Miami is a city with so much to offer from food, to activities, to nightlife. Food in Miami is definitely a must-try! With the crossroads of Cuban, South America, Caribbean, and American food there are some truly unique foods to try while visiting. Below are some of our favorites and must-try local food.
There are so many unique activities in Miami. One of the best parts about traveling to this area of Florida is truly the food fusion. You will not experience food like this elsewhere. Miami prides itself on fresh produce and even fresher seafood. You truly cannot go wrong here.
Breakfast in Miami
Pastelitos de Guava
Starting off strong with these famous Cuban pastries. They are flaky puff pastry with a paste of guava inside then baked to perfection. Guava is a popular fruit in Cuban and Caribbean cuisine. It is a sweet berry-like flavor in a reddish color. There are also pastelitos with meat inside, so make sure to confirm what you order if not you might be in for a strange surprise! The meat pastelitos are also delicious.
Cuban Coffee
This is the strongest coffee in Miami. I do not recommend drinking it all alone. It is made for sharing. The strongly brewed coffee is mixed with a healthy amount of sugar and handed to you with a small stack of tiny shot cups for sharing. You’ll pour out the coffee into the small cups and pass them around.
Bagels
I know NYC bagels are all the hype, but hear me out, Miami has incredible bagels. There are several shops that make bagels fresh every day. Since there is a large population of people that moved from New York to Miami, bagel shops needed to be good. So here are some of my favorite places to get the best bagels!
Bagel Shop Miami–>This bagel shop is a staple in Miami.
Toasted Bagelry & Deli–> The Little Havana Bagel sandwich is so good.
Einstein Bros Bagels –> Get the chocolate chip bagel toasted with a plain shmear
El Bagel–> I like the EB Original and the Lox Special.
Nutella Stuffed French Toast
The Greenstreet Cafe is a popular cafe in Coconut Grove. On weekends it is packed and the wait can be hours long. They have both indoor and outdoor seating. We love going there for breakfast. Luckily breakfast is served until 2:45 pm. They have so many delicious options. The Nutella Stuffed French toast is a MUST GET with a side of breakfast potatoes. You’ll be dreaming about this for ages to come.
Food in Miami
Croquetta
These are the best thing to ever happen. Get them often and everywhere and then take some home. I like ham croquettas the most. There are also cheese, beef, and chicken ones. During the Lenten season, the tuna corquettas are incredibly popular. Now you’re wondering “Well, what are croquettas??”
I’m glad you asked. They are like nuggets but not at all. It is a Bechamel sauce mixed with ham that is then breaded and deep-fried. It is a warm gooey center with a crisp fried outside. Given their small size, you really feel like you can eat 100 in one sitting.
Tortilla Espaรฑola
This is a potato, onion, and egg masterpiece. The potatoes are sliced thinly, cooked, and combined with the onion and eggs. This mixture is then baked until it is golden to perfection. You can of course order a whole tortilla or you can get it by the slice. Either way is the great snack or lunch option. Some places will add chorizo to the tortilla and others make sandwiches out of the tortilla. Both are incredible options.
Cachito
This is a Latin American cross between a ham sandwich and a hot pocket. Delicious bread dough is wrapped around a lot of ham and then baked to perfection. What is left is a small baguette-looking bread that is stuffed full of ham. I personally enjoy going to Don Pan for cachitos.
Tequeรฑos
Imagine your mozzarella stick but with a new life! That’s what a tequeรฑo entails. It is essentially a mozzarella stick that has dough wrapped around it then it is either baked or deep-fried. Either method of cooking is delicious! The cheese melts beautifully and there is nothing quite as good.
Lechon
This traditional Christmas pork is found year-round in all Cuban restaurants. I prefer going to Versailles in Little Havana for my Cuban food. This pork is marinaded with a specific Mojo sauce, then slowly cooked with onions. The pork is then shredded. It is generally served with rice and plantains. I also like getting plantain chips (mariquitas) instead of platano maduros (sweet fried plantain).
Cuban Sandwich
The traditional Cuban sandwich is also called the Medianoche or “midnight” sandwich. This sandwich is Cuban bread, ham, lechon, pickles, Swiss cheese, and pickles. Then it is pressed panini style. This is my mom’s favorite Cuban food, she always orders this sandwich when we go to a Cuban restaurant.
Check out all the fun and unique things to do in Miami
Venezuelan or Colombian Empanadas
If you look at my Argentina posts you know that I rave about empanadas! Now Argentine empanadas are baked while Colombian or Venezuelan empanadas are fried. They are very different flavors and so it is definitely worth trying out. Even the beef mixture inside the empanadas is different than the ones you will find in Argentina. You’ll be able to find empanadas everywhere.
Desserts & Sweets in Miami
Nitrogen Ice Cream
There are some really delicious ice cream places, the coolest one would be the nitrogen ice cream kind. It is cool because you can create your own ice cream equation. You select if you want ice cream or frozen yogurt as well as any toppings that are mixed in. Then they freeze your ice cream right in front of you with a mixer and liquid nitrogen. You do not taste the nitrogen.
Tres Leches
Tres Leches may very well be Larry’s favorite dessert. Personally, I think the one that Winn-Dixie (yes a grocery store) makes is one of the best ones out there. It is a yellow, spongy cake that is soaked in a mixture of three types of milk. The cake is left to soak as long as possible to make it truly moist. Then it is topped with a whipped cream. For quatro leches, they’ll put caramel on top instead of whipped cream. If you slightly squish the cake it should have liquid flow out, if not it is not a good tres leches.
Flan
This is essentially a caramel custard. It has a creamy texture like a creme brulee. The top of the flan has caramel on it. Unlike a creme brulee, it does not have a crunchy top. It is also firmer as it can stand alone outside of its mold. You can find it as a dessert in most restaurants.
Bridageiros
Hailing from Brazil, these little chocolate balls are basically crack. It is a mixture of condensed milk and chocolate which is continuously cooked until a thick sticky mixture. It is then rolled into balls and rolled through chocolate sprinkles. They are a special occasion dessert for sure! The best place for these Brazilian treats is at OMG Brigadeiros. They have espresso and brigadeiro combos which are delicious.
Fireman Derek’s Pies
A cult favorite in Miami is the pies at Fireman Derek’s. They have an award-winning key lime pie which is a creation and tradition of Southern Florida, more specifically the Florida Keys. I am always more partial to the chocolate flavor pies over anything else. So I’m a Nutella gal over here.
All About the Food in Miami
There are so many delicious foods to eat in Miami. Since you’ll be visiting Miami, you definitely need to try these different foods for the full Miami experience. I especially love desserts in Miami if you get nothing else stop by a Winn-Dixie or Fresco and buy a Tres Leche. That’s my number one recommendation.
