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Miami's restaurant scene has exploded in the past few years, with new restaurants springing up left and right every month. The melting pot of residents and visitors has brought an array of sophisticated, tasty cuisine. Little Havana is still king for Cuban fare, and Miami Beach is swept up in a trend of fusion cuisine, which combines Asian, French, American, and Latin cooking with sumptuous—and pricey—results. Locals spend the most time in downtown Miami, Wynwood, Midtown, and the Design District, where the city's ongoing foodie and cocktail revolution is most pronounced. Since Miami dining is a part of the trendy nightlife scene, most dinners don't start until 8 or 9 pm, and may go well into the night. To avoid a long wait among the late-night partiers at hot spots, come before 7 pm or make reservations. Attire is usually casual-chic, but patrons like to dress to impress. Don't be surprised to see large tables of women in skimpy dresses—this is common in Miami. Prices tend to stay high in hot spots like Lincoln Road, but if you venture off the beaten path you can find delicious food for reasonable prices. When you get your bill, check whether a gratuity is already included; most restaurants add between 15% and 20% (ostensibly for the convenience of, and protection from, the many Latin American and European tourists who are used to this practice in their homelands), but supplement it depending on your opinion of the service.
Michael Mina's long-standing South Florida steak house is renowned for its seductive design, sophisticated clientele, outstanding wine list, phenomenal service, and, of course, exceptional food. Dinner begins with a skillet of fresh potato focaccia and flavor-dusted french fries as preludes to entrées like the Maine lobster potpie (with truffle cream) and any of the dozen varieties of butter-poached, wood-grilled steaks (from hormone-free prime cuts to American Wagyu).
Discover a small, sumptuous piece of coastal Mexico at this feet-in-the-sand Mexican restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne, Miami. (Note: non–hotel guests are welcome.) Order the guacamole, prepared tableside, a few tequila-infused cocktails (like the sour black cherry Black Diamond margarita), and then move onto heartier plates of fajitas and enchiladas.
As expected for its ritzy location, this upscale restaurant matches its high-fashion neighbors: waiters don bow ties and coattails, even for lunch hours, yet are approachable in their knowledge and attentiveness. Practically everything on the menu jumps out, though the handmade mozzarella antipasti, clam linguine, and namesake beef carpaccio are signature dishes. An extensive list of wines from Italy, California, and other locales around the world perfectly complements a meal here.
The wait for a table at this outpost of the legendary Italian restaurant is just as long as for its counterparts in West Hollywood and London. Expect heavy portions of atmosphere: it's a real scene of who's who and who's eating what, cast in a seductive, vintage-chic setting across the courtyard of Soho Beach House.
Chez Le Bebe offers a short menu of Haitian home cooking—it's been going strong for over 30 years and has been featured on shows like the Travel Channel's Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern and The Layover with Anthony Bourdain. Try the stewed goat (the specialty) or the tender and flavorful chicken, fish, oxtail, or fried pork; each plate comes with rice, beans, plantains, and salad, for around $15.
With bright graffiti walls, a buzzing bar, and an open-air roof, this trendy Japanese-Peruvian fusion restaurant has brought sophistication and edge to Lincoln Road. Order a pisco or Japanese whiskey and settle in for flavor-packed Nikkei-style cuisine and some of the best sushi in town.
From the same team behind Brooklyn's famous Lucali restaurant comes a fast casual New York--style pizzeria specializing in thin crust brick-oven pies and hearty Italian comfort dishes. Menu highlights include massive meatballs, chicken Parmesan, pepperoni chips, and salads. Make sure to visit the bar in the back, Dom's, for refreshing cocktails and wine and a rowdy karaoke night on Thursday.
It's farm-to-table surf and turf at this elegantly understated restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel Miami, where hefty portions of the finest cuts and freshest seafood headline the menu, prepared by renowned chef Aaron Brooks. For a more casual experience, enjoy your meal and the restaurant's artisanal cocktails under the skies on the alfresco terrace.
Don't overlook happy hour weekdays 4--7 pm with $1 oysters, 2-for-1 bites, and $8 bubbles and cocktails.
To the northwest of Coral Gables proper, this small but boisterous indoor-outdoor market is one of the easiest and truest ways to see Miami's local Latin life in action. Besides the rows of fresh, tropical fruits and vegetables—and the shakes you can get with any of them—Miami's original food hall has numerous counters where you can order a wide variety of Latin American food, from pan con lechón (roast pork on Cuban bread) to fried pork rinds.
Set within the glitz and ostentation of Gianni Versace’s former mansion, The Villa Casa Casuarina, this restaurant doles out pricey Italian-Mediterranean eats across the mansion's most prized nooks. It's more about the romantic atmosphere and eating next to Versace's storied mosaic pool than the food, which includes caviar selections, filet mignon, and black-truffle risotto.
With a design that fuses the indoors and outdoors in the middle of Coconut Grove’s residential Peacock Park, this charming, family-friendly restaurant is as picturesque as it is unexpected. Parents can sit back and enjoy some incredible gourmet-style sharing plates (featuring local catch and produce) and the sensational wine selection while the little ones are thoroughly entertained outside (there's even a playground).
A tried-and-true locals' hangout since it was founded in the early 1990s—with regulars including athletes, politicians, entrepreneurs, artists, and other prominent area names—this cozy café serves simple French-Mediterranean delights. Despite the restaurant's see-and-be-seen reputation, diners are encouraged to sit back and simply enjoy the experience with relaxed decor, good food, and friendly service.
When Cuban families want an affordable home-cooked meal with a twist but don't want to cook it themselves, they come to this big, unassuming restaurant. The fare is traditional Cuban: long, thin, panfried steaks known as bistec palomilla, roast chicken with citrus marinade, and fried pork chunks. Most dishes come with white rice, black beans, and a choice of ripe or green plantains.
This trendy, dimly lit Hong Kong outpost has brought splurge-worthy northern Chinese food to Brickell. The Miami location has unique menu items, including king scallops and a chili-infused chocolate mousse, plus a mesmerizing “Great Wall,” where choreographed lights dance throughout your meal. Copper Zhejiang teapots and antique bricks from China help to set the scene, offset by pops of color that scream Miami. Aside from the signature Peking duck, must-tries include the creative bao and soy milk dessert that plays on Chinese breakfast and the Comfortably Numb cocktail, which uses peppercorn and chili to balance the sweetness of lychee and vanilla.
For decades Il Mulino New York has ranked among the top Italian restaurants in Gotham, so it's no surprise that this Miami outpost is similarly good. Start your food coma with the complimentary starters—fresh cuts of Parmesan cheese, four types of fresh bread, garlicky bruschetta, and spicy, fried zucchini whet the palate—and then move on to antipasti like calamari fritti followed by ever-changing risottos and other classic Italian dishes perfected.
At the flagship restaurant of The Setai Miami Beach hotel, expect a pan-Asian extravaganza, representing the countries of Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Korea, India, China, and Japan through dishes that range from sea bass tikka to Peking duck to lobster curry. Before or after dinner, be sure to enjoy a cocktail around the harmonious courtyard reflecting pool.
An unconventional Jewish deli that's not exactly kosher, Josh's serves impressive creations like the "Jewbanize," a deli-style take on a Cubano, in addition to more traditional classics like corned beef Reubens and latkes. The menu here changes often and can be found on Instagram. One day it's a barbecue pop-up and the next day it's Chinese, but there's always some sort of deli offering.
Design impresario Philippe Starck opted to fill the smoking-hot SLS Hotel South Beach with a number of see-and-be-seen eateries, including Katsuya South Beach. At this popular Japanese restaurant, dishes come from four separate kitchens and include awesome eats like a legendary miso-marinated black cod, succulent lobster dynamite (in a creamy mushroom sauce), baked crab hand rolls, and amazing sushi rolls. If you want a quieter evening, ask to sit in the unpublicized second-floor dining room.
In a contemporary waterfront garden setting along the Miami River, Kiki is a daily celebration of fabulous Greek food (hello, olive oil–braised octopus), steamy and sceney Miami nights, and an overall Greece-meets-the-tropics joie de vivre. Expect to people-watch, eat a lot, drink even more, and dance (especially if coming for the weekly Sunday Funday party).
At this cozy burger joint on the edge of Wynwood, locally sourced ingredients and stellar craft beer star on a Florida-inspired menu. Order a Frita burger topped with Gruyère and guava jelly or a Key West conch salad while you sip one of 18 brews. Since the place is so small, you might have to wait, but that's not a problem thanks to a neon-lit speakeasy bar next door that celebrates the neighborhood's grungy, artistic vibe.
Peruvian chef Gastón Acurio's downtown Miami outpost occupies a gleaming waterfront spot at Brickell Key's Mandarin Oriental. The main dining room is awash in shades of watery greens, sandy grays and beiges, and wood, but it's the enticing outdoor terrace that offers views of downtown and is the perfect backdrop to chef Diego Oka's contemporary Peruvian dishes with colorful tweaks. The ceviche sampler platter and the traditional lomo saltado steak are a must, as is the dessert of lucuma mousse.
This stunning indoor-outdoor restaurant serves a vegetable-forward menu that imparts classic French techniques (no surprise, since it's the brainchild of world-renowned chef Joël Robuchon). Ingredients are sustainable and local with star dishes including heirloom beets, Heritage chicken, and chicory salad. Open for lunch and dinner, it's an ideal stop after a day of strolling through the Design District.
Restaurateur Stephen Starr imports a bona fide Parisian brasserie to the swanky Bal Harbour shops—inclusive of vintage decorations, furnishings, and an entire bar, all of which were shipped directly from France. Expect classics perfected, such as onion soup gratiné, steak frites and moules frites, and seafood plateaux (towers); a few delicious deviations like the escargots in hazelnut butter (rather than garlic butter); and plenty of excellent people-watching.
If you're looking for something refreshing or a high-octane jolt while touring Little Havana, try this fruteria (fruit stand) that serves coco frio (fresh, cold coconut juice served in a whole coconut), mango juice, and other jugos (juices), as well as Cuban coffees and Cuban finger foods. You can order from the walk-up window and enjoy your drink at one of the tables inside the market.
Located on the ground floor of a Brickell high-rise, this upscale French Mediterranean restaurant serves classic fare like escargot and ratatouille el feta. During the day, most diners are local businesspeople, but at night the bar is busy with yuppies who are looking to treat themselves with exceptional seafood, pastas, and meat dishes.
In one of Miami's most captivating and seductive settings, this headline restaurant by celebrity-chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten fuses Spanish, Caribbean, and Latin American gastronomy while focusing on local products, resulting in a diverse collection of small and large plates. Indulge in tropically inspired plates like avocado pizza, Florida Keys shrimp in "Agua Diablo," and grilled Florida black-grouper tacos.
Monty's has a Caribbean flair, thanks especially to live calypso and island music on the outdoor terrace. Consider it a fun, tropical-style, kid-friendly place where Mom and Dad can kick back in the early evening and enjoy a beer and the raw bar while the kids eat conch fritters and dance to the beats.
Take a trip to the Greek Isles at Michael Mina's Mediterranean restaurant featuring bright, light fare and fish that's delivered overnight straight from the Aegean Sea. In addition to a raw bar, menu items include dishes inspired by the chef's travels, including classic Greek spreads, grilled octopus, lamb shoulder, and more.
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