| FOOD PAIRINGS |

TUNA TOSTADAS ( makes 4 tostadas ) ½ cup Vegetable oil 4 Corn tortillas 1 lb . Sushi-grade tuna , thinly sliced 2 Avocados , cut into thin slices ½ cup Ponzu sauce ( see recipe below ) 2 Serrano chiles cut into thin rings 1 Red onion , sliced into thin rings ¼ cup Fresh-picked cilantro leaves 4 tbsps . Quality extra virgin olive oil Sea salt

BY MELISSA DOWLING

PONZU SAUCE ¼ cup Lime juice ¼ cup Mirin ( sweet rice wine ) ¼ cup Soy sauce

In a large skillet , heat vegetable oil and fry tortillas one at a time until crispy . Mix ponzu sauce and add serrano chiles and sliced onions to it and refrigerate for an hour . Slice avocado and tuna . On each tostada , arrange avocado to cover and sprinkle with sea salt . Next , layer the sliced tuna on top of the avocado and sprinkle the tuna with some sea salt . Spoon the ponzu and serrano chile mixture over the top and then drizzle with olive oil . Garnish with the cilantro leaves .

SANGRE DE HOMBRES 1 ½ oz . Dos Hombres mezcal ( or any mezcal ) ½ oz . Ancho Reyes chile liqueur ( or other chile liqueur ) ½ oz . Lime juice 2 oz . Watermelon juice ¼ oz . Simple syrup

Add all ingredients into a shaker . Add ice and shake . Double strain into a wine glass with fresh ice . Garnish with a peppered watermelon triangle and a skull skewer .

SANGRE DE HOMBRES

Serena , an open-air restaurant and bar in Miami Beach ’ s new Moxy South Beach hotel , channels the charming rooftop and patio eateries of Oaxaca and Mexico City . The menu offers shareable classic dishes combined with a modern interpretation of traditional Latin and Mexican cuisines .

Serena ’ s executive chef and partner Scott Linquist started his restaurant career as a busboy in Los Angeles , and developed a passion for Mexican food while cooking at the Border Grill in Santa Monica . Linquist later created and developed New York ’ s Dos Caminos as the executive chef , and wrote a best-selling cookbook , Mod Mex .

In Mexico , Linquist has cooked in homes from the mountains of Oaxaca to the jungles of the Yucatán , tracking down traditional recipes and techniques and leading culinary tours . “ I always say that I ’ m a gringo on the outside , but my heart is Mexican ,” he says . “ I ’ ve traveled all across the country to study the characteristics of each region ’ s cuisine .”

Serena ’ s menu features authentic and elevated Mexican classics , such as several seafood tostadas . The Seared Tuna Tostadas , with sushi-grade tuna , avocado mousse , pickled carrots and radish , and micro shiso sesame aioli , would make a unique and delicious dish for Cinco de Mayo or any summertime entertaining .

What to drink with the tostadas ? Just about any of Serena ’ s snappy , sexy cocktails — prepared in the greenhouse-like bar , with glass garage-style doors that open to the warm beach breezes — would do . Moxy Hotel bar manager Carlos Lopez would suggest his Sangre De Hombres mezcal cocktail . The drink is an ode to Breaking Bad series actors Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul , who launched Dos Hombres mezcal in 2019 .

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