John Martin’s Irish Pub & Restaurant

For three decades, John Martin’s Irish Pub was the place to grab a pint of Guinness in Coral Gables. The restaurant and pub, opened in 1989 by friends Martin Lynch and John Clarke, was renowned for its cheery atmosphere, live music, and an annual blowout St. Patrick’s Day celebration. The beloved watering hole closed in […]

Karlo Bakery & Cafe

This Silver Bluff bakery slash restaurant is a Latin-style sweets factory. From birthday cakes to pastelitos de queso, Karlo Bakery’s cases run the gamut of deep fried indulgences and sweet treats. They serve savory, too, with hallacas (Venezuelan tamales) croquetas and sammies galore. And for any given occasion, their display-window worthy cakes are perfecto. Chocolate, […]

Kojin

Kojin took the intimacy and inventiveness of its origins as a six-seat pop-up and expanded those elements into a full-fledged Coral Gables restaurant – all without losing its soul. Equal parts creative, hilarious, and kind, chef Pedro Mederos crafts a hyperseasonal, ever-changing menu that fuses Japanese technique with Miami roots, anchored by his now-legendary “Flanigan’s […]

La Dorada

The reason La Dorada has been a mainstay of Giralda Avenue for so many a year is the availability and quality of exceptional seafood from Spain. Thrice weekly fish are flown from the ports of Malaga, including merluza (hake), urta (red-band bream), lubina (striped sea bass), cuttlefish (calamarilike), and dorada (royal sea bream). Golden, greaseless […]

La Gastronomia

The menu hardly breaks away from budget-Italian norms, but when it comes to providing fresh, tasty, uncomplicated fare at an appealingly affordable price, La Gastronomia is as good as it gets. Thin-crust pizzas and fresh pastas don’t disappoint, but two Mediterranean fish, the orata (sea bream) and spigola (sea bass), get flown in every Wednesday […]

La Provence

Miami is known for many things, but great bread is not among them, at least if you haven’t tried La Provence’s hearty, rustic artisanal breads. There’s more than just bread, too, starting with a wide assortment of pastries, from light, flaky croissants to lovely little fruit tarts. More substantial fare includes a variety of panini […]

La Sandwicherie Coral Gables

Since this French-owned eatery began selling sandwiches, salads, smoothies, and shakes in 1988, a crowd has lingered along the lengthy counter at the flagship location that extends up an alley off 14th Street between Washington and Collins Avenues in South Beach. The food is fine, but the funky alfresco charm accounts for a large part […]

La Taberna Giralda

Upon entering La Taberna Giralda, it appears to be more wine shop than dining establishment, as wooden crates and cardboard cases filled with mostly South American bottles take up the restaurant’s entranceway. Like stage props, they provide the requisite setting and mood – that of a quaintly cluttered, Old World bistro. The atmosphere, in fact, […]

Las Culebrinas

Big portions, tasty fare, inexpensive prices — is it any wonder the lines are so long? This Cuban-Spanish café features tapas such as chickpeas sautéed with chorizo, and cold seafood marinated in a vinaigrette dressing. Vaca frita and palomilla are excellent entrées; daily specials tend to be more inventive — fried beef brains, sautéed frog’s […]

Le Proven

Leeks, tomatoes, garlic, onions, olive oil: This is French cuisine that beats the butter-and-cream rap. Le Proven

Lifefood Gourmet

This organic and vegetarian food spot is a small, cute, and modern restaurant that practically screams “healthy.” Surrounded by green, orange, and yellow d