March 15, 2011 Power Rankings

QUICK HITS:

♦ Debating whether to bump Eos and Gigi off the rankings until we’ve returned post-chef departures. Will keep them on for now and try to get out there soon… Also, looking forward to checking out the new menu at Area 31. If you’ve been, leave a comment below and let us know what you thought.

♦ And speaking of departed chefs, Short Order is reporting that Gigi’s ex, Jeff McInnis, is headed back to the beach to team up with Lime Fresh Mexican founder John Kunkel. Tentative name for the project? Lemon.

♦ Lots of attention paid this week to the battle between the food trucks and the City of Miami, with a good amount of the coverage coming from Coconut Grove Grapevine. While Miami Voice is pushing to get Mayor Alvarez recalled, Miami Stomach will monitor the food truck situation closely and act accordingly.

♦ April 1st is the start of a month-long celebration of poetry in Miami. O, Miami (not to be confused with the Irish celebration, O’Miami) will include a poetry event for foodies and is calling for poems about restaurants. More info can be found here and here (PDF). Get your quills out and start your engines.

(Last Week’s Rankings in Parentheses)

1. NAOE (1)

2. Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink (2)

3. Red Light (3)

4. Sakaya Kitchen (4)

5. BLT Steak (5)

6. Buena Vista Bistro (6)

7. GastroPod (7)

8. Eos (8)

9. Zuma (9)

10. Hiro’s Yakko-San (10)

11. Michy’s (11)