Miami Spice is big. Let our experts tell you where to eat
Don’t try to do this alone.
There are 243 restaurants participating in Miami Spice this year. Don’t spend six hours of your work day on www.ilovemiamispice.com culling through the list, hiding from your boss until the tech department blocks access to the website.
The Miami Herald food critics and our friends at Indulge and Yelp! Miami gave us their top five picks for Miami Spice this year:
27 Restaurant and Bar
2727 Indian Creek Drive, Miami Beach
The flavors of multiple Miami cuisines, from Haitian to Jewish to Cuban, are given gourmet treatment with ingredients as fresh as its on-site garden. Having: Haitian griot and pikliz (pork shoulder and slaw), shwarma chicken with tzatziki and hot fudge brownie sundae with salted caramel sauce and “filthy” cherries.
Carlos Frías
Miami Herald Food & Dining Editor
Corsair Kitchen and Bar at Turnberry Isle
19999 W. Country Club Drive, Aventura
A little bit country (club). Because I have been wanting to try this spot for a long time now. Having: arugula and duck confit, blackened salmon with sweet summer corn and tomato and salted caramel pudding.
Victoria Pesce Elliott
Food writer and Miami Herald Dining Critic
Bulla Gastrobar
2500 Ponce De Leon Blvd., Coral Gables
Casual and lively Spanish tapas hangout. Having: huevos Bulla — eggs, homemade potato chips, serrano ham, potato foam, truffle oil; rabo de toro — braised oxtail, shishito peppers, bomba rice; copa Bulla — strawberries, green apples, Greek yogurt, toffee foam.
Kendall Hamersly
Miami Herald Features Editor and dining critic
Alter
223 NW 23rd St., Miami
The best excuse for a two-hour lunch in Wynwood. Chef Bradley Kilgore prepares fuel for the imagination. From his lunch-only Spice menu, having: Soft egg with sea scallop espuma, potato puree charred white fish with smoked buratta, puffed potato and onion jam, and chevre panna cotta with olive oil cake, pickled peaches and bay leaf marshmallow.
Jodi Mailander Farrell
Miami Herald dining critic
Timo
17624 Collins Ave., Sunny Isles Beach
Still stunning after all these years. Having: Chef Tim Andriola’s menu changes throughout Spice, and that’s cool with me.
Evan Benn
Indulge Editor-in-chief
Ariete
3540 Main Highway, Coconut Grove
Chef Michael Beltran is making a name for himself with his farm-driven dishes at this handsome Coconut Grove spot. Having: tuna conserva, gnocchi with hunter sausage and house-made doughnuts for dessert.
Sara Liss
Miami.com food writer, First Look columnist
Scarpetta at the Fontainebleau
4441 Collins Ave., Miami Beach
Chef Scott Conant’s acclaimed spaghetti was off the Spice menu last year, but is back this time around. That’s reason enough to go. Having: creamy polenta, spaghetti and warm berry crostata.
Cassie Glenn
Yelp! Miami Community Manager
This story was originally published July 28, 2016 at 11:07 PM.