Tiffany
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
Mandolin is a great one. They opened a new 'diner concept' on Biscayne Boulevard in a historic hotel called Gregory's. And it has a poolside bar, which is very fun to hang out at. We go to 27 Restaurant as often as we can. On the modest side, we eat at B and M a lot for lunch. It's a tiny restaurant in the back of a convenience store in little Haiti. It's really, really good. And - Dumpling King is great - it's on 125 street in North Miami,
B&M, Broken Shaker / 27, Dumpling King, Farmer to Farmer, Finca Morada, Gregory's, Little River Cooperative, ...
Stephanie
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
I’m vegan, so I really like Mediterranean foods. I like Daily Bread’s salad bar. In Midtown, the Love Life Café, and in Wynwood – Della Bowls. There’s a lot more vegan food coming out now that is not just salad. As a vegan, people think that’s all we eat.
Noah
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
My favorite in South Miami is Whisk for the crispy brussels sprouts, fried green tomatoes, bacon wrapped dates, the burritos, the barbecue chicken salad, pretty much everything there is good. Joanna's marketplace is our go- to breakfast, cold brew and lunch sandwich spot. And, we've started going to Raw South.
Stephan
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
Not surprisingly, I’m interested in Indian food. One of my favorites is on South Dixie – called Saffron. I’ve eaten Indian food all over the world, and they have some of the best I’ve ever had. I get the paneer makhani – fried cheese with spicy sauce, malai kofta – dumpling with Indian cheese, chickpea flour and gravy. They adjust the spice level to your taste. There’s also a great appetizer with baby spinach leaves, coated in chickpea flour and fried. Another recommendation, if you need quick and cheap Indian food, there’s a place called Bollywood Masala – near the quick stop on Red Road. I get the Dal and Sambar soup. Sometimes they have fresh dosas. It’s a good deal. One dosa is really big and my wife and I can split it for a meal. They have some tables, but it’s mostly take out.
Chris
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
We enjoy a lot of them. Recently, we went to Balloo. I really love Caribbean food and they're doing it so cool. It's real small and they don't take reservations, but the food is top-notch and exciting. They had big a pickled slab of chayote squash with this delicious sweet and spicy chutney. I'm fascinated by and have always wanted to grow chayote. I like to see it on a menu sort of showcased like that. We always make our way out to 27 and Mandolin is always one of our favorites. Boia De is really nice, that's sort of near us. Then there are a couple Mexican places down in Homestead that are good. They're almost all in gas stations. 5 Hermanos on 272 and Krome. It's a food truck at a gas station with a couple of tents.
Miles
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
I try to cook most of the meals at home. If we go out to eat, I've got one vegan and one vegetarian. So we go to places that can accommodate that. A lot of them are in Design District or beach and usually restaurants that I've worked on. For a special occasion, there's a place called Planta in Miami Beach. Everything on the menu is plant-based.
Sebastian
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
I'm an American steak and potatoes guy and I like Italian too. Hillstone never disappoints - I still call it Houstons, and probably always will. The best sandwich is in Broward at Laspadas. It's worth the drive. They put all the ingredients first and then the meat goes on top.
David
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
That list is supremely long. Do we go geographically...alphabetically? My buddy Niven, just opened up (Mamey) a new spot in Coral Gables. The food looks great, but I haven't been yet. The guys that Bar Lab cocktails opened up their natural wine popup on South beach, and it looks amazing. I still haven't gotten my hands on one of those pizzas that Brad and Old Greg's are doing in the Design District. I really miss the eating the ceviche at Itamae on an everyday basis. I still get my share of my EL Bagels - that's like my essential breakfast and brunch item. I still eat a ton of Stanzione's pizzas. I had an amazing lobster roll from Justin Flit and Mike Beltran at Nave. They're doing a New England style clam shack menu on the weekends. Aaron Brooks is doing a pop up at Stanzione 87. It's like a Turkish inspired pide and lahmacun. Aaron is supremely underrated. His food is incredible. One of the silver linings of the pandemic is all the creativity that's coming out of it. I've also had some random homemade things. There's a nice girl, that I met through the Miami food community, that's making homemade Armenian food every weekend. People are signing up and she's selling out every weekend. Her name is The Spicy Dolma. The guys from Kyu, Chef Raheem and his crew, are doing amazing barbecue right out of their front yard. It's impossible to list everyone. Jaguar Sun is doing amazing things right now in Little River. People are finding ways to survive. They're finding ways to thrive. They're finding ways to support their teams and to support their families. All of that is really amazing.
Jason And Melanie
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
Blue Collar. Pho Tang and Caribbean Delite – their vegetarian chickpea and potato roti and the chicken curry paratha are really good.
Saul
What local restaurants or businesses do you recommend?
My family, for years, has been going to LAN PAN Asian. It's solid, consistent, and great. Right now, my wife and I like The Salty Donut in South Miami for coffee and donuts. Their cold brew is fantastic. We like Tigertail and Mary, for something a little hip.