Casa Zeru — Restaurant in Miami

I'm Spanish. This Spanish restaurant is OK for the US. If you don't have high expectations of Spanish food (e.g. you've never been exposed to the reasons why Spanish food is one of the best in the world), then you might find the food to be even great. The appetizers were good and tasty (mussels and jamon croquetas, txangurron, even the mojo picon octopus). But it's Spanish comfort food. It'd be depressing to get this wrong. The mains were meh and disappointing. Black squid ink socarrat was too sweet and too salty at the same time. It lacked flavor, the seafood was not cooked with the broth and rice. First bites were even passable, but as you'd eat more you'd become tired of the food. What was really disappointing was the fish. We ordered a $100 fish, we had high expectations of it and it turned out to be a mediocre dorada with an even sinful treatment and grilling of the fish; many parts were bitter, others were underwhelming. Overall - it had none of the crispiness and subtle but powerful taste that a piece of fish should have when cooked properly on a Josper grill. In addition to that, the dressing - made with oil, broth, and vinegar - was sour and had too much vinegar. Ah, and the patatas bravas are pretty terrible.

I understand I'm not the audience for this kind of restaurant. The place is nice-looking, but staff is too distracted - pretending to look busy but being quite sloppy with their service - and noise level is really high. Our drinks were not filled in several times, and had to ask for the server's attention many times. I couldn't say I enjoyed the experience. Maybe if I had had only the appetizers I'd have. But ultimately I come to these restaurants for the food, and this restaurant is just a faint shade of what it could really become. Especially for a total of $350 (including service tax) for a...

I recently dined at Zeru with a group of six, taking advantage of their Miami Spice Lunch menu. Being a Miami native and recently have had the opportunity to live and travel to other cities including Barcelona, I feel I have some experience that informs my review.

Pros: 🍷🍰🦪 Zeru offers a pleasing ambiance, thanks to its tasteful decor, and benefits from a convenient location. The wine selection is diverse and well-curated. Their Miami Spice menu is a great option, especially for larger groups like ours. In terms of food, the mussels croquettes and Crema Catalan dessert stood out as highlights.

Cons: 🦀 🥘🤵🏻 However, there were areas that left room for improvement. The crab dish was disappointingly too fishy, while the gazpacho was just okay. The rice was overly salty and overcooked to the point where it was hard to identify as rice.

In terms of service, the soccarat, which came family-style (traditional), could have been better presented by being served tableside. It would have prevented the awkward reaching and accidental spillage of black rice on the table—a mishap that was never cleaned up. Moreover, despite the restaurant not being too busy, we had to actively flag down staff for water refills which interrupted the flow of our conversation. We were never asked if we'd like to order more wine, a missed sale opportunity. We also had a friend show up late and was never offered anything. Not a glass of water or even the wine list, another missed sales opportunity.

Overall, while Zeru has a lot going for it in terms of ambiance and some menu items, there are notable areas in food quality and service that could benefit from attention. Given these issues, I don't plan on returning. If the restaurant wishes to improve its customer experience, these are areas that...

If you love Tapas, we highly recommend Zeru for its wonderful variety of simple and complex dishes. My husband and I created our own tasting menu ordering 10 tapas. In short, we were not disappointed with any one of them. However, the exciting part of the experience was rating these dishes in order of preference. In the “I just can’t have enough of these” category: The ham croquettes with Pata Negra; the Baby Squid in Sepia Ink Socarrat (rice) with prawns; and the Artichokes with Pata Negra. The combination of flavors was just incredible. In the “I will definitively order these again” category: Blue fin tuna tartar with infused saffron, black truffles and bits of sundried tomatoes; and Bonito Montaditos, a simple little dish topped with an anchovy fillet that hits it out of the park. In the “surprisingly wonderful” category: The Roasted Sardines. I know it may not be for everyone, but these were perfectly roasted and crispy over a slice of tomato. If you really want the taste of northern Spain, you have to try these. In the “these are really good” category: The cured salmon tiradito; Scallops (generous portion) with yuzu and ginger; and the Octopus “a la Gallega” just offered a nice complement in between all the other dishes. Finally finished the medley with the Manchego Cheese Fondat with Vanilla Ice Cream. Yes, cheese and ice cream, they do pair exceptionally on this dish. The service was IMPECABLE! Our waiter Miguel was wonderful as well as the rest of the staff. The manager, Alejandro was very attentive and welcomed our feedback. We will definitively go back and savor more dishes with friends and family. Great to have such wonderful cuisine in Miami with extraordinary service. Cannot say that about all of...