Wellness Wednesday: Plnthouse offers plant-based dining at 1 Hotel
The 1 Hotel prides itself on being a “green” hotel, LEED certified and embracing the use of sustainable materials, preserving natural resources, being eco-friendly and offering an environment of wellness.
Last year’s pop-up on the 1 rooftop featured Prey, James Beard nominated Chef Bun Lai of Miya’s Sushi, sustainable sushi and dishes featuring invasive species like jellyfish and lionfish.
But with the opening of Plnthouse, on the mid level deck of the hotel, the 1 Hotel has taken a giant step towards plant-based food and snacks. Plant–based is the politically correct way to refer to vegan. But this is not the “crunchy granola” type of bland vegan that many of us associate with that word.
A concept conceived by Chef Matthew Kenney through his Plant Lab projects, Plant Food & Wine, in both the original Venice, CA location and here in Miami, have gotten rave reviews. His newest venture, Plnthouse offers light, fast casual breakfast and lunch items in a bright, whitewashed wood indoor and outdoor café.
Not easy to find, one must be really committed to dining at Plnthouse, as you must enter through the main lobby, follow directions to the spa and gym on the mezzanine level, and actually walk past hotel rooms, thru the spa and the fitness center to the café itself. But once inside, the amazing views of the beach and ocean catch you by surprise and you are pleased that you decided to “just keep going”.
Plant-based dining is not new to Miami, but it has been getting more and more attention as both locals and tourists recognize the need to eat clean and fresh on a more regular basis. The farm community in Homestead and other areas continue to turn out fresh and organic produce and Farmer’s Markets can be found almost every day of the week at locations like the Upper East Side, Lincoln Road, The Design District, Arsht Center and Coral Gables Farmer's Markets.
Our lunch at Plnthouse was colorful and flavorful as we dined on a selection of starters, a salad and ¼ sandwich, fresh juices and dessert.
Cool beverages included a Passion fruit Kombucha, Ginger Beer and Green Lemonade and were all refreshing.
Our starters included a rich Lentil Pate that was topped with a cashew dill sour cream, and rice crackers to scoop up the pate.
The Sprouted Garbanzo Hummus included crispy flatbread Za’atar crackers. Both were creamy and a nice starter to share. I was tempted to ask for a few more rice crackers for the lentil pate as it was so good and we ran out before we had finished the pate.
We shared the Roasted Tomato sandwich, which came on Zak The Baker bread and included a bold slice of roasted tomato, turmeric cheddar, avocado, arugula, herb aioli and with a side of fresh Sunshine Farms greens in a light citrus vinaigrette.
A Cauliflower Bowl included quinoa hemp seed tabouli, sprouted chickpea hummus and harissa tahini and was topped with edible flowers and pea shoots.
Very pleased with ourselves for eating so healthy, we still didn’t hesitate when we were offered dessert and the colorful Mango Cheesecake with a smashed Pistachio Crust and topped with lime curd and sliced blueberries was light, sweet and nice final touch to lunch.
Plnthouse is open for breakfast and lunch thru 6 pm and is worth meandering through the serene 1 Hotel. Order at the long counter and take a seat, either inside or outside under an umbrella and with those amazing ocean views that only Miami Beach has to offer.
Plnthouse
2341 Collins Ave.
Miami Beach, FL
305 604 1000
Photo Credit: Andrew Giambarba for MIAbites