Miami, Florida 2016

I’ve been to Miami twice this year. One in April and another in December for Art Basel. Both were pretty hot but I would say December was more humid. It is to be sad that March or April is the best month to visit. In April, I’d only stayed in South Beach which resembles the Las Vegas strip with endless hotels, restaurants, bars and the beach instead of casino this time. This recent trip back to Miami, my friend and I rent a car and checked the downtown area and also drove to Key West. I’ve realized that Miami is just more than the beach & resort. It has its unique culture and food that you should definitely check out.

what Joo had in Miami

1. Joe’s Stone Crab, South Beach

This is the restaurant that everyone recommended when I said I am going to South Beach, Miami. It is known for its fresh stone crab and key lime pie. I love its grilled cheese on top of tomato as an appetizer.

• address: 11 Washington Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139
• tel: (305) 673-0365

2. Market at EDITION, South Beach

Market is located inside of Edition Hotel, modern boutique hotel right next to the beach. It is a famous Michelin starred chef Jean-Georges’s casual bakery and cafe. The ambiance is lovely, service is amazing and try its omelette. The best omelette I ever had! Inside of this impeccable surface of the omelette, there is soft creamy goat cheese and sauteed spinach. Believe me, this is nothing similar to what you usually call omelette.

• address : 2901 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140
• tel: (786) 257-4600

3. Cuban Coffee Queen, Key West

There are 2 things that you must have when you are in Key West. One is Cuban sandwich with Cuban coffee and the other is Key Lime Pie. After I watched the movie, Chef by Jon Favreau, I’ve been craving the perfect Cuban sandwich. This perfectly pressed sandwich with pork, cheese, tomato, and lettuce inside can take you to Cuba! Don’t forget to try its Cuban coffee, too.

• address: Key Lime Square, 508 Southard St #5, Key West, FL 33040
• tel: (305) 294-7787

4. Jaya at Setai Hotel, South Beach

I had breakfast and lunch at Jaya. This luxury hotel offers a nice seating area with palm trees. With a hint of Asian touch, its lunch menu offers dimsum and some Asian dishes such as Pad Thai. I would come here for its relaxing ambiance again.

• address: 2001 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139
• tel: (305) 520-6000

5.6. All Day, Miami Down town

Right next to Wynwood Wall, All Day coffee shop offer amazing coffee and cool ambiance. I had its special coffee with rosemary and limeade and it was so refreshing! There are tons of hip coffee shops, cute small shops, galleries and street art near Wynwood Wall. I would say this area is pretty much similar to Brooklyn with more graffiti artists! Must check out this hipster area.

• address: 1035 N Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33136
• tel: (305) 699-3447

7. Blue Heaven, Key West

Blue Heaven is often mentioned as one of the best key lime pies in Key west. We went there for just key lime pie. Honestly, we did not think it was much different from other key lime pies that we had in Miami. Nevertheless, with the meringue foam on top, its visual was pretty unique.

• address: 729 Thomas St, Key West, FL 33040
• tel: (305) 296-8666

8. Taquiza, South Beach

Taquiza offers authentic Mexico tacos in a small outdoor area (you literally need to fight for the seats). They make tortilla chips in front of you! Warm(a bit salty) homemade tortilla chips with a big scoop of guacamole are exactly what you want after swimming in Miami!

• address: 1506 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL
• tel: (305) 748-6099

9. The Dutch, W Hotel, South Beach

There is the Dutch in NYC, too. But I personally prefer the Dutch Miami because of its warm tropical ambiance and nice outdoor area. Its freshly squeezed orange juice, stumptown coffee, fresh out of the oven pastries and all breakfast menu taste and look good. They serve breakfast buffet from 7 am - 11:30 am daily.

• address: 2201 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL
• tel: 305-938-3111

I will share more photos and information of two of my favorite restaurants in south Beach, Miami.

The Dutch Miami

interior

breakfast buffet

outdoor seating area

fresh out of the oven! Still warm and buttery croissant

freshly squeezed orange juice. unlimited refills and couldn’t get enough of it

Baked Eggs, Nouja sausage sofrito, ricotta cheese

My favorite dish! This baked egg dish has spicy kick that I love

Lobster Benedict, Hollandise, Cilantro

Just right !

Yes, I would definitely come here again

Joe’s Stone Crab

Joe’s Cole Slaw

grilled cheese on top of tomato

so delicious!

Finally, hello~my stone crab! So fat and juicy~

so fresh! they pre-crack crabs in the kitchen before serving. Easy to peel of the shells. Time to get your hands dirty 😛

The infamous key lime pie

Perfect ending after you have a good amounts of seafood. Isn’t it amazing how you manage to always have a room for dessert?

After all, Miami is so much more than just the beach. Not to mention its fresh seafood but also, its Cuban and Latin American influenced food is delicious, too! The beach on South Beach, Miami is so clean and pretty. It takes about 10-15 minutes to get to the downtown area from South Beach. If you love arts and photography, you should definitely check out Wynwood. So many colorful artistic graffiti is literally everywhere. There are many cute coffee shops and local shops to check out, as well. The design district is very near Wynwood district. Uber is pretty cheap in Miami. It is easy and convenient to get around by Uber or Lyft in Miami. If you love driving, rent a car and drive to Key West. It takes about 3 ~ 4 hours and the road to get there is beautiful. (however, since it is one lane, you may encounter a heavy traffic time to time)