This North Miami wine bar is one of the best bars in the country, Esquire says

Paradis books & bread is about as far from fancy as you can get. The small and homey wine bar/restaurant/radical bookstore doesn’t employ mixologists or serve carefully crafted cocktails with exotic ingredients. You don’t need to dress up to go there (in fact, you might want to wear shorts if you’re sitting outside at one of the old-fashioned concrete tables).

And yet, according to Esquire magazine, it’s one of the best bars in the country.

Amid trendy spots in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and New Orleans, Esquire chose Paradis books & bread as one of the best 25 bars in America. Paradis, which opened almost a year ago in North Miami, is the only Florida bar to make the list even though it only serves wine and beer (and other assorted non-alcoholic beverages).

Esquire praised the spot for its affordability — “few items cost more than ten bucks” and its wine selection, curated by co-owner Bianca Sanon. “Outside under the palm trees,” the article says, “people drink from a bottle list that could give most places in Paris’s 11th a run for their money.” That’s Paris’s 11th arrondissement, an entertainment district with numerous bars, so as far as Esquire is concerned, Paradis is in good company.

Sanon, who owns and operates Paradis books & bread with her partner Brian Wright and friends Sef Chesson, Ben Yen and Audrey Wright, said the team was somewhat stunned by the news.

“It’s super surreal,” she said of Esquire’s list. “We just put our heads down and we work hard. For a national platform to recognize us for what we are feels really cool.”

It has been a year of learning for the proprietors, who have built a small menu around their beloved sourdough bread. The menu continues to change, although you can still find pizzas after 6 p.m., which come topped with squash blossoms, lamb, creamed kale, barbecued chicken or any number of other delights.

Over the past year, Paradis has hosted pop-ups and parties, held chess club meetings and movie nights. There’s a growing wine club with free tastings for members on the first Monday of the month, and the number of wines available at the shop have doubled over the year.

Sanon says the owners are focusing on being a successful owner-operated business — and finding ways to sustain that plan. The biggest lesson they have learned, she said, is that sometimes you have to say no.

“There are so many potential distractions,” she says. “People are approaching us with ideas for changing and expansion. We take that advice into account, but we want to stay true to what we want to do. We want to focus on that.”

Paradis books & bread will host a first-anniversary celebration on Sunday, July 17. Follow @paradis.bb on Instagram for upcoming details.

Paradis books & bread

Where: 12831 W. Dixie Hwy., North Miami

Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Thursday, Sunday and Monday; 11 a.m.-midnight Friday and Saturday; closed Tuesday and Wednesday

More information: pbb.cafe

This story was originally published June 17, 2022 at 6:00 AM.