Now Regional Recruiter, Stephanie Murphy, has selected a place she calls one of Miami's best
hidden food treasures. Get your sweet tooth ready, because they're serving up some exotic waffles
with some unique flavors. And make room for the savory side too. Stephanie says you've got to try
some of their delicious Southern-style dishes. It's located in Miami and it's called iKrave.
My name is Sheena Vandyke, and I am the owner of iKrave.
A little bit about iKrave and how we got started. My husband, he had his big idea of opening up a
restaurant. And at first it was supposed to be like, maybe like chicken wings and fries,
something that kids can come to. We didn't really think it was gonna become
what it is today. We developed the menu two weeks before, and we just said, "Let's just
put the best thing that we make." And our kids came up with the waffles. My sister daughter,
Kayla, she came up with the Kayla's crunch. And my very own recipe, the Oxtails and Grits,
what we're really known for. And it worked. It worked, our small menu worked for us.
Our signature dish, we sell it from 7:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m., until we close. Oxtails,
whether you have it with grits, which is our number one seller. Or would you
have it with two sides, like our macaroni and cheese, collard greens. Then a lot of people
love our Dark and Lovely. Which is the dark portion of the chicken, which is the thigh
and the drumstick. And they come with three sides. And then can't forget about our chicken
and waffles. We sell it from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., because they come in and order it all day.
We're very community-driven. My background, I was worked with children with disabilities. And
then my husband always work with you. So like I say, we're very community-driven. And that's
how we hire. We hire you. We hire people that we give them second chances. We wanted to make
sure that we were well-rounded with our diverse backgrounds. When people come here, I want them
to feel welcome. I want them to feel like they can come in as a family, with their friends,
or with their colleagues, and just come have great food. I crave, you crave, we all crave for iKrave.
So Stephanie, what makes iKrave so incredibly unique?
I do believe the iKrave restaurant is a hidden gem. It's in a part of Overtown that may not get
many visitors, but I would encourage the community to go out and support this restaurant. The owners
are not only very present in the restaurant,
cooking, serving, and taking orders, they are also people who help the community. And my family loves
iKrave. Whenever they want a special treat or myself wants a special treat, that's where we go.
[Michelle] Let's jump right into what you had. I know that you had the Oreo-flavored
waffle with chicken wings.
[Stephanie] Yes. I consider myself a master at making fried chicken
and I wasn't disappointed. Everything was super fresh. It wasn't overly seasoned. The
waffle was super unique. It definitely had what we've all mostly tried, Oreo cookies.
But they have like a little secret sauce that they put on it.
And Stephanie, you also had the baked chicken?
I believe they have a daily special. And the daily special for the day I went was baked chicken.
And there's a whole array of side that you could choose from. I chose the candied yams.
And the yams have like a syrup on the top. They tasted very fresh. The chicken had really good,
not only herbs, but vegetable seasonings on the top of it. It was a great presentation. And the
price of it was also impressive. I believe you get four items and it was only $10.
Sounds yummy. All right. So Carolyn, tell me a little bit about your experience at iKrave.
Well, it's a very small restaurant. There were only about six tables. They do a very big
carry-out business. The staff was very hospitable. We only waited a few minutes for our table, there
were five of us. I had the grouper, and I'm very critical when it comes to fresh fish. And this was
really done very well. I generally don't like it deep fried, but they had a very
light coating on it. Plus a side of the very sweet, very delicious yams.
So tell me about the waffle, this famous waffle. I know you had a cinnamon one.
Oh, cinnamon, and powdered sugar, and brown sugar, delicious. But really only for dessert.
And they had many varieties of waffles. I think it would be fun to go there just to be sure and
have the waffles and everybody get a different kind. We enjoyed it. We enjoyed it very much.
I think a waffle tasting is quite necessary for these days. I think it's perfect. Leonard,
tell me about what you had and your experience.
I had the grouper, and it was very good. It had green beans on the side,
and I really liked it. It was nice and easy, a good size portion for you. But
I could have ordered the waffles and chicken wings, and I didn't think about it at that time.
Really, I looked at the menu when I just wanted waffles. And when I finally did get to eat the
Oreo waffle, it was amazing. We still have some of it left over 'cause we wanted extra. And we were
greedy, we didn't let our friend take it away. But the food is great there. The ambience was nice.
I also had grits along with that. And my wife had the fried chicken. She loved it, and she
also loved the grits as well. Don't overlook Overtown. It's a great place. As you said,
it was up-and-coming. But this little place over here, it's definitely worth the drive.
That's great. And there's been a lot of beautification to Overtown and
it looks more beautiful than ever. And so, I'm so excited that Stephanie that you brought this
restaurant to us. Speaking of which, Stephanie, iKrave was your pick. So sum it up for us, please.
For fun, savory, and sweet treats, and maybe even a little glimpse of a celebrity, choose iKrave.
You will be sure to enjoy it.
Carolyn, can you sum it up for us?
Everything we ordered was enjoyed and pleasant. And the staff was very
pleasant. And it is certainly a very economical place to eat. Prices were very reasonable.
Leonard?
Definitely head out there. It's very friendly. It feels like you're in
somebody's kitchen. And you've come to their house and you're feeding it.
And that's how good and home-style the food really is there.
Well, satisfy both your sweet and savory cravings when you visit iKrave. Located at 4799 Northwest
7th Avenue in Miami. Open daily for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, Tuesday through Sunday.
Reservations are not accepted. And the average price for dinner without drinks is about $20.