Because he believed that Chinese cuisine was “underrepresented” in Miami Beach’s “SoFi” — South of Fifth — area, entrepreneur Ken Ray decided to open “JIA,” which is described as a “modern Chinese dinner club,” at 808 1st Street.▫️
After doing some background research, we found out the kitchen is reportedly headed by Executive Chef Weng Choon “William” Lai, who has received the Gold Award at the Chinese Cuisine World Championship Competition (2016), the Gold Award at the 19th FHC China International Culinary Arts Competition (2017), and the Asian Gourmet Chef Individual Special Gold Award (2017). He has been associated with an array of restaurants in Beijing, Thailand, Cambodia, and Macau (where he worked at the Michelin guide-listed Pak Loh Chiu Chow).
▫️
Lai told Miami Living, “Jia’s menu fuses authentic Chinese delicacies with a contemporary twist that emboldens each dish with a variety of seasonings and spices to create that strong depth of flavor.” But flavor was lacking from the dishes we had sampled.
▫️
We started with the “Northern Shrimp Dumplings,” ($18, BEFORE tax and tip). These crescent-shaped dough wrappers are typically filed with a meat and chopped veggies. They’re then boiled and served with a dipping sauce. While legend has it that a doctor named Zhang Zhongjing introduced this dish some 1800 years ago (during the Eastern Han Dynasty) to cure disease and address frostbite, JIA’s offering could have used some medical attention of its own. The four (4) pieces we received were watery bland with none of the sweet, creamy notes you’d usually associate with a dish of this sort.
▫️
For some $22 (after tax and tip), we not only expected more, but better, and rated this sad, shrimpy dish an “F.”
▫️
At $5.50 a piece, they couldn’t have been more shellfish.
.
.
.
#lucasaferrara @jia_miami #jia #chinese #chinesefood #asian #asianfood #miamifood #food #foodie #foodies #restaurant #restaurants #foodreview #foodreviews #dumpling #dumplings #shrimp #miamifoodies #shrimpdumplings #foodcritic #fish #southbeach #seafoodlover #southbeachfood #shellfish #seafood #miamifoodie #southbeachrestaurant