The 15 best new restaurants in Miami

The unassuming Aoko is a refreshing addition to the sushi scene in Miami, a city where flashy, triple-digit-priced omakase menus currently dominate. Not only is the tasting option here under $100 ($75 for sashimi and $85 for nigiri), but it holds up against the other higher-priced options in taste, creativity and execution, with rice that is always somehow the perfect warm temperature. What’s most inspiring about Aoko is the team, a crew of young, diligent chefs helmed by co-owner Daniel Vanh, a veteran of Miami’s top sushi restaurants and a South Florida local. Grab a seat at the counter to see the talent and synchronization at play.

Elastika occupies the four-story atrium of The Moore building in the Design District, where the namesake “Elastika” sculpture by Zaha Hadid hangs dramatically over a stunning dining room. The drinks and dishes, by chef Joe Anthony, are largely familiar things executed well: an extra smooth airmail cocktail made with brown butter, a creamy gazpacho poured tableside into a bowl of artfully cut veggies and a daily pizza (we got one with garlicky greens, crispy pancetta and chunks of burrata), to name a few highlights.

This modern and moody aperitivo bar in Downtown emphasizes Italian spirits, boasting an expertly curated menu of cocktails and fortified wines like vermouth and sherry. But you'd do well to come hungry, too: pasta, charcuterie and fresh catches for the raw bar feature on the food menu. The project is a collaboration between Jaguar Sun's Will Thompson and Carey Hynes, who preside over food and service, along with Bombay Sapphire Most Imaginative Bartender winner Valentino Longo, a cocktail master best known for his work at the Surf Club. 

Diehard fans of Danny Serfer’s Blue Collar can breathe a sigh of relief: The tiny restaurant in an old-school MiMo motel recently moved to a larger space across the street, and it’s just as great as before. Blue Collar’s allure has always stemmed from Serfer’s unpretentious approach to American classics and comfort food in dishes like conch fritters with spicy tartar sauce and a braised brisket sandwich on a Portuguese muffin with Dijon mustard, jus and latkes and apple sauce. You’ll still find over a dozen veggie side dishes and our longtime favorite, the Valrhona chocolate cake. Now, though, guests can enjoy a full cocktail menu of classic drinks from the beautiful outdoor bar, plus lots more patio seating and an elevated, laidback vibe for an affordable, delicious neighborhood meal.

Gramps Getaway is the waterfront bar Miami was oddly missing, a place with stellar views, the vibes of a boozy Sunday afternoon and (the real kicker) legitimately good food. Currently, the indoor dining room is under renovation, though you'll find a few tables inside if you need a respite from the heat. Most likely, you're coming here to hang at the thatched tiki bar outside, which features plenty of shaded seating, fans and, usually, a DJ. Watch the boats come in and out as you sip tropical cocktails and slurp fresh bivalves from the Lazy Oyster pop-up shack. The main menu (crafted by chef James McNeal from Over Under) is like what a fine-dining sous chef might serve at their backyard barbecue. We enjoyed the watermelon salad and the burger, which will soon be on everybody’s list of the city’s best.

Riviera Dining Group behind MILA in South Beach and the forthcoming Claudie in Brickell has opened CASA NEOS, a stunning multi-level concept along the Miami River that includes a restaurant, a private members club and a boutique hotel and a rooftop lounge set to open in the fall. Cocktails range from bright and floral to earthy and savory, like the Ambrosia made with rum and beets and topped with a mozzarella foam. Similar to MILA, the menu blends the bold flavors and spices of the Mediterranean with Asian-inspired techniques and ingredients.

We cannot live in the world of Bridgerton, no matter how many tiaras and ruffled shirts we buy. But at Lafayette Miami, we can dine on fine steaks as the grand piano plays nearby, servers rush about in handsome outfits and drinks and dishes are finished tableside with dramatic flourish. I can’t say whether Penelope finds happiness, but I’m willing to bet you’ll find joy in Lafayette’s vintage vibe. Unlike the similarly nostalgic Delilah, where the menu includes pigs in a blanket and chicken fingers, here, it’s steakhouse classics.

Back in the day, KYU featured on pretty much everyone’s list of favorite Miami restaurants. The Wynwood restaurant closed in November 2022, purportedly after storm damage. In the meantime, KYU clones have spawned in Mexico City, New York, Las Vegas and Los Angeles and the Michelin guide landed in Miami. Now that it has returned, could KYU possibly live up to its memory? The short answer is yes. New KYU is as good as it was—perhaps better. The team has taken that special, original recipe and improved it with new dishes, fresh cocktails and a similar but more refined ambiance than the original.

This modern seafood restaurant in Coconut Grove seems destined for the Michelin Guide—multiple stars, even—because it succeeds at every key fine dining metric, from impeccable service to dishes displaying a sophisticated level of technique. Take the bacalao, a salt cod tarte, pretty enough for the front window display of a French bakery, topped with a cured egg yolk mixed in tableside. This refined approach is the work of Henrique Sá Pessoa, who earned a pair of Michelin stars before opening Sereia in Michael Beltran’s old Navé spot.

Calling itself a “chefs’ collective,” The Bloom occupies the bottom floor of a Biscayne Boulevard high-rise, with a wall of windows facing Bayfront Park and within view of the Kaseya Center. You can order at the counter from any of the three concepts or choose table service. Options include an Ecuadorian concept from chef Alejandra Espinoza; Japanese from Yasu Tanaka, one of the city’s most talented sushi chefs; and sandwiches and rotisserie chicken from Maykel Vargas. We highly recommend the latter, a chef-styled version of the supermarket rotisserie chicken we're used to served with a clingy jus sauce that coats the crispy skin.

At Palma, you’ll almost certainly eat things unlike anything you’ve had before, and you might be surprised, too, by the reasonable price of it. Chef Juan Camilo Liscano opened Palma in January 2024 in a strip mall on Northwest 8th Avenue, just south of the Miami River. Cheap rent must explain how they offer an eight-course tasting menu for just $85, about a third of the price of the one at the two-star L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon. The minimalist space features an open kitchen right in front where a row of barstools faces Liscano and his sous chef. The dishes are tiny tastes of things, like tartare served in an oyster shell and an artfully plated spoonful of crudo. The goal here, it seems, is delicate and lightly seasoned, hoping the ingredients sell the dishes. There isn’t a wine pairing, but affable servers will make solid recommendations. 

File Salty Flame under "trendy steakhouses with Asian-ish menus" which, for some reason, tend to attract more suburban crowds. The food here is as good as it needs to be, the service pretty decent and the look as nice as the outfit you’ve been saving for date night. Like the gussied-up guests, cocktails here are garnished with fruits and herbs, ready for their next selfie. Our Thai salad looked just as pretty, a bowl of chopped, julienned and sliced veggies heavily dressed in something bright and tangy. Likewise, we enjoyed the Salmon Togarashi roll topped with thinly sliced, spiced and seared tuna. As for the main attraction: We split the wagyu steak, and it arrived raw and ready to sear on a stone so blazing it radiated heat from across the table. Soy sauce and salt and a little sample of pickled cukes worked as the seasoning, but we learned the hard way that it’s easy to overcook the thin slices. Nonetheless, it’s a fun dish that will likely impress the couple you invited from Kendall.

Witnessing the transformation of the old Moe’s space is a reason to visit the new RedFarm in Coconut Grove alone. (You wouldn’t for a second think the modern, well-appointed restaurant was a dark, divey bar in its past life.) Though its menu of highly craveable interpretations of Chinese classics is the real reason you’re there. Start with the spicy crispy beef, a double-fried flank steak flavored with Grand Marnier that’s sweet, salty and best accompanied with a cocktail. Presented in different shades of pastel with cute, tiny eyes, the signature Pac-Man dumplings and the pastrami egg rolls are two of the most popular items on the menu. Duck in several preparations and various noodle and rice dishes round out the offerings.

Drawing inspiration from the cuisines and laidback coastal lifestyles found along the Adriatic in the Italian, French and Spanish Rivieras, La Màrtola is the creation of hospitality veterans Paolo Domeneghetti and Martino de Rosa. Located in the former Palat space in charming Buena Vista, the intimate restaurant has been completely redesigned to evoke salty, windswept towns of the Old World. Expect to find local, seasonal and imported ingredients, Neapolitan pizzas, wood-fired proteins and vegetables and an extensive wine list focusing on Champagne, Burgundy, Barolo and rosé. 

Morgan's had a great run in Wynwood. Established in 2010, the multilevel American comfort food restaurant quickly became a favorite among Miami's brunch and lunch set for its filling but wholesome family-friendly fare—along with its more indulgent options like the chocolate-dipped waffle and peach bellinis by the pitcher. Though it's closed up its original shop on 29th Street Morgan's has made itself a new and bigger home nearby in Allapattah. Designed by Eduardo Suarez, the man behind the beautiful Tigre and Casa Florida spaces, Morgan's 2.0 has been modeled from the previous concept just blocks away.