New York’s famous Michelin-starred Madison Avenue restaurant, Caviar Russe has just opened their second location in downtown Miami. Currently, a boutique is open for uber-lux gift baskets and caviar to go in the luxurious Four Seasons tower on Brickell Ave. A full-scale restaurant helmed by Chef David Valencia at the location isn’t far behind, opening soon with a fantastic raw bar and crudo-inspired menu with dishes made famous by Caviar Russe in Manhattan.
As New Year’s is right around the corner, and Champagne and caviar go together like peanut butter and jelly, we thought we’d talk to Ilya Panchernikov, the Managing Director of Caviar Russe to get some tips on caviar at holiday time.
What pairs best with caviar on a New Year’s menu?
With the closing of one year and the start of another, New Years is all about celebration of life. When pairing with caviar, a brut champagne is our drink of choice
What Champagne do you like to serve at Caviar Russe?
A few of our favorites are Krug, Dom Perignon and Billecart-Salmon. There is such a balance and elegance amongst these three.
Is Caviar the ultimate hostess gift?
Gifting has just become so generic lately. The host is usually expecting either a bottle of wine, flowers, or a fruit basket of some sort. Gifting someone caviar is the ultimate ‘thank you’ which will have the hostess remembering you for years to come. It’s the gift for those who have it all.
How did you decide to choose downtown Miami as your second location?
We had the opportunity to make our first expansion in many of the major “food” cities all over the world— such as Vegas, LA, Chicago, San Francisco, London, and Hong Kong. But we chose Miami because it has always remained close to our and our customer’s hearts, as it’s considered the “sixth borough”. In addition, many of our clients are South Americans and kept asking for Caviar Russe to come to Miami. We quickly realized that Miami has such an incredible potential for growth that this was where we decided to set up shop.
What is the biggest misconception about caviar?
In my experience there are two big misconceptions. The first is that there is some sort of etiquette that you need to adhere to when eating caviar, which is completely false! Caviar is very special and is not an everyday occurrence, so when you do have a chance to eat the world’s most precious delicacy enjoy it the way you like.
The second is that once you’ve tasted caviar you know if you like it. I’ve heard people say many times is “I tried caviar at a wedding and I really don’t like it.” Unfortunately, so many times people try caviar for their first time is at a large gathering where the caviar happens to be subpar and it ruins their “first time experience”. My recommendation is to always experience caviar from a reputable dealer and in a beautiful setting, like Caviar Russe.
