A Winning Collaboration

Chef Mazier and the Art of Expanding American Cuisine

What do you get when you bring a French chef with experience in Japanese cuisine to a New American restaurant that emphasizes seasonal produce and local vendors? The answer is aptly named: The Collab, THesis Hotel’s newest offering, which replaced Orno in April. 

Under the direction of Chef Nico Mazier, The Collab’s menu is small but bold, divided into three sections: earth, land, and sea. Though there is certainly an Asian overlay, the flavors here are more of a “collaboration” (forgive us) between that Eastern continent and the rest of the world. There’s pizza, picanha, cauliflower glazed with gochujang, West Coast oysters, spiced tahini yogurt, and Spanish octopus — all combined under the umbrella of New American cuisine.

I try not to go too heavy in one flavor,” Mazier says, while admitting he often sways toward his background in Japanese cuisine. “I try to have hints of flavors. So, when you eat, you can taste Mediterranean, a little bit of Asian… all blended together so one is not overpowering the other.”

The dishes are indeed challenging, at least in their creation, but smooth and easy in their consumption. A perfect encapsulation is the beef tartare, served on bite-sized fried bao buns with a portion of American Wagyu beef, herb vinaigrette, black garlic aioli, and onion jam. Crispy from the bao bun, tender from the meat, and softened by the myriad toppings, it’s a textural masterpiece. It’s one of Mazier’s favorite dishes, born from his passionate love for beef tartare. “But I didn’t want [mine] to be so traditional,” he says.

Another example of Mazier’s flavorful whimsy is the baby corn dish, where he flexes his experience from a long stint at Nobu Miami. It’s a reimagined take on Mexican elote using smaller cobs traditionally harvested by hand in Thailand. It’s somehow sweet, creamy, spicy, and cheesy all at the same time, with a sweet soy glaze, creamy garlic aioli, spicy cayenne pepper, and a sharp dusting of parmesan cheese. The effect is Asian with an overlay somewhere between Mexican, Italian, and American.

(Left) Beef tartare on fried bao buns, topped with truffles. (Right) Baby corn with sweet soy glaze and parmesan.

Moving into the Mediterranean, The Collab serves one of Coral Gables’ best chicken dishes using Mazier’s brine and marinate methodology. “The brine is the secret for a moist chicken,” the chef says. “We do it for two hours, and that keeps all that moisture in when you cook it.” It’s then marinated with herbs, roasted garlic, and olive oil for 24 hours and dressed with a sauce made from chicken stock reduction, garlic, onions, and emulsified butter. Despite the day-long prep, it’s one of the simplest dishes on The Collab’s menu.

Mazier is defensive when it comes to the branzino, which he says he knows “is a fish everybody else does,” but one he couldn’t resist adding to his menu. It’s grilled with a touch of olive oil and served with a pickled fennel salad to add citrus, then topped with crispy capers for texture, a hint of vinegar, and finally, drizzled with ginger shiso dressing “for my Asian side,” as Mazier puts it. A perfect collaboration between the West and East.

(Left) Airline chicken with sunchoke purée. (Right) Branzino fish with ginger shiso.

The surprising star here is the pizza. Two are currently on the menu (chicken sausage and margherita); a third using artichoke, spinach, and leek is coming soon. Mazier’s process is “48-hour proofing on the dough,” where the dough is left to rise, allowing the yeast to ferment for added flavor and texture. The dough fills with small bubbles of carbon dioxide, which leaves empty pockets when it’s baked in The Collab’s brick oven, giving it the light, airy texture that Mazier’s crusts hold dear.

“It almost becomes a gluten-free pizza at that point,” he says. “It allows you to eat it and not feel full right away.”  A pizza without a carb crash…genius.

(Left) Brick oven chicken sausage pizza. (Right) Green tea pavlova with yuzú ice cream.

Of course, a night at Collab is only properly finished with a similarly light dessert. Our favorite was the green tea pavlova, combining matcha Chantilly, strawberries, and citrusy yuzu ice cream, made from the Asian fruit. Sweet without being rich, you could probably eat five without getting full — and you’ll want to. “I just wanted things to be interesting, things you don’t see everywhere,” says Mazier, with a shrug that’s a true understatement.

The Collab
1350 S Dixie Hwy
305.667.6766
thecollabmiami.com