Dave Jamaican Bakery and Restaurant
700 NW 183rd St.
Miami Gardens
305-652-1231
Okay, there are like, five tables in the "dining room," and that dining room closes by 5:00 p.m. most afternoons (8:00 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays), so calling this modest cinderblock structure a bakery and restaurant might be stretching it. Inside, Dave is little more than a counter, the left side devoted to bakery sales (breads, patties, pastries), and the right to take-out orders of savory items. If "restaurant" is an overstatement, "savory" might be an understatement. The jerk pork is addictively seasoned; just spicy enough to require you to take a forkful of rice every third bite or so. The portion is generous, accompanied by a huge mound of rice and pigeon peas (your choice of white rice, rice and peas, or butter beans). Braised oxtail, the most expensive entrée, is slow-cooked and fork-tender, with a multilayer depth of home-cooked flavor. The brief menu is rounded out by a daily soup, a few curries, including goat, and a variety of fish dishes. The patties are good and freshly baked, available in mild or spicy. Dave also prepares Jamaican-style sourdough bread and a deliciously moist, fruit-studded, sweetly spiced Easter bun.
