Latest news with #Itamae

Miami Herald
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
This Miami restaurant had an award-winning chef and a Michelin nod. Now it's closing
In 2024, a year after she opened her Peruvian restaurant Maty's in Midtown, Miami chef Valerie Chang won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: South, ending a 14-year drought for Miami. Now Maty's — named for Chang's Peruvian grandmother — is closing for good after only two years. Chang, whose first Miami spot was Itamae, a counter serving Peruvian-Japanese cuisine at a local food hall she opened with her brother Nando and father Fernando, thanked customers on her Instagram account for patronizing the restaurant, which was recommended in the Michelin Guide. 'Our dad showed us very early on that being in the restaurant could give us an opportunity to struggle a little less — that perhaps we weren't bound only by what our parents could give us, but by what we could also make with our own hands,' she wrote. 'As this chapter comes to an end for me, I want to take this moment to express my deepest gratitude for everyone who has allowed me to cook for them at Maty's over the past two years. We opened this restaurant to honor our grandmother, Maty, in the best way we know how — through food.' Since April, the restaurant at 3255 NE First Ave., had been hosting a residency by Itamae, which served tiraditos, ceviches and nigiris as well as other dishes that made the Changs a hit in the city. The residency will continue through July 5. Meanwhile, Nando Chang, who earned the 2025 Best Chef: South award just a year after his sister, will continue to focus on his 10-seat omakase counter, Itamae Ao, which is located in a smaller room attached to the main Maty's restaurant. Chang, who also earned a Michelin star for Itamae Ao this year, plans to expand the counter's days of operation to Tuesday through Saturday, as well as adding new items to the menu. There's no word on what's next for Val Chang or the former Maty's space.


Axios
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Axios
Maty's, Midtown's beloved Peruvian restaurant, is closing
Maty's, the acclaimed Midtown Peruvian restaurant, announced Thursday it is closing. Why it matters: In the two years since it opened, the restaurant has rightfully earned its place within Miami's dining scene, securing a spot on Florida's growing list of Michelin Guide restaurants and boasting one of the nation's top chefs. Owner and chef Valerie Chang won the Best Chef: South category at the 33rd annual James Beard Awards last year. What they're saying: "We opened this restaurant to honor our grandmother, Maty, in the best way we know how—through food," Chang wrote on her Instagram. "Our dad showed us very early on that being in the restaurant could give us an opportunity to struggle a little less — that perhaps we weren't bound only by what our parents could give us, but by what we could also make with our own hands." "As this chapter comes to an end for me, I want to take this moment to express my deepest gratitude for everyone who has allowed me to cook for them at Maty's over the past two years," she wrote. Flashback: Chang, her brother Nando Chang (of Itamae AO, also in Midtown) and their father, Fernando, operated the now-closed restaurant Itamae. The trio also earned a James Beard nomination. What's next: No reasons were cited for the closure, but in her post, Chang wrote she was "excited to share what's next! Nos vemos pronto."


Miami Herald
17-06-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
How climate change could be changing our everyday lives in South Florida
South Florida How climate change could be changing our everyday lives in South Florida This collection of stories explores the practical effects of climate change on various parts of life in South Florida. Researchers in Miami have identified that around half of the city's signature native trees, such as live oaks and sabal palms, face risk from increasing temperatures due to climate change. And frequent extreme weather events have prompted spikes in food prices on South Florida menus. Read the stories below. Kenneth Feeley, UM biology professor and Director of the Gifford Arboretum Department of Biology, measures a tree on campus. His research found that more than half of Miami's trees will be stressed by rising temperatures. By Ashley Miznazi NO. 1: ABOUT HALF OF MIAMI'S NATIVE TREES AT RISK FROM RISING TEMPS. WHAT SHOULD WE PLANT NOW? 'Unfortunately many trees will be lost and that's a consequence of modern climate change' | Published December 6, 2024 | Read Full Story by Ashley Miznazi Chefs Val and Nando Chang at the counter of the original Itamae at the former St. Roch Market (now MIA Market), where they opened in 2018. Val Chang hosted the James Beard Foundation at her restaurant, Maty's, on Jan. 22 to discuss how climate change is disrupting the restaurant and farming industries. By MATIAS J. OCNER NO. 2: RISING PRICES ON SOUTH FLORIDA MENUS? RISING COSTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE CONTRIBUTE 'Climate change has a direct impact on the supply chain that your favorite chefs depend on.' | Published January 24, 2025 | Read Full Story by Ashley Miznazi No children were playing on the dinosaur or pony ride at the Little River Pocket Mini Park Tuesday afternoon, Nov. 9, 2021, after the park was flooded with King Tide waters. This type of flooding could be much more common in the future as sea levels rise. By Emily Michot NO. 3: WE ANSWER YOUR CLIMATE QUESTIONS: HOW MUCH SEA LEVEL RISE IS MIAMI EXPECTING? Exactly how high will the tide rise? Scientists have a prediction. | Published April 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by Alex Harris A resident walks with her belongings through the flooded N 15th St in North Tampa, on Thursday, October 10, 2024, a day after Hurricane Milton crossed Florida's Gulf Coast. By Pedro Portal NO. 4: FLORIDA MOST AT RISK OF 'SEVERE COASTAL FLOODING.' NEW RESEARCH SHOWS WHERE 'This is a level of exposure that's going to require a massive amount of planning and investment in coastal resilience.' | Published April 2, 2025 | Read Full Story by Denise Hruby The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.

Miami Herald
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
Two Miami chefs, one family: Brother wins top award his sister won last year
Nando Chang, the Peruvian-born chef whose Miami restaurant Itamae Ao earned its first Michelin star this year, has just won a James Beard Award — the exact same award his sister Val won a year ago. Chang, who opened Itamae Ao in 2024, was named Best Chef: South at a ceremony Monday night at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. An emotional Chang thanked his parents, his wife Lauren, brothe Elvis and 'my favorite chef and sister, Val.' He talked about being a Peruvian of Chinese descent, an identity that was 'interesting and at times confusing' and of his love for his adopted country, despite the difficult times for immigrants now. 'I want to say I could not be prouder . . . to be a part of this beautiful country,' he said. 'Thank you, America, and thank you, Miami. ' He also thanked the James Beard Foundation for their commitment to diversity: 'All food is immigrant and immigrants make America great.' The Changs and their father Fernando opened the first iteration of Itamae as a food counter at MIA Market in the Design District (then called St. Roch Market) in 2018. The restaurant served Nikkei cuisine, a fusion of Peruvian and Japanese fare and eventually went on to open as a standalone restaurant across the Palm Court from its original location. The first version of Itamae closed in 2023 to make way for the future. As his sister turned to the opening of Maty's, her Peruvian restaurant named for their grandmother, Nando Chang focused on creating Itamae Ao, a 10-seat wonder that serves a meticulous and imaginative chef's choice menu of Japanese-Peruvian bites highlighting specially dry-aged fish. The restaurant is located through a separate door inside Maty's, and the menu includes stunning examples of sashimi, nigiri, anticuchos and aguadito, highlighting Chang's skill at enhancing Japanese techniques with Peruvian flavors. Chang had long wanted to focus on a more personal dining experience that was more elevated and intimate than he was able to provide at the first Itamae. 'It's something I've dreamed of for a long time, to go straight to omakase,' he told the Miami Herald in 2023. 'That's the kind of experience I want to provide.' In April, Chang brought back the original Itamae to take over the Maty's space for a couple of months. That residency is ongoing at the moment, but Chang is still intensely focused on the intricacies of the dishes at Itamae Ao. 'We want every single bite to make you go 'Whoa!' ' he said.


Axios
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
What do the pope and this Miami chef have in common? Love for Peru.
If you didn't already believe that eating at Maty's was a religious experience, get this: Chef Valerie Chang Cumpa hails from the same Peruvian town where Pope Leo XIV served as bishop. Catch up quick: The Chinese-Peruvian chef — a member of the award-winning Chang family that ran Itamae together — grew up in Chiclayo, Peru, before moving to Miami at age 10. Pope Leo, a naturalized Peruvian citizen, served as bishop of Chiclayo until 2023. His ascendance to the papacy has brought newfound attention to the Peruvian community there. One restaurant, Las Americas, has a sign outside its door that reads: "The pope ate here." "In Chiclayo, we're very proud of our food," Chang Cumpa tells Axios. What they're saying: Chang Cumpa says she had her first communion in Chiclayo's main cathedral, where Pope Leo has held Mass. Some of her family members have met him before. Chang Cumpa was on her way to work last week as she listened to the newly elected pope's first public address. When the pope switched from Italian to Spanish to send a message to his Peruvian diocese, she was beside herself. "I honestly thought he was going to speak in English. When he said that about Chiclayo, I couldn't believe it. How beautiful. My home town." The big picture: Chang Cumpa, a James Beard Award-winning chef, celebrates her family's roots at Maty's, her Peruvian restaurant in Midtown named after her late grandmother. One of the many family photos that hang on the wall — of her great-grandparents' wedding — is from 1928. "It's beyond the food. It's a love letter to thank my grandma for everything she did," Chang Cumpa said in a recent episode of Toast web series " Signature Dish." State of play: Chang Cumpa tells Axios that Miami's diversity has propelled the 305 into the culinary capital it is today. In her own family, Chang Cumpa says she doesn't take the awards or recognition for granted. Her brother is Michelin-star chef Nando Chang of Itamae Ao, and their father, Fernando "Papa" Chang, heads up B-Side at 1-800-Lucky. "We're still immigrants. We still have that immigrant fight and that desire to do right by our parents, who did a lot of fighting." Zoom in: On the Toast show, Chang Cumpa says the most popular dish at Maty's is the scallop cebiche — a savory seafood dome covered with sliced grapes and topped with cilantro leche de tigre. "Basically every table that comes in to eat orders one of these," Chang Cumpa tells host Sophia Roe. Chef's recs: Here are chef Valerie's favorite Peruvian restaurants in Miami (that are not owned by her family).