Best Restaurant (Coconut Grove) 2022 | Sadelle's | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Miami | Miami New Times
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Photo courtesy of Sadelle's

Sadelle's started in New York City as Major Food Group's (the folks behind Carbone) version of a brunch palace. Here in Miami, it quickly became the buzziest place in town to get a bagel. This Coconut Grove stunner is a fever dream of breakfast and lunch classics that take you back to your gluttonous childhood, from pigs-in-a-blanket to tuna melts (try one on a salt-and-pepper bagel), triple-decker sandwiches, and salads so huge you'll wonder whether you've started a lettuce shortage by ordering one. For pure nostalgia, the restaurant offers New York breakfast favorites like smoked salmon, whitefish, sable, or salmon salad platters served with tomatoes, capers, and a bagel of your choice. Going with friends? Splurge on the "Sadelle's Tower," an assortment of bagels, fish spreads, and veggies on an Instagrammable tower.

Katie June Burton

Even as too many schmancy restaurants keep popping up in Brickell, Stanzione 87 manages to continue to deliver on its promise of a top-quality meal, in this case, pizza. The wood-fired Neapolitan-style pies arrive with their crusts perfectly blistered, their centers impossibly molten. Opt for classic Margherita if youre a purist, or top it with sausage and peppers for a flavor bomb. Those who are feeling more adventurous might opt for the decadent truffle white pizza. (More of a subs and wings type? Stanzione's fine if you skip the pizza altogether. But whatever you do, leave room for the Nutella calzone.

Photo by Zachary Fagenson

When All Day closed amid the pandemic, Miami lost one of its great coffee shops and restaurants. Then, as if by magic, partners Chris MacLeod and Camilla Ramos reopened the downtown Miami jewel this past March. From 8 a.m. till 3 p.m. each and every day, the restaurant serves eggs, pastries, drinks, mimosas, and more. At least as important, though, is the fact that All Day, like all great coffee shops, serves as a gathering place (and in some cases an office) for remote workers looking to escape their bedrooms. The little café also pledges to give workers fair wages, to source its food responsibly, and to give back to the neighborhood where it resides through donations and events — and providing a safe, welcoming space to linger with a fine cup of coffee.

Photo by billwisserphoto.com

Hip and modern, Kyu offers a diverse menu of shareable plates, wines, and cocktails that are perfect for a night out or celebratory dinner. The Asian-fusion presentations are simple yet elegant and delicious, and the generous portions check the always crucial value box. A number of dishes on the menu are creations you likely won't see anywhere else, like hamachi crispy rice, charred summer corn, and a wood-fired Thai fried rice stone pot. Speaking of wood-fired, for every tree burned to fuel Kyu's grill, they replant five.

Photo courtesy of Genuine Hospitality Group

Fifteen years ago, when Michael Schwartz opened a bistro in the Design District, the neighborhood was still a leap of faith for the chef. There were no Dior and Gucci stores, no public art on the streets, no pop-up installations. Schwartz earned a reputation for creating dishes with well-sourced ingredients. He termed his food "genuine" for the way he treated it: without any tricks — only respect. That philosophy earned the chef a James Beard Award for Best Chef: South in 2010. Now, more than a decade later, Michael's has a fresh, new look to match its uber-chic neighbors. And while the neighborhood surrounding the restaurant has turned decidedly exclusive, Michael's continues to welcome everyone. So, whether you're dripping in a diamond Rolex or sporting a Fitbit, stop in for a genuinely superb meal.

Yaron Yemini opened Naomi's Place in honor of his mother, but the Israeli restaurant has become a community place of belonging and love. Three decades ago when Yemini and his wife, Shula, opened Naomi's Garden on a shoestring, the restaurant was little more than a shack with a tiny kitchen, but the Yeminis set about making it their own. They started out serving Israeli food, but the menu turned to Haitian and Creole cuisine when the local ladies they hired commenced cooking the food they grew up with. Today Naomi's Garden serves some of the best Haitian food in Miami in an idyllic garden setting. The format is simple: You choose a meat or main vegetable dish (oxtail, fried chicken, fried snapper, goat stew, and spinach stew are some of the options), then add sides (rice and peas, fried plantains, steamed vegetables, and macaroni, to name but a few). Finally, you can up the heat level with house-made pickles or condiments. Then, choose a seat in the lush garden and enjoy. It's one of Miami's best bargains, set in one of the most charming settings.

Photo by Fillippo Bamberghi

Sure, we know. Miami is home to a zillion sushi restaurants. What makes this Brazilian-based one any better than the rest? And better than all of the other restaurants in Miami Beach? It's not merely executive chef Edwin Delgado's Asian fusion dishes and the craft of his sushi chefs — although there is that. It's not merely the intriguing cocktail list constructed by Brazilian mixologist Márcio Silva. (Though there's that, too.) It's not merely the stunning interior design, a spiraling wood effect created by Brazilian architect Arthur Casas, although there is that, too. It's not even the impressive Michelin star awarded to its original location in São Paulo, Brazil. It's all of those things together that make this place, whose name translates to "number one," our choice.

Photo by Cristian Gonzalez

When most of us think of malls, we think of grabbing an Auntie Anne's to stave off hunger pangs before shoe shopping. But Aventura Mall is home to a plethora of delicious, locally based restaurants. One of the most delightful of those is Motek Café, where you can enjoy brunch all day. The menu is so tempting that it's hard to choose — creamy hummus, kebabs, an Israeli salad, avocado toast — but the "don't miss" is Motek's shakshuka, a tangy dish of baked eggs, tomatoes, and peppers served in its skillet with an oversize Jerusalem bagel. Fuel up on hibiscus tea or a mimosa and you'll leave all fueled up for your shopping. (Note: Motek operates a location in downtown Miami and a third is on the way in Miami Beach.)

Sasa Café Italiano is less a restaurant and more an invitation to a home-cooked dinner. Salvatore "Sasá" Savarese and his wife Loiris opened the café, which occupies a little house just off downtown Hollywood's main dining and shopping strip, in 2016. This little gem serves a modest menu of Italian dishes based on Sasa's own recipes from his birthplace of Meta di Sorrento on the Gulf of Naples. All the pasta dishes are molto bene: a rich fettuccine with a meaty ragú, gnocchi with butter and sage, and lobster ravioli with pomodoro. For dessert, order an espresso and a slice of "Sasa" cake (chocolate cake with orange and amaretto) while you soak in the rustic old-country surroundings, including tin toys, Sasa's own artwork, and oldies spinning on the restaurant's jukebox.

Photo courtesy of Dune by Laurent Tourondel

When eyeing spots for a new location, Laurent Tourondel — best known for BLT Steak and BLT Fish in NYC — was intent on dishing out a feast for the eyes. So when Dune became available, elevated atop actual dunes just steps from the Atlantic, boasting one of South Florida's best panoramic waterfront views, it felt as though fate had found him. Today, Tourondel's signature international influences at Dune are reminiscent of his LT Steak & Seafood and the Alley (both at the Betsy Hotel in Miami Beach), where Asian and Mediterranean-inspired seafood dishes pair well with Italian favorites. Take the grilled Spanish octopus, impeccably seared and curled atop a bed of chickpea and chorizo. Or the flatbread sauced with a key lime ponzu alongside slivers of ahi tuna, avocado, and purple shiso. And a seafood ravioli, mascarpone-filled pockets rife with tender shrimp and scallop. If the views fade with the nighttime horizon, soak up the sun over the newly launched brunch. Dishes take a tropical — if hedonistic — turn from the caviar and blue crab served over an open-face croissant with a spicy citrus mousse to the rich and decadent buttermilk-coconut pancakes topped with flambéed banana and a creamy pina colada sauce.

Best Of Miami®

Best Of Miami®