MIAMI – Carolina Sánchez and Iñaki Murua, the married chefs behind the Michelin-starred restaurant Ikaro in Spain, share their love at Momento, their new “home” in Downtown Miami.
The restaurant’s old hand-carved wooden door was from an old hacienda in southern Ecuador’s Andes mountains. The vintage piece from the area of Cuenca, where Sánchez was born, sets the tone.
The new dinner menu includes the smokey flavors of slow-cooked wood-fired dishes and neapia, a specialty of the jungle. The Amazon Tiradito is new. The Espuma de Abatonca is from Ikaro.
“Tonka is a spice that we like very much ... It has a little bit of bread, a little bit of chocolate, and coffee ... The idea is to take it with a spoon and break it a little bit,” said Sánchez, the first woman from Ecuador to become a Michelin-starred chef.
She said the wood-fired Branzino is the most special.
“This is a recipe that we love, but also has a sentimental side because it’s a recipe that belonged to my grandmother,” Sánchez said adding, “For me, that is very special because she was one of the inspirations for me to become a chef.”
The restaurant also serves five signature cocktails: The Momento Sunset Mule, The European Lavender Gin, The European Basil Gin, The Midnight Espresso Martini, and The Caribbean Old Fashioned. But more than half of Momento’s 11-page drinks menu is for wine.
Murua was born in Laguardia, Spain. Sánchez met him while they were students at the Basque Culinary Center. The couple worked at other restaurants and later opened Ikaro in Logroño, La Rioja. The Michelin Guide took notice and awarded them a star for high-quality cooking in 2018.
The innovative chefs aim to continue blending their Ecuadorian and Basque traditions with that same level of excellence at Momento, at 1306 North Miami Ave. Look for the coral Spanish colonial home decorated with bougainvilleas.