The Best Jazz Spots in Miami

"Jazz is there and gone," famed Miles Davis pianist and composer Keith Jarrett once said. "It happens. You have to be present for it. It's that simple."

Thankfully, here, in America's most improvisational metropolis, there is no shortage of opportunities to be present for jazz, as is appropriate for a city in which the cultural melting pot and concept of e pluribus unum are still celebrated rather than vilified. "Jazz," the poet and Mellon Foundation President Elizabeth Alexander wrote in a recent Time magazine essay, is "quintessentially American, and the first original art form to be invented in our young country."

"Out of the privation, the challenge, and the censure of slavery and the unfulfilled promise of post-Reconstruction justice, Black musicians embraced experimentation and innovation, ingenuity and joy," she continues, "and a multigenerational call and response speaking truth to power that endures to the present day."

If you want to catch a little of that powerful, ever-regenerating spirit, here are eight Magic City venues in which jazz is alive and well in all its abundant, multifarious glory.

Vice City Kava
2395 Coral Way, Miami
(786) 536-2600
vicecitykava.com

Though its meticulously and conscientiously brewed elixirs are second to none, Vice City Kava serves up much, much more than its eponymous teas. In fact, no space in Miami more closely resembles the Parisian salons of the 18th and 19th century: Here is a crackling, enlivening space where literature, ideas, art, music, and culture — not to mention Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité — all still matter and the reports of the death of kindness and community in these challenging times are proven to be greatly exaggerated, from incredible Monday open mic nights curated by Sofi Sicuso and Thursday Mario Kart tournaments to one-off breathwork seminars and IV-drip revitalizing events. So, perhaps it should not be a surprise that the Vice City Kava Wednesday jazz nights led by the wildly talented Fernando Ulibarri dance upon the tightrope between technical wizardry and ecstatic release. The energy is unique and special — and every other week, you can pair these jams with innovative, peerless vegan sushi stylings of Fish Are Friends. "What we play," Louis Armstrong said of jazz, "is life"— and the same could be said of Vice City Kava. What a wonderful world, right?

Medium Cool
1690 Collins Ave, Miami Beach
(305) 704-3600
mediumcool.miami

Under-promise and over-deliver is evergreen sage advice, and Medium Cool definitely got that memo because there is nothing "mid" about the space — or the snappy, high-level jazz it hosts nightly Wednesday through Sunday. In fact, each step one takes down the stairs into the plush and stylish subterranean cabaret feels like a coolness upgrade by osmosis. Though the room itself is spacious, tasteful small lamp lighting creates little intimate oases from which to watch the trio assemble a fusion of traditional jazz and funk, soul, and even bossa nova. Revealing in their own free-flowing handiwork and bantering with the crowd, the musicians are hardly aloof — and you won't likely be either after bebopping your way through sophisticated and on-brand cocktails such as the Chocolate & Rose Sazerac, It's Always Sunny in Miami, Porn Star Martini, Horse & Carriage Punch Bowl, and more. Bottom line: Head underground for a soaring experience.
Ball & Chain
1513 S.W. 8th Street, Little Havana
(305) 643-7820
ballandchainmiami.com

Nestled directly across from the Tower Theater and Domino Park on Calle Ocho in Little Havana, jazz nights at the legendary Ball & Chain have a lot to live up to. After all, the venue has a history that stretches back to 1935 and has hosted regular performances by icons including Billie Holiday, Count Basie, and Chet Baker. And yet the venue breezily passes that test, inviting patrons to steep themselves in the lore — the classic gig posters and photos will blow your mind— even as the contemporary renditions offer a definitively future-forward soundtrack. The venue itself allows for patrons to improvise as well: You can float back and forth between the main room and the large outdoor backspace, letting the music rise and fall as you have a sidebar convo, order a drink, or sample some amazing Cuban dishes. It's all part of the spirit of '35 and beyond. At Ball & Chain, from deep, extensive sonic roots grow wild and beautiful flowering trees.

The Globe
377 Alhambra Circle, Coral Gables
(305) 445-3555
theglobecafe.com

Though only a couple of blocks off the Miracle Mile beaten path in Coral Gables, passing beneath the epic red-on-red lit façade of this Coral Gables mainstay is like entering another world — one in which baroque era stylings intermingle easily with tropical flourishes and joie de vivre. And the Saturday jazz nights — a nearly three-decade old tradition — are equally eclectic, crossing the streams of straight-ahead and Latin jazz to create a synergy that is equal parts old-favorite-sweater comfiness and brand-new-fit-dress sassiness. The Saturday night menu matches that energy with a selection of creative steak, seafood, and pasta dishes, which you can pair with drinks that mirror the sultriness of the jams: See, for example, Bogie & Bacall, The Temptress, The Centaur Martini, and Siren's Song. Come early to not only get a seat close to the band, but also to check out the amazing Renaissance-style paintings and décor, as well as the classic black and white movies playing on the television behind the bar. Virtually all of it is a conversation starter and — considering how friendly the staff and other patrons are — the experience is definitively communal, whether you arrive with a party of five or solo.

The Corner
1035 N Miami Ave, Miami
thecornermiami.com

Sure, a swanky lounge and a gang of sharply dressed hepcat musicians is wonderful. But if you're craving your jazz delivered in a punchier, more proletarian form in an equally unvarnished setting, The Corner in downtown Miami delivers a powerfully immediate and direct experience every Tuesday night. The general vibe is salt of the earth — the kind of place Rocky would go looking for Paulie. There is a bookcase with some tomes and candles offering a bit of flickering mood lighting. A chalkboard does double duty as a notice of drink specials (Staycation, Smoke Show) and political leanings ("F*CK ICE"). Then, clad in old loose T-shirts and toting glasses of beer, the players stroll casually through the crowd to instruments set up alongside wood paneled walls and venetian blinds. And there, with no real separation either physically or philosophically from the audience, they proceed to put on an invigorating masterclass in how jazz is about feeling, not fashion.
The Sylvester
3456 N Miami Ave, Miami
(305) 364-5635
thesylvesterbar.com

Before passing the red velvet rope of this chic and welcoming midtown lounge, the strains of sound begin to tickle at the parts of your brain where memories and nostalgia are filed away — the inputs are novel yet also foundationally familiar. Maybe you pluck away at the vintage Playboy mansion pinball machine or take a selfie under the floral mural that reads "Another Day in Paradise" as the drum and piano duo continues to emit those delectable signals. Suddenly, you realize the pair is giving new space and colors to Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On." And then the song ends, the drummer hits a four count, and it's onto the next tantalizing mystery as these live reworkings of classic jazz pieces and contemporary soul, R&B, and hip-hop continue. You could probably do this all night — especially with an Albino Gator, Coochie Couture, or Banana Hammock cocktail in hand — and more and more it seems like that floral mural got it right.

Armstrong Jazz House
271 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables
(305) 488-9955
armstrongjazzhouse.com

If the Armstrong Jazz House were someone you matched with on a dating app, every time you text WYD? the immediate response would be JAZZ mother*@ker! Seven days a week, three times a day, this popular, often tightly packed Miracle Mile venue goes hard for its namesake, attracting top-shelf talent to its elevated corner stage. Recently recognized for hosting the best jazz night in Miami, it's an infectious all-hands-on-deck fandom, too — if there's a lull in the action, customer-wise, staffers will bob their heads to the music and whistle encouragement to the band. Even when the players go on break, however, the blue and red lit venue is so festooned with jazz memorabilia and quotes you can almost hear a quiet finger snapping in the background, as if the song never completely stops. "Life is a lot like jazz," one poster reads, likely in reference to the famous quote from George Gershwin — but at the bustling Armstrong Jazz House, that is a two-way street.

Lagniappe House
3425 NE 2nd Ave, Miami
 (305) 576-0108
lagniappehouse.com

To borrow a hook from Portlandia, the dream of the 2010s is alive in Wynwood — at Lagniappe House, specifically. If this booming neighborhood has at times struggled to enact a lasting truce between rising upscale sophistication and foundational free-spirited bohemianism, Lagniappe is a space where the tension between those two aesthetics has not only dissipated, but a real alliance has been forged. This holistic and welcoming approach elevates essentially everything the venue does — whether we're talking about the internationally recognized wine selection, cheese and charcuterie, and, of course, the seven-day-a-week live music, which includes some of the best, most adventurous jazz available in the city. Could it be in this case that one expertise informs the other? "Jazz is like wine," the late, great sax player Steve Lacy said. "When it is new, it is only for the experts, but when it gets older, everybody wants it." Here is a spot where the curation of both the music and nectar of the gods has been aged pretty damn close to perfection.