Miami, Florida — Food and Dining
Restaurants in Miami, Florida
Restaurants
Expensive
A Fish Called Avalon
In the heart of South Beach's art deco district, this streetside patio restaurant is ideal for people-watching along bustling, palm-lined Ocean Drive. Latin-Caribbean music adds to the festive and romantic atmosphere. Fresh seafood is delivered daily and the award-winning dishes often feature sensuous, tropical textures and flavors. Try the Caribbean spice grilled grouper or the Florida snapper au poivre with mango relish.
700 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach
Tel: (305) 532 1727.
Website: www.afishcalledavalon.com
Baleen Miami
Cross a small bridge from Coconut Grove to the private Grove Isle for Miami's most romantic dining experience. Whimsical monkeys, flaming torches and candlelit elegance add to the exotic atmosphere and food. Enjoy innovative and masterful seafood dishes at intimate al fresco tables overlooking Biscayne Bay, or bask in oriental elegance amid chandeliers of hanging monkeys, candlelight and billowing gauze drapes. This is a real treasure hidden away on its own secluded island.
Grove Isle Hotel & Spa, 4 Grove Island Drive
Tel: (305) 857 5007.
Website: www.groveisle.com
Chef Allen's
Chef Allen's is an ideal restaurant for a special occasion. Chef-owner Allen Susser is counted among America's most respected chefs, celebrated for his innovative ‘Floribbean Palm Tree' cuisine. The stylish art deco restaurant, with its contemporary artwork, fresh flowers and pink neon lighting, surrounds a glass-enclosed kitchen. Here, you can watch Allen create masterpieces from his nightly changing menu, such as conch ceviche; wild Florida shrimps and grits brulee; or Niman Ranch skirt steak. Dinner only.
19088 North East 29th Avenue, Aventura
Tel: (305) 935 2900.
Website: www.chefallens.com
Joe's Stone Crabs
From humble origins as a beachside seafood stand in 1913, Joe's Stone Crab is today a veritable Miami institution, made famous by its copious quantities of stone crab claws - Florida's greatest seafood delicacy - served with their signature mustard sauce. The menu also offers other seafood dishes, steaks, ribs and chicken, accompanied by such sides as coleslaw and hash browns. The restaurant is only open during stone crab season (mid October-mid May).
11 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach
Tel: (305) 673 0365
Website: www.joesstonecrab.com
Morada Bay Beach Café
Experience the laid-back atmosphere of the Keys and a perfect tropical sunset at the romantic Morada Bay beach cafe, with its wide shady verandahs and plantation-style shutters. Sit barefoot at tables, sipping exotic cocktails while the children play on the white sandy beach. The American-Caribbean menu offers some of the best seafood in the Keys. The renowned monthly full moon parties draw revelers from far and wide to enjoy the live bands on the beach, DJ, firewalkers and jugglers.
81600 Overseas Highway, Islamorada
Tel: (305) 664 0604.
Website: www.moradabay-restaurant.com
Nikki Beach
The restaurant and champagne Bar at Nikki Beach is a hip and trendy spot for Miami's beautiful people on South Beach's southernmost tip. Dine on caviar and lobster while sipping champagne in this exotic utopia, where celebs and models pursue the hedonistic lifestyle. Dishes on the world-cuisine menu, featuring fresh seafood and tropical flavors, are truly a work of art.
1 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach
Tel: (305) 538 1111.
Website: www.nikkibeach.com/miami
Prezzo Restaurant and Martini Bar
Elegant black-and-white decor, a piano bar and nightly entertainment create a lively yet intimate atmosphere for casual dining. Located in North Miami's Aventura district, Prezzo's menu has a distinctly Mediterranean flavor. After tantalizing choices of seafood, roast duck or mouth-watering steak, the perfect signature dessert is the caramelized crème brulée with fresh berries. Diners can then adjourn to the outdoor patio for a high-end cigar or hookah.
18831 Biscayne Boulevard, Aventura
Tel: (305) 931 5775.
Website: www.prezzofl.com
Romeo's Cafe
This elegant and intimate restaurant (with room for just 28 people) is a hidden gem at the heart of Coral Gables, serving sublime North Italian cuisine to discerning diners. There is no fixed menu. Instead, chef Romeo Majano greets each table and discusses each patron's tastes and food preferences before creating their own personal individual six course meal (three at lunch). The exquisite dishes are accompanied by an impressive wine list of primarily Italian and American vintages. Reservations essential.
2257 SW 22nd Street (Coral Way), Coral Gables
Tel: (305) 859 2228
Website: www.romeoscafe.com
Wish
Wish is one of South Beach's culinary hotspots, located in The Hotel - an art deco boutique hotel with interiors by fashion designer Todd Oldham. Executive chef Marco Ferraro's menus of seasonal Mediterranean-inspired cuisine cleverly blend comfort with sophistication. The unusual outdoor-indoor restaurant provides a choice of alfresco dining in a lush tropical garden setting or in the colorful, cosy Persian-inspired restaurant.
The Hotel, 801 Collins Avenue, South Beach
Tel: (305) 674 9474.
Website: www.wishrestaurant.com
Moderate
Aaria
The stylish lounge bar of the ultra-luxurious Acqualina Resort, Aaria offers both indoor and outdoor dining overlooking tropical gardens to the turquoise Atlantic beyond. Delectable fresh Mediterranean-influenced filled flatbreads, tapas dishes and salads, are served alfresco on the verandah. There are also complimentary delicacies for those sipping at the 6m (20ft) bar and, for dinner, a sushi menu.
17875 Collins Avenue, Sunny Isles Beach
Tel: (305) 918 8000.
Website: www.acqualinaresort.com
Cascade Restaurant
Expect casual poolside dining at the 61-hectare (150-acre) Biltmore Hotel estate. The restaurant overlooks the largest pool in the US, surrounded by rows of statues, palms, waterfalls and Italianate buildings. The menu focuses on fresh seafood, Caribbean dishes and healthy, organic spa cuisine. Highlights include the Caribbean-style bisque, Florida stone crabs and char-grilled churrasco steaks.
Biltmore Hotel, 1200 Anastasia Avenue, Coral Gables
Tel: (305) 445 1926.
Website: www.biltmorehotel.com
Cheap
Johnny Rockets
South Beach's pastel-colored art deco buildings provide a suitably frivolous backdrop for this classic diner, one of the most popular breakfast venues in the district, with hearty portions served on the pavement terrace in full view of all the film-star wannabes, supermodels, tourists, joggers and rollerbladers cruising Ocean Drive. The rest of the day, old-time favorites, including hamburgers, hot dogs, milk shakes, ice cream sodas and hot fudge sundaes, are on offer.
728 Ocean Drive, South Beach
Tel: (305) 538 2115.
Website: www.johnnyrockets.com
Little Havana
Proof positive that there is authentic Cuban food outside Calle Ocho, witness Little Havana in North Miami, a friendly, popular choice with locals. Open daily for lunch and supper, enjoy such menu items as lobster-stuffed yucca pastry or the masas de puerco, a tender, crispy fried pork dish that is a favorite among patrons.
12727 Biscayne Boulevard, North Miami
Tel: (305) 899 9069.
Website: www.littlehavanarestaurant.com
News Café
A cult address - as it is the place where Gianni Versace drank his last cup of coffee shortly before he was murdered on his own doorstep just two blocks away. This trendy, European-style café of minimalist decor is one of South Beach's coolest hangouts, open 24 hours a day. The menu boasts everything from eggs Benedict to bagels and ice cream sundaes.
800 Ocean Drive, South Beach
Tel: (305) 538 6397.
Website: www.newscafe.com
Shorty's Bar-B-Q
Located in a log cabin in South Miami and decorated with mounted boar and caribou heads, saddles and cowboy hats, this barbecue house is a veritable institution. The informal, fun menu is served at long wooden picnic tables, with specialties including barbecued ribs (slow-cooked over hickory logs and smothered in Shorty's own spicy barbecue sauce) accompanied by fries, coleslaw, corn on the cob and chilled, thirst-quenching beers.
9200 South Dixie Highway, South Miami
Tel: (305) 670 7732.
Website: www.shortys.com
Big Pink
At the heart of the South Beach hustle, this upscale, modern diner and sports bar serves classic all-American fare to a young, hip crowd. Living up to its name, everything is pink - the bar stools, the lamps, the Plexiglas tables... even the menu, which consists predominantly of pizzas, burgers, pasta and salads, all served in hearty, value-for-money portions. The real specialty here, however, is the TV dinner - a six-compartment metal tray loaded with satisfying comfort food.
157 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach
Tel: (305) 532 4700.
Website: www.bigpinkrestaurant.com
Nightlife
Miami never sleeps. The main nightlife scene in Miami is around South Beach where neon-lit, art deco buildings provide a suitable backdrop to hedonistic crowds. Bars close around 0100 and nightclubs around 0600. The minimum age for admission to all clubs in Miami Beach (including South Beach) is 21 years, the minimum drinking age in Florida. It is advisable to carry ID and dress codes often require chic attire.
Check out the New Times (www.miaminewtimes.com) or the Friday section of the Miami Herald for listings.
Bars
BED
This watering hole is named from the abbreviation for beverages, entertainment and dining, but also offers pillow-covered king-size beds in place of tables and chairs. A stylish Miami nightspot.
929 Washington Avenue
Tel: (305) 532 9070.
Website: www.bedmiami.com
Tantra
Sensual Tantra sparked a genre of Miami resto-lounges, proffering a top-notch meal in an exotic setting (grass flooring and Turkish tobacco hookahs) that transforms into a nightclub where the DJ spins Middle Eastern fusion music.
1445 Pennsylvania Avenue
Tel: (305) 672 4765.
Website: www.tantra-restaurant.com
The Laundry Bar
For a real change of pace, try The Laundry Bar, in a league of its own in the Miami nightlife scene. Its motto is ‘where your clothes get washed while you get sloshed,' and it offers full bar and dance floor as well as wash/dry/fold and dry-cleaning services.
721 North Lincoln Lane, Miami Beach
Larios on the Beach
Also known as SoBe Bongos Cafe, Larios on the Beach is owned by singer Gloria Estefan, and serves lethal after-dinner mojitos (fresh mint, sugar and rum cocktails) alongside nightly funky Cuban music.
820 Ocean Drive
Tel: (305) 532 9577.
Clubs
Nikki Beach
Legendary Nikki Beach is an international brand with a loyal Miami following. Located right on a glorious stretch of silica, it has an indoor/outdoor dance floor, fabulous cabanas and lounges which attracts a young, supermodel crowd.
1 Ocean Drive
TeL (305) 538 1111.
Website: www.nikkibeach.com/miami
Mansion
Usher and Paris Hilton have been spotted in Mansion, an old movie house and now a massive Miami clubbing venue reminiscent of New York's Studio 54.
235 Washington Avenue
Tel: (305) 695 8411.
Website: www.mansionmiami.com
Cameo
Cameo is considered a cut above the rest on South Beach when it comes to nightlife in Miami, with world-class DJs, outstanding live concerts and a VIP clientele.
1445 Washington Avenue
Tel: (786) 235 5800.
Website: www.cameomiami.com
Mynt Lounge
Actors, models and pop stars frequent the futuristic Mynt Lounge for its cool music and outrageously expensive drinks.
1921 Collins Avenue
Tel: (305) 532 0727.
Website: www.myntlounge.com
Live Music
Kaffe Krystal
For the latest Latin rhythms, try Kaffe Krystal, which has a large dancefloor and hosts live bands and DJs playing authentic salsa music.
10855 SW 72nd Street, Miami
Mango's Tropical Café
This has flamboyant South Beach salsa with dancing on the tables and in the street.
900 Ocean Drive
Tel: (305) 673 4422.
Website: www.mangostropicalcafe.com
Jazid
This upmarket jazz club offers live jazz and blues nightly.
1342 Washington Avenue
Tel: (305) 673 9372.
Website: www.jazid.net
