Chef-owner Eduardo Pria introduced ingredients like ancho chilies, and nopales (cactus paddles) to South Florida's upscale dining scene in 1993. Inside his eatery, amid colorful Mexican kitsch, you can sample unusual dishes like the achiote crepes stuffed with cuitlacoche (a fungus native to Mexico that grows on cornhusks); Florida blue-crab cakes with sweet yellow corn, napped in puebla mole and smoky chipotle sauce; and a cream of cilantro soup (which actually contains no dairy aside from the cotija cheese sprinkled on top). Pria's specials change often, and a daily new dish might include escargots sautéed with white wine and onions, or grilled nopales layered with marinated pork loin and achiote for a new take on bocadillo. For entrées, try something less Mexican but tasty and tantalizing: the trio of ruby-colored Colorado lamb chops brushed with cilantro-garlic oil and served with a wild-mushroom-stuffed tamale and a miniature cornhusk boat of puréed black beans.
Readers' Choice: Rocco's Tacos