The Best Restaurants In Coconut Grove

Maybe your days of partying till sunrise are behind you. But if you still want to engage in some classic Miami indulgence—all while feeling like a classy adult—make a reservation at Ariete. If you're celebrating, get the canard a la presse. They wheel this medieval-looking machine to the table, compress various parts of the duck into a sauce, then use that sauce to smother the best duck you’ll ever taste. They also do one of Miami's best tasting menus. But even if you go a la carte, you're in for a meal full of unique, seasonal dishes that could only exist in Miami.

Shore to Door is a fish market that also operates as a restaurant on the weekend. There’s no menu here. Instead, the cook—who might be in the middle of cleaning a fish—will tell you what came in off the boat that morning. It could be fried grouper bites, whole yellowtail snapper, wahoo fish dip, or stone crabs. But it will be delicious, and you can eat it in their fantastic backyard, which has a bunch of mismatched furniture and an atmosphere that feels very Key West. If you want a beer, just pop open the cooler and help yourself. You'll pay at the end of your meal.

Le Bouchon can trick your brain into thinking you’re in France for an hour and a half. For one, they give you free champagne when you sit down. Also, the interior has the look and personality of a lively Parisian bistro. The menu features comforting French dishes served in generous portions. Start with the garlicky escargots. The foie gras with crispy slices of toast is another starter worth getting on the table. And the mussels are great. They easily feed two or three and come in a massive cast iron pot with a big pile of crispy french fries.

You can come to this small counter for some of Miami's best sushi and not spend more than $30 on a filling donburi bowl. If you’re willing to spend a bit more, they have omakase options under $100. We love the chirashi omakase that comes with twelve pieces of sashimi, salmon roe, seaweed salad, and sweet pickled mushrooms over sticky sushi rice. But the handrolls—each with a perfect ratio of rice, fish, and wasabi—are our favorite. Inside, there’s white oak furniture, a school of tiny ceramic fish on the green wall, and a couple of tables outside. It's a peaceful spot perfect for a solo meal.

The El Bagel location on Virginia Street and Grand Ave is the best thing to happen in the Grove since those bed races in the ‘80s. It’s slightly smaller than the one on Biscayne—but still makes the best bagels in Miami. There's nowhere to eat inside, but you can always walk over to Peacock Park and let the salty breeze wash over you and your everything bagel. This location has a line out the door (and down the block) on weekends. You can place an order online in advance—but only for unadorned bagels and sides of schmear. If you want a bagel sandwich (and you do) get there early and plan accordingly.

Emissary is usually busy with folks at the counter pecking at keyboards and puppies lounging on the brick sidewalk awaiting falling croissant flakes. Unlike them, you can have a full breakfast at this cafe and coffee bar. The food comes out fast, so you’ll likely get your granola parfait or cheesy egg sandwich before your laptop can power up. The rest of the menu is just what you want at a cafe like this: yogurt, eggy things, and pastries. They pull a great espresso, and it's perfect if you're looking for a quick salad or sandwich loaded with Italian meats for lunch.

Most Miami gas station food consists of shriveled hotdogs and sketchy Jamaican beef patties, but El Carajo is a gas station where you’ll actually want to eat. Past the pumps, candy, and cigarettes, there’s a really great Spanish restaurant in the back. Pick out a bottle of wine from their giant selection and start with a big tabla of manchego cheese, jamon serrano, chorizo, and quince before moving on to sweet bacon-wrapped dates and plump gambas al ajillo. But El Carajo isn’t just great for tapas. They also have tender lamb chops and paellas perfect for big group celebrations.

This place is part restaurant, part market and specializes in very good Middle Eastern food. Once you claim your spot in the cafeteria-style line, you can pick a salad, platter, or pita wrap, which you can order with things like falafel, kafta, shawarma, and sides including stuffed grape leaves and za’atar fries. It might be tough to get a table during the lunch rush, but you can always kill time browsing the market, or just eat in your car. There aren't many places left in Miami where you can eat this good for under $15.

Chug’s may not have the price point of your average diner, but it has the DNA of one. Inside there are booths, counter seating, and laminated menus you can flip through on each table. We like this place best for breakfast or brunch. The menu has a great mix of straightforward Cuban classics—like a hefty completa—and creative versions of classics, including a frita patty melt and a huge cast iron pancake. Like any great diner, dessert (pie, specifically) is a good idea. And if you’re in a rush, their ventanita is perfect for a quick cafecito and a pastelito.

Barracuda is the old hippy heart of the Grove—a nautical bar with beer pong, a pool table, and pink benches set in the middle of Fuller Street. It’s a great place to grab a beer with friends after dinner or day drink on a Saturday. They also serve food—like what they call “the best snapper sandwich you’ve ever had.” They're overselling it just a tad, but it is a great sandwich, and we order ours blackened. Cuda is just one of those places where you’re guaranteed to run into old friends or make temporary new ones out of strangers.

The list of things we love about Krüs is longer than the spiral staircase you take to get to the dining room. On that list is fresh bread so delicious you won't be mad it's not free, an atmosphere that does for date nights what gamma radiation did for Bruce Banner, and glass block windows that face west and make the entire restaurant feel like one big flickering candle during sunset. Their seasonal menu—heavy on local produce, crudo, and pasta—can be a bit unpredictable, but get the heirloom tomatoes if it's on the menu, and any form of mushroom is usually a safe bet.

Los Félix is the sister restaurant to Krüs, located directly underneath it. But the big difference is the food. Los Félix serves Mexican dishes, most of which use the house speciality: fresh milled masa. It’s deployed in pretty much every rotating dish, some of which stick the landing better than others. But menu staples like the pork cheek carnitas and grilled octopus tacos have never let us down. Come here with a small group (ideally just two of you), because the dishes are small. Or come for one of Miami's best brunches, especially if you're a chilaquiles enthusiast.

Back in the day, your CocoWalk food options consisted of The Cheesecake Factory, Hooters, and Fat Tuesday. Now, thankfully, Eva has raised the bar. The Mediterranean restaurant is casual enough for last-minute plans but ambitious enough to impress a date who loves dips. Perch at a hightop with coworkers at Eva’s excellent Happy Hour and share a bottle of Greek wine at half price. Or settle into a banquette on a third date for a meal full of reliable staples like branzino, lamb chops, and muhammara.

Similar to Omakai in Wynwood, the Coconut Grove location is a good place to have a casual multi-course sushi meal on a budget. There are three options to choose from, but the Oma deluxe is the best deal. For $50, you get an appetizer, ten pieces of nigiri, and two handrolls. And during lunch, it’s eight pieces of nigiri for $40. Stick to the deluxe, and don’t be tempted to get the $95 Omakai experience, which includes too many clunky, overloaded nigiri. Service moves fast—it feels like a sushi speed date.

This great Argentinian restaurant is small—with the exception of its portions. And if you're really hungry, you're coming here for one of the parrilla options with your choice of meat(s) and fries or a salad. The dining room looks like a Buenos Aires bistro—but the best seats are outside on a tiny deck elevated about a foot off the ground. Sit there and you might feel like royalty as you watch everyone else eat at normal height. They also have the earliest weekday Happy Hour in the Grove, which goes from 3pm-6pm.

If you’re looking for a casual burger in or around Coconut Grove, Lokal will always be there for you. But even if you’re not craving their version of a frita—with potato stix, bacon, and guava jelly—it’s still worth coming here for the fried alligator and a beer. You can stare at all the dogs people bring here while you consume both. Also, check out the vermouth bar next door after you're done, which Lokal also runs.

A.C.’s Icees is one of the last remaining bits of old Coconut Grove and an essential hot summer day pit stop. The food truck serves the best frozen lemonade in Miami and has been run by longtime Grove resident Allan Cohen since 1978. It's usually parked right outside Kennedy Park. There is truly nothing better when it feels like 174 degrees outside than one of Cohen's frosty frozen lemonades (maybe a hot dog too). After you've secured yours, take a walk through Kennedy Park and enjoy a perfect afternoon in the Grove.

Bombay Darbar is a great place to have a big Indian meal. It’s not a very subtle dining room, and the blue-and-purple neon lighting makes you feel like you’re about to see David Guetta, not eat some very tasty lamb vindaloo. The menu is a massive greatest hits of basmati rice dishes, chicken, lamb, and things from the tandoor oven. The only hard ordering rule is to make sure you’ve got some naan on the table.