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6 bold new Miami restaurants we’re dying to try

Miami’s fearless, fiery, in-your-face style permeates the new wave of hot restaurants in a city known for turning up the heat.

Tara Fitzpatrick, Senior Editor

August 26, 2021

15 Slides
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Brash, bold and a bit over-the-top, Miami keeps it hot.

This city turns up the heat with miles of white-sand beaches, an outrageous art scene and the fizzing pop of neon colors everywhere, competing with the blazing sun. It’s a hot location to move to, also, with record numbers of people migrating to Miami from other states; some reports indicate 1,000 new residents per day.

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The dining scene is fired up, too, with a culinary alchemy with many influences that’s maturing into something with staying power and a more world-wise outlook.

“Miami has really come into its own, and in a short time, when you consider our food scene didn’t first start until the 1980s,” said Brian Nasajon, co-owner/chef of Beaker & Gray, a rustic spot with global flavors in a former factory space in Wynwood, Fla. “It’s going through incredible growth, and I equate it to a human lifespan. I’d say we’re in our 20s … we’re independent, ‘spreading our wings,’ learning who we are and exploring who we want to be."

“We’re still growing, but very much on-trend or creating trends, constantly offering new and exciting personalities and possibilities but always with a pinch of recklessness and abandon,” Nasajon said. “Yes, we sometimes become a bit overwhelming and over the top, but the city delivers.”

Related:8 new restaurants we’re dying to try: Summer ’21 anticipation edition

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While seafood and Latin influence break like steady waves onto menus here, the new kids on the block are drawing inspiration from Colombia to Buffalo, N.Y., even on the same plate.

Take a closer look at the Miami restaurants we’re dying to try, including Gordon Ramsay’s dark and moody Lucky Cat; Chef Cesar Zapata’s Colombian-flavored Arepitas Bar inside a buzzy Miami market; Café Americano, a 24/7 Cuban diner with a twist and more.

About the Author

Tara Fitzpatrick

Senior Editor, Informa Restaurant & Food Group

Tara Fitzpatrick is Food Management’s senior editor and a contributor to Restaurant Hospitality and Nation’s Restaurant News, creating editorial content for digital, print and events. Tara holds a bachelor of science degree from the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Kent State University. Before joining Food Management in 2008, Tara was associate editor at National Association of College Stores in Oberlin, Ohio. Prior to that, Tara worked as a newspaper reporter in her hometown of Lorain, Ohio, where she lives now. Tara is a fan of food history, legends, lore, ghost stories, urban farming and old cookbooks. 

Tara Fitzpatrick’s areas of expertise include the onsite foodservice industry (K-12 schools, colleges and universities, healthcare and B&I), menu trends, sustainability in foodservice, senior dining, farm-to-table and innovation.

Tara Fitzpatrick is a frequent webinar and podcast host and has served on the board of directors for IFEC (International Food Editors Consortium).

Tara Fitzpatrick’s experience:

Senior Editor, Food Management (Feb 2008-present)

Associate Editor, National Association of College Stores (2005-2008)

Reporter, The Morning Journal (2002-2005)

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