointed with both the pizza and the overall...