More Michelin-starred restaurants have Miami Spice deals this year. Here’s where to go
How many Michelin-starred restaurants are participating in this year’s Miami Spice?
More than you might think.
The annual promotion from the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, which runs through the end of September, offers fixed price, three-course menus for brunch, lunch and dinner. With a record-breaking 353 restaurants participating this year, Miami Spice can be a good deal for diners whose dollars are already stretched to the breaking point by high prices.
Five of Miami’s 14 Michelin-starred restaurants have joined Spice this year: Cote Miami and Le Jardinier in the Design District; Ariete and Los Felix in Coconut Grove; and Stubborn Seed in Miami Beach. Florida’s only two-star restaurant, L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, is offering a special signature experience as well.
Only Cote, a Korean steakhouse that offers a lunch menu, and the French Le Jardinier participated in last year’s Spice, with Cote being the trailblazer in 2022, the first year Miami restaurants were awarded Michelin stars.
READ MORE: We tried the Miami Spice menus at these local restaurants. Here’s what we liked
Cote’s executive chef David Shim said being the first Michelin-starred spot to join Spice then was “a big decision.”
“We wanted to make sure we were delivering the same quality as we would for dinner,” he said. “It took some time to create the menu. We want to give diners, whether they’re locals or tourists, the best we can offer and didn’t want to put out something that didn’t speak to our restaurant.”
Cote is crafty in its choices, offering two popular entrees that have been taken off the menu: The Optimus Prime prime rib sandwich and a limited-edition fried chicken. This is the only time all year you can order either one.
The restaurant also offers a few of its regular menu items, like a delicious vegetarian bibimbap and the famous Butcher’s Feast, which includes USDA prime hanger steak, dry-aged rib eye and marinated galbi, all grilled tableside for a $25 upcharge. It’s one of the few worthwhile Spice upgrades.
Complimentary wine and cocktails (and music)
In its first year, Le Jardinier successfully lured diners to Spice, said Deleon Pinto, chief operating officer for the Bastion Collection, so joining the promotion for a second time made sense. The restaurant has even added a couple of special incentives, offering a complimentary glass of rosé on Mondays with any dinner reservation and complimentary Cierto tequila-based drinks with any dinner reservation on Wednesdays.
An added bonus: there’s moody, dreamy live jazz on Wednesdays. If you’re eating upstairs at sister restaurant L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, you’ll hear the music piped in up there as well.
L’Atelier’s signature experience, which costs $135, includes cold poached lobster with corn gelée, tomato, and Fresno coulis; a stunning carrot dish with a golden beet emulsion, chanterelies and bite-size yucca fritters; and tender beef filet with vegetable cannelloni stuffed with artichokes and black truffle. You also can enjoy L’Atelier’s house-baked bread as part of your meal (we like the mini baguettes best).
Pinto, who estimates the restaurants see a 20 to 25 percent increase in business due to the promotion, said the Bastion Collection takes the promotion seriously because it benefits the restaurants in many ways.
“Spice definitely helps us in the summer,” he said. “It’s a slower time, and we notice that Miami Spice brings in a lot of clients. . . . and those people start coming more often. We see the new faces more than once.”
Spice is also a good way to keep staff members working during the dog days, helping the restaurants avoid temporary layoffs or work cutbacks.
“It keeps the staff busy and motivated throughout summer,” Pinto said. “We don’t have to make changes to their schedules.”
Other Michelin-starred restaurants
Joining Spice for the first time this year is Jeremy Ford’s Stubborn Seed, which borrows from its tasting menu and the a la carte service at the bar, but brings in some fresh offerings, too.
Highlights include a decadent potato gnocchi and confit duck in a vichyssoise, potato-crusted swordfish and the new pork belly with confit maittake mushrooms, beets, vanilla roasted grapes and a stunning housemade beet jus.
Part of Grove Bay Hospitality Group, Stubborn Seed is happy to welcome newcomers trying the restaurant for the first time during Spice, said Grove Bay CEO and co-founder Francesco Balli.
“I think Spice brings the restaurant industry together, and I’m glad to see other Michelin restaurants in the community also participating,” he said. “Our local community has been supporting us at Stubborn Seed from day one and by participating in Miami Spice we hope to invite them back in.”
At Michael Beltran’s Ariete, try venison tartare with black garlic, capers and grilled shitake or crudo to start, then move on to duck Wellington, Scottish sea trout or a chicken with avocado soubise and chanterelle mushrooms.
Just down Main Highway, Los Felix from Chef Sebastian Vargas is offering pork cheek carnitas for dinner, but at $35, its lively brunch menu may be the best way to go, with egg tostadas, chilaquiles or black bean casserole. Los Felix was also awarded a Michelin Green Star earlier this year for its sustainable practices.
Bib Gourmands and recommended Michelin restaurants
There are 18 Michelin-recommended restaurants participating this year, including The Gibson Room, Fiola, Mignonette, Joe’s Stone Crab, and Los Fuegos and Pao by Paul Qui at Faena Miami Beach.
Four Bib Gourmands, restaurants so designated because they serve good food at a reasonable price, are participating, too: Beltran’s Chug’s Diner in the Grove, Michael’s Genuine in the Design District, Doya in Wynwood and Phuc Yea on Miami’s Upper East Side.
Ani Meinhold, who operates the Vietnamese spot Phuc Yea with Chef Cesar Zapata, said that they always find it worthwhile to participate in Miami Spice.
“To be honest, we have always relied heavily on Miami Spice, from the day we opened,” she said. “It’s a great vehicle to drive new people to our restaurant. We’ve always used it as a way to attract new diners and establish relationships with them.”
She’s not surprised more restaurants have joined the promotion this year: 2024 has been a cruel summer in terms of business, and the worst (September) is yet to come.
“This year is particularly brutal,” she said. “I don’t usually have slow summers, but July knocked the wind out of me. I think everyone is feeling the bite. . . . Miami Spice is a program that 1,000 percent supports our industry and stimulates our economy. The days when some people looked down on it should be long gone.”
Miami Spice 2024
Where: Participating restaurants around Miami-Dade County
When: Through Sept. 30
Cost: $30-$35 for brunch and lunch; $45 or $60 for dinner; signature dining experiences vary
Full list of participating restaurants: www.miamiandbeaches.com
This story was originally published August 19, 2024 at 4:30 AM.