By request….CTBites is trying out a new column, TravelBites, for our readers heading out of the great state of CT. These articles will feature popular vacation/business travel destinations for local CT residents, but if you have a suggestion for a TRAVELbites, contact us. 

Our first article features Chef Dena Marino and MC Kitchen in sunny Miami….one of the fastest growing “foodie” hubs in the US.  

Hot culinary spots are opening in hotel restaurants like SLS South Beach with Katsuya or The Bazaar by Jose Andres as well as Soho transplant, Lure Fishbar in the Loews. Funky hipster dining options are popping up practically daily in the emerging fashion and art neighborhoods like in the Design District , Midtown and Wynwood…Miami and Miami Beach has something for everyone.

MC Kitchen, opened a little over a year ago, is the passionate creation of Chef Dena Marino and her friend, Brandy Coletta  Hence, the M and C ).  Chef Dena, who actually hails originally from northern New Jersey, moved to Miami a little over three years from her executive chef position at Ajax Tavern in Aspen to head up the kitchen at the now defunct Danny Devito’s restaurant, Devitos.