The Wall Street Journal saved the cover of the Off Duty section in this weekend's print edition for a glossy spread titled "Steakhouses Worth the Splurge." Only three restaurants nationwide made the cut. Out of all the options in Florida, including Tampa's world-famous Bern's Steak House, the spotlight landed on New Times' Best Steakhouse 2025, Sunny's Steakhouse, a Little River newcomer that opened in October 2024.
Sunny's was joined in the coveted feature by La Tête d’Or in New York City, the latest from French culinary titan Daniel Boulud, and Nuri Steakhouse in Dallas, a luxury temple to beef opened by Smoothie King founder and CEO Wan Kim. According to the Dallas Observer, Nuri has already landed on the World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants list, but The Wall Street Journal's nod signals it's officially in the same league as America's heavy hitters.
The article opens with an ode to the steakhouse as the centerpiece of American dining: temples of red meat, leather booths, and tableside bravado. But, it notes, the genre is shifting. "Even as meat prices soar, a new wave of steakhouses is thriving while giving the genre a to-the-studs renovation," the story declares. Sunny's fits that description to a T.
Worthy of a Splurge
Tucked inside a former 1940s bungalow along Northwest Miami Court, Sunny's has become one of those rare places where the experience feels both intimate and celebratory. Co-owned by Will Thompson and Carey Hynes, the same duo behind the former Jaguar Sun restaurant, Sunny's was initially launched as a pop-up during the pandemic. It was such a hit that they turned the pop-up into a beautiful, permanent, full-service restaurant in Little River.Yes, there are prime cuts and luxe sides — the bone-in ribeye, the pommes dauphine, the wedge salad reimagined with local greens — but also the kind of low-key warmth you don’t always find in a steak palace. Here, whether you sit outside under its bistro-lit tree on the patio, take a seat at the beautiful bar, or sit at a booth in the Florida-style dining room facing beautiful French-style doors, you are in for a treat. From the extensive cocktail list that has an entire section dedicated to gin and custom vodka martinis (they're some of the best in Miami) to its scrumptious array of pasta dishes, outstanding steaks, full raw bar, and exciting desserts, Sunny's is a pure delight. Plus, there are plenty of nonalcoholic and low-ABV options, as well. National recognition has been pouring in. Food & Wine named Sunny's one of the 15 Best U.S. Restaurants of 2025. The Michelin Guide added it to its recommended Miami list in March. And in April, Condé Nast Traveler featured it on its 2025 Hot List, an annual roundup of the best new restaurants in the world.
For a restaurant barely a year old, that's an avalanche of accolades. So next time someone insists you need to fly to New York for the ultimate steakhouse experience, remind them: one of the best is already here, glowing quietly in Little River.
Sunny's Steakhouse. 7357 NW Miami Ct., Miami; sunnysmia.com.
