Last week at the Fisher Island, FL marina, a group of people were clustered around a man holding a hose. I assumed he was washing his boat. Not so fast. Down below in the water were a mother and baby manatee, both reveling in a long drink of fresh water and a snack of lettuce. Both Mom and the youngster (probably three-quarters grown) had nasty scars on their bodies from run-ins with boat propellers. Up close and personal, the most impressive things about manatees is their enormous size, (an adult can easily weigh over a ton), and the way their nostrils open when they take a breath.
A few nights later, we had dinner at Red Light Little River, 
a restaurant on Biscayne Bay in Miami. The service is laid-back –putting it mildly– the food creative and the prices friendly. You enter upstairs into what looks like diner but the nicer area to eat in is a patio overlooking Miami’s (very dirty) Little River that gets more attractive as the sun goes down. Although a sign announces that the river is a manatee area, the only evidence we saw were occasional bubbles.
Red Light–so named because it’s adjacent to what may be a hot sheet haven, (Motel Blu no less!) is also pretty hot thanks to chef and owner Kris Wessel who hails from New Orleans. Our party of three greatly enjoyed the BBQ shrimp with dipping bread, stuffed artichoke, fish creole and dry-rubbed ribs, in fact, one of us voted the ribs the best he’d ever eaten.
Dry Rubbed Ribs with Apple Slaw -Red Light, Miami
Too bad we couldn’t have tried the famed oyster pie but it would have taken a minimum of twenty-five minutes to prepare and we were too hungry.
Since I couldn’t get Red Light to share the recipe, here’s a take on a barbeque sauce I’ve made.
| Coffee Barbecue Sauce (Sometimes referred to as Dark and Stormy BBQ Sauce) 1/2 c brewed strong, dark coffee (Note: some versions call for two or three jalepeno peppers crushed and added to the sauce. I’ve never done this.) Preparation: |