Parcela Opens Inside Life House Little Havana Hotel With Plant-Forward Food and Drinks

Life House Little Havana recently opened as the neighborhood's first boutique hotel, and soon it will also offer locals and guests a first look at Parcela, the brand's signature veggie-forward café.

Occupying the former Jefferson Hotel, Life House is located in the Riverview Historic District. Minutes from Calle Ocho, the property has been designed to embody the spirit of the neighborhood, blending local history and culture through its food, beverage, and music program.

Located on the first floor of Life House, Parcela is slated to open Friday, March 22. It will specialize in local-minded dishes inspired by the urban agriculture movement of Havana, Cuba.

According to Parcela's food and beverage creative director, Brian Griffiths, the café is influenced by Miami's wealth of Latin cuisine to offer a modern take on light items, many of which will be vegetarian and vegan.

Griffiths, who previously worked at the Broken Shaker at the Freehand Miami, says the inspiration for Parcela began by researching ingredients that could be sourced locally and have strong ties to the neighborhood.
"We'll be sourcing edible ingredients from our forthcoming rooftop food forest to highlight our overarching urban agriculture inspiration," Griffiths says. "We've partnered with some of Miami’s finest purveyors, including Per’La Specialty Roasters, JoJo Tea, True Loaf Bakery, and Bloodless Vegan, to feature an all-day menu."

Parcela will serve breakfast daily from 7 to 11 a.m. Hot dishes include the Mallorca, a sandwich that combines free-range eggs, Proper Sausages Wynwood porter, and white cheese on a sweet brioche-style Mallorca bun; a Puerto Rican-style sweet bread made by True Loaf Bakery; and Florida Aguacate, a vegan take on avocado toast prepared with True Loaf's multigrain toast, Florida avocado, roasted tomato, cucumber, and a hemp seed mix; and an assortment of Cuban-style pastelitos, one of which is vegan.

For lunch and dinner, guests can choose from a selection of salads, sandwiches, and bowls available on the café's all-day menu from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Latin-inspired dishes include a pan con bistec that can be made with churrasco or Adashah — a vegan alternative made in Miami — for a classic Cuban sandwich.

The café will also offer a specialty coffee and tea program sourcing from Miami-based purveyors. The menu will offer an array of classic Cuban ventanita favorites — the same kind you'll find at the best walk-up coffee windows across the city — as well as new creations by Parcela head barista Sara Ypsilanti, including her own version of an iced coconut Americano. The spot will also have a biodynamic, natural, and organic wine program featuring selections from Spain and Latin America, each crafted with sustainable practices in mind, and a rotating list of local beer.

The hotel features 33 guest rooms, a living-room-style lobby, a library, a co-working space, and a courtyard garden. Later this spring, a rooftop bar and restaurant will open, offering tapas and sharable plates inspired by Latin street foods.

Parcela at Life House Little Havana. 528 SW Ninth Ave., Miami; lifehousehotels.com. Daily 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.