The 19 best restaurants in Miami

Los Fuegos, with its bright dining area, is one of the best restaurants in Miami

Start exploring Miami's buzzing restaurant scene with a visit to a sizzling steakhouse in Miami Beach, or maybe tuck into a crusty pizza freshly fired from a brick oven in Sunset Harbour. Other highlights include seafood platters downtown, daily specials at artisanal bakeries in Wynwood and Peruvian ceviche in Coconut Grove. Follow Telegraph Travel's destination expert Shayne Benowitz for her favourite foodie places in Miami, along with plenty of menu recommendations (and, importantly, the best cocktails to go for) and advice.

For further Miami inspiration, see our guides to the city's best hotels, shopping, bars, nightlife, things to do and beaches.

Find a restaurant by area:

• South Beach
• Downtown
• Wynwood
• Design District
• Coconut Grove
• Coral Gables
• Little Havana

South Beach

Los Fuegos by Francis Mallmann

Dining at Los Fuegos by Francis Mallmann (the famed Argentinian chef and parrilla grillmaster) is also an excuse to visit the over-the-top Faena Hotel Miami Beach. The hotel's interior drips with gold, red velvet, animal prints and contemporary art – and Mallmann's open-fire cooking is the perfect fit for the dramatic scenery. Opt for the prime ribeye à la parrilla with chimichurri and a crispy domino potato. For true carnivores, consider the wood-fired meat à la parrillada platter to share, which includes skirt steak, prime ribeye, Australian lamb and chorizo.

Prices: ££££

Reservations: Recommended

Joe's Stone Crab

Established in 1913, Joe's Stone Crab is the most historic restaurant on Miami Beach. It's beloved for its old-world, white tablecloth style and for its local stone crabs, which are in season mid-October to mid-May. Make stone crabs the focal point of your meal and order plenty of sides to complement them. Don't skip the key lime pie for dessert. After a long tradition of no reservations, Joe’s is now on OpenTable, so you can snag that table without 'greasing' the maître d'. If there’s no reservations to be had, another popular option is to head to the adjacent Joe's Take Away for deli-style service with nearly all the same menu items.

Prices: £££

Reservations: Recommended

Lucali

This restaurant – situated inside an airy warehouse-meets-Italian-grandma's-dining-room in hip Sunset Harbour – specialises in a straightforward menu of brick-oven pizzas, calzones and sophisticated salads. It's the chewy crust, the fresh mozzarella, pungent parmigiano and sweet, balanced tomato sauce that make the pizzas so good. Lucali doesn't take reservations and draws a crowd, so get there early. If you have to wait, put your name on the list and grab a cocktail at their adjacent Bay Club bar, which also serves a limited menu and small-sized pizzas. For dessert, indulge in their Nutella pie.

Prices: ££

Reservations: Walk-ins only

Lucali specialises in a straightforward menu of brick-oven pizzas, calzones and sophisticated salads

Carbone Miami

New York City’s Major Food Group has made a major splash in Miami with a slew of restaurants around town, starting with Carbone. Situated in South Beach’s posh South of Fifth (SoFi) neighbourhood, this buzzy Italian restaurant with lush interiors by Ken Fulk has swiftly cemented itself as the place to see and be seen. With dishes like the Caesar alla ZZ and spicy rigatoni vodka reaching cult status, plan ahead to snag a coveted reservation.

Reservations: Essential

Pubbelly Sushi

The scene inside Pubbelly Sushi's buzzing dining room is hip and casual, and there's outdoor seating as well. The perfect order includes the bigeye tuna roll on a crispy, sticky rice cake with truffle oil, the snow crab roll with clarified butter, wagyu beef tartare roll, rock shrimp tempura and shishito peppers. Think of it as deconstructed sushi because the rolls don't resemble anything you've seen before. Pair everything with a bottle of sake and you're set. The success of the Sunset Harbour location in South Beach has led to a handful of other locations across the city.

Prices: ££

Reservations: Walk-ins only

Don't miss the bigeye tuna roll at Pubbelly Sushi

Fluke

From the team behind South Beach’s beloved Italian go-to Macchialina, Fluke is a new martini and crudo bar tucked away on Alton Road right next door. Inspired by coastal Italian flavors with a focus on seasonal crudos, creative martinis and dramatic raw bar towers, Fluke is an intimate, dimly lit space that’s already garnered a strong local following. The namesake “sherry-kissed” Fluke gin martini, made with olive brine and pickled grapes, pairs beautifully with the fluke crudo with tomato guazzetto. You’ll also find an elegant wine and champagne list and Macchialina’s signature “off menu” Big Macch burger.

Reservations: Walk-ins only

La Sandwicherie

This classic sandwich counter in South Beach is open virtually around the clock and functions both as an unrivalled hangover helper and a quick, filling meal before a day at the beach. It serves made-to-order sandwiches stuffed with lettuce, tomato, green peppers, black olives, onions, cucumbers and cornichons on a baguette or croissant with your choice of protein, as well as salads and smoothies. Portions are large enough to share. It's their tangy, homemade French vinaigrette dressing that makes the sandwich complete – if you dine at the counter, bottles are set out to douse your sandwich with. They’ve also branched out to several locations across Miami.

Prices: £

Reservations: Walk-ins only

Stop at La Sandwicherie before you hit the beach

Downtown

Zuma

Zuma, set inside downtown's towering EPIC Hotel, is a favourite among celebrities and anyone out to impress. The modern Japanese import from London is a perennial Miami hot spot. Prepare yourself for a parade of colourful sushi and sashimi on iced platters. The impossibly fresh fish – tuna, salmon, scallops, hamachi – is tantalising, as is the dessert platter with chocolate, banana cake, exotic fruit and sorbet. The prix-fixe brunch, though expensive, includes free-flowing champagne and more food than you could ever eat in a chic, festive setting.

Prices: £££

Reservations: Recommended

Aviv

Acclaimed Philadelphia-based Israeli chef Michael Solomonov brings his talents to South Beach with Aviv at 1 Hotel. The upscale Israeli Mediterranean mezze restaurant is anchored by the generous Tayim menu featuring Solomonov’s signature creamy hummus with wood-fired saluf bread and assorted salatim, plus a mezze and entrée with such delectable choices as halloumi baklava, spiced beef Moroccan cigars, lamb merguez and butterflied dorado. It’s a beautiful feast in a lovely luxurious setting with gracious hospitality.

Prices: ££

Reservations: Recommended

Wynwood

Panther Coffee

If you're a coffee aficionado, make a beeline for Panther Coffee in Wynwood. Joel and Leticia Pollock, the husband-and-wife duo behind Panther, take their coffee making seriously, sourcing beans from producers worldwide and roasting them in small batches in a venerable old Probat Perfekt Roaster inside the coffeehouse. The painstaking care is apparent in the distinctive flavours in every cup, and the baristas take pride in their craft. There's also a selection of baked goods to snack on. Additional locations can be found around the city.

Prices: £

Reservations: Walk-ins only

If you're a coffee aficionado, make a beeline for Panther Coffee in Wynwood

Zak the Baker Deli

Zak Stern has found overwhelming success with this kosher café in Wynwood. Having started as an artisanal baker pedalling sourdough loaves at farmers' markets, Zak now has a loyal following, with a line out the door at lunchtime. In addition to his comforting baked goods, the café serves daily sandwich, soup, salad and quiche specials. The sweet treats displayed on the counter are hard to resist – the chocolate babka is outrageously moist and so worth the calorie splurge. 

Prices: £

Reservations: Walk-ins only

Zak's is a bakery with a café that serves sandwiches, soup, salads and quiche specials

Design District

Mother Wolf

Chef Evan Funke’s ode to Roman cooking (by way of Los Angeles) landed in Miami’s Design District in October 2024, serving sumptuous pastas that have garnered a cult following to a fashionable crowd. The expansive, richly textured space is aglow with the soft light of Murano glass chandeliers. The signature focaccia, a gorgeous spongy round sprinkled with olive oil, sea salt and wild oregano, is a wonderful place to start, as well as the fried squash blossoms with ricotta and parmigiano reggiano. You can’t go wrong with any of the pastas, but two staples of Roman cuisine are particularly delicious: the tonnarelli cacio e pepe and rigatoni all’amatriciana with guanciale and pomodoro. Save room for dessert; the creamy tiramisu and sweet little ciambellle fritti sugar donuts served with blueberry preserves and crème fraîche panna cotta are nearly as addictive as the pasta.

Reservations: Essential

Michael's Genuine Food & Drink

When chef Michael Schwartz opened Michael's Genuine Food & Drink in the chic Design District in 2006, he single-handedly ushered in the farm-to-table movement in Miami. Menus change daily based on what's fresh and available. Standout dishes include local ceviche, creative pizza specials, and slow-roasted short rib. The restaurant also offers one of the best brunches in Miami. The atmosphere in the newly renovated dining room is warm and welcoming, as is the outdoor courtyard on a sunny afternoon.

Prices: £££

Reservations: Recommended

Mandolin Aegean Bistro

Set in a sunny garden patio shaded by white umbrellas, Mandolin Aegean Bistro is a favourite with Miami's fashion set, yet the vibe couldn't be more relaxed. It serves wonderfully fresh and bright Greek and Turkish dishes, and it offers the perfect atmosphere to sip rosé and nibble on an appetiser of hummus, fava bean puree and tzatziki with soft, warm pitta bread. The fresh fish of the day is always a smart option. Don't skip a piece of the honey-drenched baklava with Turkish coffee or mint tea for dessert, and do peruse the wine and beer list for unique imports from Greece.

Prices: ££

Reservations: Recommended

Mandolin Aegean Bistro offers fresh and bright Greek and Turkish dishes, in a relaxed setting

Blue Collar

Just north of the Design District, Blue Collar dishes up hearty comfort food with a Miami twist inside cosy, retro diner-style interiors. Take, for instance, the 'Corben', named after local documentary filmmaker Billy Corben, featuring braised brisket on a Portuguese muffin with latkes (potato pancakes) and apple sauce on the side. They offer many carnivorous entrees, like spicy oxtail or chicken parmesan, as well as an exhaustive list of vegetables for sides or mains. Brunch can be a ridiculously indulgent affair with items such as Bananas Foster French toast.

Prices: £

Reservations: Recommended

Coconut Grove

Jaguar

As one of the first establishments to focus on Peruvian food in Miami, this restaurant has successfully become a classic. For those unfamiliar with the cuisine, ceviche is raw fish chopped and marinated in lime juice, typically served with red onion, Peruvian peppers, giant white corn and avocado. In addition to ceviche, Jaguar also serves a pan-Latin menu boasting grilled beef, chicken and seafood. The place has a casual atmosphere decorated in mural art to resemble a wild Amazonian jungle.

Prices: ££

Reservations: Recommended

Jaguar was one of the area's first places to serve Peruvian cuisine

Coral Gables

Eating House

Chef Giorgio Rapicavoli has made a name for himself in Miami with his cosy, laid-back Coral Gables restaurant, Eating House. His creatively conceived dishes often change and include items such as “ropa vieja” croquetas made with slow-cooked short rib, branzino meuniere and an especially popular pasta carbonara, plus steaks and chops. Brunch draws a cult following for the Cap'n Crunch pancakes made with a cereal and condensed milk frosting-like syrup.

Prices: ££

Reservations: Recommended

Chef Giorgio Rapicavoli has made a name for himself in Miami with his cosy, laid-back restaurant, Eating House

Little Havana

Versailles

Miami's classic Cuban restaurant, Versailles, was established in Little Havana in 1971. It has long been a meeting place for the city's Cuban diaspora, who come together over ropa vieja (stewed beef), black beans, rice and sweet plantains. Despite the mirrors etched in Baroque patterns lining the wall and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, the place has a casual diner vibe and is welcoming to all. This is a prime place to try a famed Cuban sandwich made with ham, pork, Swiss cheese, mustard and pickles, toasted to perfection on Cuban bread, as well as strong, sweet Cuban cafecito.

Prices: £

Reservations: Walk-ins only

Versailles was established in Little Havana in 1971, and is one of Miami's classic Cuban restaurants

Little River

Sunny’s

Set within a sprawling indoor-outdoor industrial space in Little River with interiors that ooze old Florida glamour, Sunny’s has become Miami’s “it” restaurant. Created by local restaurateur Will Thompson, it’s a destination for fine steaks and fancy martinis, as well as classic fare with a Florida twist, from shrimp cocktail to Caesar salad, blue crab agnolotti and local grouper. Take your pick from the expansive patio anchored by an ancient banyan tree, mirror and palm mural-panelled dining rooms with rounded pink banquettes, or the stylish horseshoe-shaped bar and rub shoulders with the who’s who of Miami.

Reservations: Essential

How we choose

Every restaurant in this curated list has been tried and tested by our destination expert, who has visited to provide you with their insider perspective. We cover a range of budgets, from neighbourhood favourites to Michelin-starred restaurants – to best suit every type of traveller’s taste – and consider the food, service, best tables, atmosphere and price in our recommendations. We update this list regularly to keep up with the latest opening and provide up to date recommendations.

About our expert

Shayne Benowitz has called South Beach home since 2010. She loves the city’s blend of subtropical beauty and international cosmopolitan flair.

Destination expert Shayne Benowitz

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