Left: Photo by New Times reader Travis Copeland for Miami New Times. Right: Provided by Yardbird
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Just weeks after promoting new menu offerings, one of South Beach’s most renowned brunch restaurants has suddenly closed its doors.
Famed Miami Beach restaurant Yardbird has abruptly closed after 15 years. The fried chicken and Southern comfort food staple, which opened along Lenox Avenue in 2011, was a hit over the past decade. However, from what New Times can tell, almost nobody saw this closure coming.
New Times learned of the closure from a reader who arrived at the restaurant on Wednesday, August 5. The reader sent New Times three photos depicting what appears to be glass doors and two farewell notices taped to the glass.
As of Wednesday morning, the restaurant’s Google Maps listing reads, “Permanently closed.” However, Yardbird’s website is still advertising regular hours, reservations, weekend brunch, and online ordering for Miami Beach. (It may be in the process of updating.)
This means the closure happened essentially overnight.
Photos by New Times reader Travis Copeland for Miami New Times
Notes to customers on the glass and on OpenTable
One of the notices on the restaurant’s front door reads: “We’ve loved serving each of you for the last 10+ years. Please join us at our other locations while we take time to rebuild.”
But a second, much longer message suggests this isn’t necessarily the end of Yardbird in Miami.
“Thank you for the years of laughter, love, memories, and support. It has been an absolute privilege to serve you and be a part of your lives. Every visit, celebration, and smile has meant more to us than words can express. While our doors are closing for now, we are hopeful this is not goodbye forever. We have plans to reopen in the future! If you’d like to stay updated on our reopening and future announcements, please send us your email address at abracero@runchickenrun.com. We’ll be sure to keep you informed every step of the way. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for being part of our story. We hope to welcome you back again soon. – Yardbird Miami Beach.”
On OpenTable, Yardbird’s listing states, “We thank you for having chosen Yardbird Miami over the years; it has been a pleasure being a part of the community. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience our closure may have caused. We hope you can join us at another Yardbird around the country and world. Thank you, Miami, for 15 years!”
Photo by New Times reader Travis Copeland for Miami New Times
Diners and staff apparently caught completely off guard
Exactly what prompted the sudden closure remains unclear.
One diner said in a Google review posted Wednesday morning that she had a lunch reservation the previous day and only discovered something was wrong when she called to ask about valet parking.
She wrote, in part: “I had a reservation yesterday [Tuesday] for lunch. When I called to ask about valet parking, the man who picked up interrupted me. He yelled that the restaurant was closed and rudely hung up on me. Then, a woman from corporate called about 30 minutes before my reservation and said the restaurant unexpectedly closed. She was calling people with reservations to let them know. I asked what happened, and she said she did not know, but that suddenly, the day or the night before, the restaurant closed—an odd response from a regional restaurant manager.”
If the account is accurate, even members of Yardbird’s corporate team are apparently scrambling to notify guests after the decision was made.
Screenshot via Google
Was Yardbird allegedly serving Miami Spice?
Perhaps the strangest part of the timing is that Yardbird was allegedly participating in Miami Spice 2026 right up until its doors closed. However, according to the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) website, this is not the case. (The Southern restaurant has actually been stripped from the website entirely.)
A Yardbird employee who appears to have managed the Google listing for the restaurant responded to a review, writing, “Thanks for the fantastic recommendation, Just Mike The Poet! We’re thrilled you enjoyed the Spice Menu. Your enthusiasm makes it all worthwhile, and we appreciate your support!”
And just weeks before the closure, Yardbird’s public relations team was sending press materials promoting a new menu item in July. In other words, there was little outward indication that the restaurant that launched the entire Yardbird brand was about to disappear.
Provided by Yardbird
The Miami restaurant that started it all
Winner of countless New Times “Best Of” awards, Yardbird was beloved by many over the past 15 years. Its most recent award was in 2020, when it won a Readers’ Choice for Best Fried Chicken.
Restaurateur John Kunkel opened the original Yardbird in Miami Beach in 2011 under 50 Eggs Hospitality Group, building the restaurant around Southern cooking, hospitality, and family recipes. Fried chicken became its calling card, particularly its famous fried chicken and waffles, alongside deviled eggs, buttermilk biscuits, mac ‘n’ cheese, and other Southern staples.
The restaurant quickly became one of Miami Beach’s defining brunch destinations. By 2018, New Times reported that Yardbird had been named among OpenTable’s 100 Best Brunch Restaurants in America. Weekends could be especially packed. For eight hours every Saturday and Sunday, the restaurant served biscuits, fried chicken, mac ‘n’ cheese, fried green tomatoes, and cocktails to a steady stream of locals and tourists. It became one of South Beach’s longest-running brunches, both in terms of its marathon weekend service and its staying power.
The accolades stretched well beyond Miami. In 2012, Yardbird received a James Beard Foundation nomination for Best New Restaurant, while Bon Appétit recognized it among the country’s best new restaurants. Southern Living praised its fried chicken, and the Bourbon Review recognized Yardbird among America’s best bourbon bars.
Provided by Yardbird
From South Beach to Singapore
Its reputation ultimately transformed a Miami-born restaurant into an international brand.
Yardbird expanded from Miami Beach to Las Vegas, Dallas, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago, and Singapore. Its official website still describes the concept as having begun “in the vibrant heart of Miami Beach.”
However, there’s now one conspicuous city missing from Yardbird’s social media presence. As of Wednesday, Aug. 5, Miami had been removed from the restaurant’s Instagram bio. It now lists only: “Las Vegas • Dallas • Washington D.C. • Los Angeles • Chicago • Singapore.”
For a restaurant born in Miami Beach nearly 15 years ago, that’s one hell of a change to wake up to. And while the signs on the door insist this may not be goodbye forever, for now, the original Yardbird is closed.
New Times has reached out to Yardbird and 50 Eggs Hospitality Group for clarification on what prompted the closure. This story will be updated with more information.
Yardbird. 1600 Lenox Ave., Miami Beach; 305-538-5220; runchickenrun.com. Now closed.
