Sakaya Kitchen Downtown

Find the pig - it will light the way. Much to my delight, Chef Richard Hales is methodically expanding his Sakaya Kitchen empire south from Midtown and into downtown Miami with his second restaurant at 125 SE 3rd Avenue. A lot has been said about Sakaya Kitchen here at Brickell Life and my obsession with Richard's creative funked up mix of Korean food meets classical French training in bowl of uniquely distinctive and serious flavor - and the downtown location delivers the goods.

"NO Frills just god f'n Food" is Sakaya Kitchen's pseudo mission and smarter words could not ring truer. Fast, fresh, local, organic and sustainable all combine into an eclectic mix of flavors where a majority of the chalkboard menu's components are made from scratch in-house. Sure you may order at the counter, but they are not f'ing around here.

Highlights for me at both downtown and midtown include fluffy pork buns stuffed with 8-hr roasted pork, cuke pickles and Ssamjang; bulgogi anything from lettuce wraps to angus beef ssam and a burger that gets topped with pork belly, cheese, tots, Ssamjang and spicy mayo. Also don't forget to check out the cracklin' duck herb sandwich with black plum and cilantro; honey orange ribs; kimchi; addictive spicy pork croquetas; Korean fried chicken wings; and ginger brussel sprouts that will make you a believer. They are also brewing locally roasted and jamming Panther Coffee.

And just like its Midtown counterpart, the downtown location also plays great tunes. On any given day or night, you might hear old school Sonic Youth or Mudhoney playing over the loudspeakers followed up by Louis Armstrong and then an Elvis tune. The food is as eclectic as the music and masterful in its own right.

Sakaya Kitchen's new downtown location is open Monday - Friday from 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 12:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. Hit them up at 305-371-2511 or follow them on Twitter at @sakayakitchen or on Facebook. Oh, and don't forget to check out their food trucks Dim Ssam a GoGo and the Baketress Dessert Truck.

Go visit. Say hello from me and break bread with Richard and his crew. They are doing things right.