Spanish Restaurant Near Me on the Miami River: Jamón Ibérico Pata Negra

Type spanish restaurant near me into a phone from a Brickell high-rise or a downtown Miami hotel, and one of the most personal answers sits by the water at 10 SW South River Drive. Jamón Ibérico Pata Negra is a Spanish restaurant on the south bank of the Miami River, at the eastern edge of Little Havana, run by Spanish-born executive chef Felipe Perez. His menu travels across Spain, from Galician octopus and Bilbao-style cod to Valencian rice, Catalan fideuá and hand-carved Iberian ham.

What sets Pata Negra apart from Miami's newer tapas bars is focus. The name refers to the black-hoofed Iberian pig, and cured ham is treated as the house specialty rather than a side board. Perez presents himself as a master delicatessen as well as a chef, and the opening section of the menu reads like a Spanish charcuterie counter. OpenTable reviewers call it a place with food with heart, not the usual touristy Spanish restaurant, and many mention the chef coming over to their table.

Start with the jamón. A 4-ounce plate of Jamón Ibérico de Bellota 5J costs $65, and a 2-ounce half portion is $37. The combination of 5J ham and Manchego is $52, while Serrano ham with Manchego is a gentler $28. The same hams show up in the section called Huevos Rotos de Felipe, the chef's broken eggs: topped with 5J they are $39, with Serrano $22, and with chorizo, lomo and Serrano $27. Chistorra with fried green peppers is another version at $22.

The tapas list covers most of Spain's coastline. Pulpo a la gallega, the Galician octopus, is $26, and garlic shrimp, listed as camarones al ajillo, costs $19. Grilled razor clams, navajas a la plancha, are $39, and clams in green sauce are $22. For something fried, the Serrano ham croquetas and codfish croquetas are $17 each, and piquillo peppers stuffed with cod are $20. Patatas bravas and a pincho of tortilla española each cost $14, enough for a quick weekday lunch.

Rice is the reason many guests return. The house list includes paella rústica valenciana with chicken and seafood for $31, seafood paella for $37 and arroz negro with cuttlefish for $31. Fideuá, the Catalan noodle dish cooked in a paella pan with seafood, is $37. The most festive choice is arroz caldoso with Maine lobster at $55, a brothy rice served wetter than paella. There is also a vegetarian paella for $28 and arroz a la costra, scallops and shrimp under an egg crust, at $41.

The large plates are built for groups. Cochinillo asado, roast suckling pig in its own juices, comes as a quarter for $72, a half for $143 or a whole pig for $286, a natural centerpiece for a family celebration. The 35-ounce Angus ribeye, called the super chuletón, is $77 and arrives flambéed with rum. From the fish list, bacalao a la bilbaína is $39, the grilled dorada over crispy potatoes is $33, and a whole Dover sole flambéed in triple sec is $44.

The printed wine list is overwhelmingly Spanish and priced by the bottle, with a deep run of Ribera del Duero. Lagar de Bouza Albariño from Galicia is $34, Pesquera Crianza is $70 and Vega Sicilia Valbuena tops the list at $270, while La Dama Brut cava costs $29. Desserts are $10 each and include crema catalana, flan de caramelo, tarta de Santiago, the Galician almond cake, and torrijas in syrup with anisette. Close the meal with a cortadito for $4.

Pata Negra opens at noon every day, which makes it one of the easier sit-down Spanish lunches near downtown. Service runs until 10 pm Monday through Thursday, 11 pm on Friday and Saturday and 9 pm on Sunday. Weekday lunches and early weeknight dinners are the quietest, since this stretch of the river sits away from the busiest office blocks. Friday and Saturday nights are livelier, with birthday tables and visitors who drive over from South Beach for paella, as one OpenTable reviewer described doing.

Reservations are taken through OpenTable, linked from the restaurant's own website. Book ahead for Friday or Saturday dinner, and phone directly if you are bringing a large party or want a whole suckling pig on the table. The dress code is casual, so there is no need to dress up for dinner by the river. OpenTable lists a corkage fee for guests who bring their own bottle, and takeout is offered for paella at home.

The dining room is intimate, and Perez runs it as if guests were visiting his house. Reviewers on OpenTable describe him greeting each table, asking about the food and lingering to talk about Spain. One diner wrote about celebrating a birthday there four years in a row for what they called the best paella in Miami; another was grateful that the music was not blasting after a long day of sightseeing. OpenTable also lists patio seating for cooler evenings near the river.

The story here belongs to Felipe Perez. According to the restaurant's website, the Spanish-born chef has spent most of his life in kitchens on both sides of the Atlantic, and in Miami he was cofounder and executive chef at Casa Juancho, Cervantes and Las Cuevas de Sacromonte. Pata Negra is presented as his latest venture, built around his idea of a magical Spain. That background shows in a menu that sticks to regional classics like tarta de Santiago rather than fusion experiments.

Before or after dinner, walk a block along the river into the South River Drive Historic District, which takes in the 100 block of SW South River Drive and the 400 blocks of SW 1st and SW 2nd Streets. Designated in 1987, it holds Miami's oldest surviving group of frame vernacular buildings, wooden rooming houses built from around 1908 for early residents and tourists. Continue about a quarter mile south to José Martí Park, a riverfront park in Little Havana where boats slide past.

Practical notes: Jamón Ibérico Pata Negra Restaurant is at 10 SW South River Drive, Miami, FL 33130, between West Flagler Street and SW 1st Street. It opens daily at noon and closes at 10 pm Monday through Thursday, 11 pm Friday and Saturday and 9 pm Sunday. Valet parking is free for diners, and American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa are accepted. Most rice dishes and mains are generous, so two people can share one paella and two tapas.