Team Behind Bodega to Open Sandwich Shop and 24-Hour Diner in South Beach

The people who brought Bodega Taqueria y Tequilla, Radio Bar, and Pizza Bar to South Beach have more in store for the neighborhood. In 2016, Menin Hospitality will unveil three new concepts: Halves & Wholes (1600 Alton Rd.), Ricky's (1222 16th Street), and Bakehouse Brasserie in SoFi.
 
What's more, according to an article in the Real Deal, the group will open Al's Diner in the old Firestone service station on Alton Road. The 24-hour diner will include a takeout window on the 16th Street side of the iconic building, which opened in 1939. At this point, however, Menin Hospitality isn't providing additional information regarding Al's.

Though opening dates aren't yet available for Ricky's and Bakehouse, you can try one of Halves & Wholes' "modern sandwiches" as early as next week. Located across the street from Bodega, Halves & Wholes will serve sandwiches daily from noon to 5 a.m. The decision to be a late-night destination was an obvious one, says Jared Galbut, managing principal of Menin Hospitality, because the company already specializes in SoBe after-hours spots.

"We've always wanted to do sandwiches, and our thought process was we wanted to do something different, and we wanted to take some of the best sandwiches from culinary hubs around the world and put our spin and a Miami spin on it," Galbut explains.

Indeed, the menu includes cheesesteak (rib eye, jalapeño jack whiz, provolone, sofrito, and crispy onions on a sesame baguette), as well as pan con Italian beef (short rib, charred onions, provolone, giardiniera, potato sticks, and cumin-garlic aioli on a sesame baguette). Menin Hospitality's corporate culinary director, chef Bernie Matz, was inspired by America's classic sandwiches and created 12 subs to reflect the nation's favorites. As the eatery's name suggests, every sandwich can be ordered as a half or a whole ($6.50 to $14), and customers can fully customize their own subs.

Freshly baked breads will be shipped in daily from Delray Beach's famed bakery, Old School, and the meats will be roasted in-house using a vertical broiler. Galbut says takeout and delivery services will be a major component of the 36-seat eatery, and customers will be able to order online shortly after Halves & Wholes opens for business.

Ricky's, which will debut later this year, will be situated next door to Bodega and will offer live music and old-school arcade games in addition to "approachable but trendy food and drink options." Bakehouse, meanwhile, will be located in the tony South of Fifth neighborhood between Estiatorio Milos and Radio Bar and is being billed as a French marketplace/café serving brunch and dinner. Menin Hospitality recently took over management of the Mondrian South Beach, and the company runs several other hotels in the area. Seems the group is pretty bullish on SoBe.

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