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It’s time to announce the winners of the 2019 Eater Awards for Miami. These establishments are the cream of the crop, the ones that best represent the unique culinary and dining culture of Miami. Thank you to everyone who chimed in during our month-long call for entries. Below, find out more about the editor’s choice winners, which have all received the iconic Eater tomato can.
Restaurant of the Year
Boia De
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While fried chicken and tacos from popular food truck La Pollita might have put culinary duo Luciana Giangrandi and Alex Meyer on the map — Boia De, their brick-and-mortar outpost that debuted this summer made them culinary stars. This charming, albeit small, restaurant tucked away in a strip mall, lets the pair show off their extensive fine dining backgrounds. The menu features some of the most creative dishes in the Magic City like crispy potato skins topped with with burrata, caviar, and hardboiled egg or baked clams with ‘nduja, all paired with hard-to-find vintages, have made this newcomer a gem that everyone seems to be seeking out.
Design of the Year
Le Jardinier
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Design District restaurants are rarely low-key establishments, and this one is no different. The ultra-swanky eatery Le Jardinier went over-the-top in its decor in the best possible way. Designed by award-winning French architect Pierre-Yves Rochon, it features black and white marble walls and floors, sky-high windows, bright green mid-century modern seating, and a vertical garden serving as a focal point on the back wall (for those who don’t want to grab a seat in the tranquil patio). And for an extra special touch, an illuminated spiral staircase leads up to the second-floor L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, its sister restaurant.
Bar of the Year
Cafe La Trova
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When longtime friends and business partners, James Beard Award-winning chef, Michelle Bernstein, and cocktail maker and cantinero, Julio Cabrera, teamed up to bring Miami their ode to Cuban cocktail culture, Cafe La Trova, they had an instant hit on their hands. But this lively bar and eatery in the heart of Little Havana is really two spaces in one. In the front, guests can sip on whimsical cocktails that are served by bartenders properly dressed in bow ties and jackets while swaying to live music and dining on dishes like paella croquetas. While in the back, a cheeky take on 80s cocktail culture pouring updated spins on drinks like the Cosmo keeps the party going well into the night.