Miami eats like the crossroads it is — Cuban, Haitian, Peruvian, Colombian and Floridian traditions folding into one another. Skip the influencer traps and follow the ventanita queues instead.
The Cuban essentials
Breakfast is a cortadito and a tostada pressed at a sidewalk window in Little Havana; Versailles is the institution, but the smaller cafeterias serve just as well. For lunch, a Cuban sandwich and a batido de mamey. Come dinner, ropa vieja and moros y cristianos anchor the classic criollo table.
Stone crabs and the sea
In season, October to May, Miami is defined by stone crab claws served chilled with mustard sauce. Joe's Stone Crab in South Beach is the century-old temple; expect a wait and a bib. For raw bar and ceviche, the Peruvian cebicherias of the mainland outshine anything on the beach.
Where the flavour really lives
The most exciting food is off the beach — the Haitian griot of Little Haiti, the arepas of Doral, the Argentine parrillas of the suburbs. Rent a car, cross the causeway and eat where Miami's communities actually live.
